Euro Cup Group D Futures

Euro Cup Group D Futures

Jason Green

Spain is the two-time defending Euro champions and while they are the betting favorites to win Group D the group may be the toughest in the tournament.

Spain -200

Spain won nine of their 10 matches in Euro qualifying and while their offense was solid with 23 goals their defense was great only conceding three goals. They have THE best and deepest midfield in the tournament, but while FW Paco Alcácer scored five goals in the qualifying rounds Spain is a little thin up front. GK David De Gea is the number one keeper in between the pipes and they still have Iker Casillas, who was in goal in the last Euro tournament. Winning this tough group will be key for Spain, as if they do so they would avoid playing host France or Germany until the final.

Croatia +250

Croatia barely qualified for the Euro and they have their fans to thank for that getting docked points when they were at home facing Italy and a swastika was cut into the pitch. However, the Croats have world-class players and are no stranger to being giant killers in big tournaments. In qualifying they scored 21 goals in 10 matches and only conceded five. Their midfield is strong with Luka Modric from Real Madrid and Ivan Rakitic from Barcelona and they have a solid striker in Mario Mandzukic from Juventus.

Czech Republic +800

Czech Republic won their group in qualifying even though they only scored 19 goals and conceded 14. Veteran GK Petr Cech leads the squad, but unlike in 1996 and 2004, when they made the final and semifinals in the Euro respectively, they do not feature a lot world-class talent on the pitch. One of their bigger names in Arsenal’s Tomas Rosicky has fitness concerns and he will be needed for the Czechs to advance. They are not a team to be taken lightly, but they will have to play great in the midfield in their group matches facing Spain and Croatia.

Turkey +800

Turkey narrowly qualified for the Euro being the best 3rd place group team. However, they played the group winner Czech Republic twice losing at home and then pitching a 2-0 shutout win facing them on the road. In their 10 qualifying matches they only scored 14 goals, but their defense was solid conceding nine goals. Barcelona's Arda Turan and Bayer Leverkusen's Hakan Calhanoglu are the leaders of the squad and they will have to play solid defense and win low scoring contests since they are not a dynamic team on the attack. The Turks are in the same boat as the Czechs, as their midfield play will be key.