Euro 2012: Short-Handed England Doomed to Early Elimination

The English national team is a proud group of footballers, but the depleted squad won't have enough talent and chemistry to escape the group stage at Euro 2012.

It's been a tumultuous buildup to the tournament for the Three Lions, who have been dealt blow after blow after blow.

First, Wayne Rooney was suspended for the first two games. Then, Jack Wilshere, Frank Lampard, Gareth Barry and Gary Cahill were ruled out of the tournament with various injuries. Now, England could be without striker Jermain Defoe for at least one game, as he has left Poland to be with his family following the unfortunate death of his father.

It's been a sad series of events for Roy Hodgson's squad, who will be lacking firepower, depth and cohesion in their group-stage matches against France, Sweden and Ukraine.

While they should be able to fend off the co-host Ukraine, their short-handed back line will struggle mightily against France and Sweden.

The English have failed to beat France in their last five meetings—four losses and one draw. With their defense missing Cahill, they will likely get shredded by France's platoon of attackers. Karim Benzema, Franck Ribery and Samir Nasri will be aggressive throughout, and without Rooney to counter their goalscoring ability on the other side, this one could get ugly.

In the second game against Sweden, the Three Lions will have the unenviable task of trying to stop Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The massive striker was dominant in Serie A this season, scoring 28 goals in 32 appearances for AC Milan. He continued his success in the Champions League as well, notching five goals and four assists in eight games.

Although he doesn't have a ton of talent around him, I'm expecting Ibrahimovic to score two goals against England, burying the Three Lions and leading his country to the knockout stage in the process.

Luckily for England, they're heading into the tournament with relatively low expectations. They can take solace in the fact that, although they will likely be heading home early, the absence of so many key players should prevent them from being the subject of national humiliation.