Euro 2012: Dark Horses That Will Shock Top Contenders

Time to talk about countries other than Spain, the Netherlands and Germany, and focus on the legitimate dark horses that have the ability to send shockwaves through the football world.

There's great intrigue in the group pairings, especially in Group D which features England and France.  

Let's take a look at which teams have the best shot to upend the favorites in Euro 2012.  

Russia 

Russia made an impressive run in Euro 2008 by reaching the semifinals before it was defeated by Spain, the eventual champion. 

It returns its core of players, such as Sergei Ignashevich, Konstantin Zyryanov and Andrei Arshavin, from the 2008 squad.

Arshavin is tied for third all-time in Russian history with 17 goals in 68 matches. 

The Russians lost to Slovakia in qualifying for Euro 2012, its only defeat. 

It has been known to underachieve in the past, but this is a veteran club certainly has the make up to make a deep run in this year's Euro Cup and contend for the title. 

Playing in Group A with the Czech Republic, Poland and Greece, it should emerge on top and face the Group B runner-up, which could be Germany, Portugal or the Netherlands. 

Portugal 

Although Portugal has dynamic scorer Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United's winger Nani on its attack, playing in a extremely competitive and talented group that features Germany and the Netherlands certainly won't prove to be an easy road to the finals. 

Ronaldo and Nani are premier goal scorers, so they're obviously the X-factors for the Portuguese. If they're held in check, Portugal might have trouble making it to the second round.

But if they're hot and get an abundance of scoring chances, the Portuguese could make a deep run like they did in 2004 when they reached the final where they ultimately fell 1-0 to Greece. 

Don't forget about midfielder Raul Meireles, either. He had two goals for Chelsea in the Premier League this year.

Sweden 

Grouped with France and England, it'd be easy to discount the Swedes in Euro 2012. However, England was atrocious in the 2010 World Cup, losing in the knockout stage 4-1 to Germany after a win and two draws in group play.

The English are talented, but are prone to fall apart on the bigger international stage. 

France is the eerily similar— an experienced bunch that has also recently collapsed on the international stage. 

It finished last in group play at the 2010 World Cup, after failing to pick up a win against Uruguay, Mexico or South Africa. 

Karim Benzema is a crafty play maker for the French, and he needs to show up from the start to keep the French competitive. 

For Sweden, captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who scored five goals in qualifying—including a hat trick in a 5-0 win over Finland—will lead the Swedish attack against France and England in hopes of knocking either out of the tournament. 

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