The European Championship has come around again this summer and although none of the home nations are in this competition I still believe it will be an exciting one. The big teams such as France, Italy, Germany and Spain have all made it along with Portugal and Holland.
Personally my money would be on France for this tournament. I think the goals of Benzema and Henry could be enough to carry them through. History has shown that usually a team from 'the group of death' has gone on to grace the final and I just feel that without their captain and leader, Cannavaro, Italy may well be a bit suspect at the back. France were severe underdogs going into the 2006 World Cup and made it to the final. If it had not been for Zidane's moment of madness the final outcome may have been different considering Zidane rarely misses penalties. This tournament however seems to be more promising for them as their team has gelled well in qualification.
Germany also have a very good chance of winning the competition because of the way the draw has been made. On paper the only difficult team that Germany could face before the final is Portugal, meaning they will avoid Italy, France, Spain and Holland. Perhaps the luck is with the Germans this year. They've also only had to make the short trip over the border to Austria and Switzerland no doubt bringing an army of fans.
Out of the other teams it is difficult to see a genuine challenger purely because the other teams don't look as if they will score enough goals. Croatia would have been a possibility if Eduardo hadn't suffered that horrific injury as would Romania but unfortunately they are drawn in a group with Holland, Italy and France so it is looking unlikely that they will make it to the knock-out stages. Czech Republic are a possibility but as Greece have shown us, anybody can win the Euro's and that is what makes it such a great tournament to watch.
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