Euro Cup 2012: Underrated Squads Who Will Make Surprise Runs

With the start of the 2012 Euro Cup less than one month away, the futbol world is getting ready to take center stage to determine which is best.

While all the focus will be on the favorites—Spain and Germany—the field has great depth and a lot of the squads that aren't getting talked about right now are poised to make surprise runs through the tournament. 

So while you are filling out the bracket pools at work, be sure to keep an eye on these three squads in the Euro Cup.

England

The English squad suffered a setback against Holland in February, but prior to that, they defeated Sweden and Spain, two of the favorites coming into the Euro Cup. 

England didn't even make it to the Euro Cup in 2008, so clearly this is a country on the rise. Wayne Rooney was on fire during qualifying, scoring three times, including a two-goal performance against Bulgaria. He will have to sit out the first two matches against France and Sweden thanks to the tackle heard 'round the world. 

As long as England can tread water in those first two matches without Rooney, it will be able to come out of Group D. 

France

We might as well stay with Group D and the suddenly underrated French squad. It has been a long time since France was thought of as an underdog, but things have quickly fallen apart for the country's futbol squad. 

The whole roster has been rebuilt and Laurent Blanc is steering the ship back in the right direction in anticipation of a big Euro Cup. 

It is going to take some time for this squad to get back to the level it used to be at, but Blanc has them playing as well as they have in two years entering the Euro Cup. 

Poland

One of the biggest things Poland has going for it is an incredibly weak draw. Group A includes Greece, Russia and the Czech Republic, and not one of those squads has much of a chance to do any serious damage. 

The Polish squad is far from the most talented group out there, but with bad competition early, it can build momentum and start to feel its way through the group stage before running into the big boys in the knockout phase. 

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