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'I fancy England to beat France, even without Wayne Rooney' - Goal.com's correspondents answer your Euro 2012 Twitter Q&A
From whether Fabio Capello can cope without his star striker, to Germany pipping Spain and Torres to the trophy, Goal.com’s correspondents give their take on Friday’s draw
2 Dec 2011 20:46:00
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With England drawn in Group D against Ukraine, Sweden and France, and Netherlands, Germany, Portugal and Denmark finding themselves in the 'Group of Death', the countdown to Euro 2012 has well and truly begun.
Following the draw, Goal.com's European correspondents were on hand for a special Twitter Q&A to answer your questions on everything Euro 2012.
Below are snippets of the best questions submitted to them, but you can read the full Q&A here.
What are England’s chances against France and Sweden, and will they be able to make it through the group stage next summer? - Rotimi Awe
Greg Stobart: “England will expect a tough game against France but they will know what to expect given so many of the French players are based in the Premier League.
"It was just over a year ago that France passed England off the pitch in a 2-1 win at Wembley but Fabio Capello's side have improved since then and the two sides will be evenly matched.
"I fancy England to beat France, even without Wayne Rooney, and it is the kind of game in which Capello's hailed tactical aptitude could be decisive.
"It is odd that England have never beaten Sweden in a competitive fixture but the Three Lions cruised to a 1-0 victory over the Swedes last month and will expect the superiority they showed that night to be replicated next summer."
How will Fabio Capello survive without Wayne Rooney for England’s group stage matches at Euro 2012? - Engineer Somali
GS: “Fabio Capello will be relieved because England should be able to progress to the knockout stages even with Rooney suspended for all three group matches.
"The Italian has always planned to take the star man in his squad but it would be embarrassing if England were to fall at the first hurdle. In Rooney's absence, England are likely to play a more conventional 4-3-3, with the attacking threat coming from the wide men providing chances for a goalscorer like Darren Bent.
"Rooney, however, will certainly return to the line-up at the earliest opportunity. England will have to play well to qualify for the quarter-finals, but they will need their best players on top form if they are to make a big impact on the tournament.”
Will France’s Premier League players be under pressure to perform against England in Group D next summer? - Emmanuel Usoro
Robin Bairner: “To an extent, particularly since the match is first up for France. Several of the English-based players in the France squad have found themselves under fire from the domestic media, with the likes of Florent Malouda particularly questioned regarding his place in the team."
Is there any chance of Portugal qualifying from Group B and who are the favourites are to win Euro 2012? - Ali Muhammad Shahid
Ben Hayward: “My pre-draw favourites were Spain, Germany and Holland. The fact that Portugal - one of the outsiders for the title - have been drawn in a group with two of those makes it extremely difficult for Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. to qualify. But it's not impossible.”
RB: “I think that the form shown by Germany over the course of the last two years has been incredibly intimidating, and they should start the tournament as favourites, even ahead of Spain, who have had their troubles against well-organised defences.
"The Netherlands will be the other side to watch, and the fact they've both been drawn in the same group makes for an explosive start to the tournament.”
Clark Whitney: “A month ago it might not have been so clear, but after Germany's 3-0 win over the Netherlands in November, Joachim Low's side will be favoured to win the so-called ‘group of death’."
How vital will Fernando Torres, who has endured a miserable 11 months since joining Chelsea for £50 million in January, be for Spain if he is included in their Euro 2012 squad? - Oscar Chavez
BH: “Vicente del Bosque has been patient with Torres and the Chelsea striker looks set be called up, even on his current, less-than-impressive form. However, on such form he isn't likely to be a key player for Spain in Poland and Ukraine.
"He was a peripheral figure as they won the World Cup last summer and he is likely to be again unless he can return to his best in time for next summer. So far from vital.”
With Poland, Greece, Russia and Czech Republic all in Group A, is it one of the worst groups in the history of the European Championships? - Bharat Sharma
Kris Voakes: “It's probably fair to say that most of us were holding out for one of the bigger names from pot 2 to make it into Group A in order to spice it up a little, but it could turn out to be one of the more intriguing groups. "
| Bet: | Returns: | France £11.25 | Draw £65.00 | Estonia £170.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | France £11.70 | Draw £55.00 | Estonia £120.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | France £11.67 | Draw £65.00 | Estonia £150.00 |
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Following the draw, Goal.com's European correspondents were on hand for a special Twitter Q&A to answer your questions on everything Euro 2012.
Below are snippets of the best questions submitted to them, but you can read the full Q&A here.
What are England’s chances against France and Sweden, and will they be able to make it through the group stage next summer? - Rotimi Awe
Greg Stobart: “England will expect a tough game against France but they will know what to expect given so many of the French players are based in the Premier League.
"It was just over a year ago that France passed England off the pitch in a 2-1 win at Wembley but Fabio Capello's side have improved since then and the two sides will be evenly matched.
"I fancy England to beat France, even without Wayne Rooney, and it is the kind of game in which Capello's hailed tactical aptitude could be decisive.
"It is odd that England have never beaten Sweden in a competitive fixture but the Three Lions cruised to a 1-0 victory over the Swedes last month and will expect the superiority they showed that night to be replicated next summer."
How will Fabio Capello survive without Wayne Rooney for England’s group stage matches at Euro 2012? - Engineer Somali
GS: “Fabio Capello will be relieved because England should be able to progress to the knockout stages even with Rooney suspended for all three group matches.
"The Italian has always planned to take the star man in his squad but it would be embarrassing if England were to fall at the first hurdle. In Rooney's absence, England are likely to play a more conventional 4-3-3, with the attacking threat coming from the wide men providing chances for a goalscorer like Darren Bent.
"Rooney, however, will certainly return to the line-up at the earliest opportunity. England will have to play well to qualify for the quarter-finals, but they will need their best players on top form if they are to make a big impact on the tournament.”
Will France’s Premier League players be under pressure to perform against England in Group D next summer? - Emmanuel Usoro
Robin Bairner: “To an extent, particularly since the match is first up for France. Several of the English-based players in the France squad have found themselves under fire from the domestic media, with the likes of Florent Malouda particularly questioned regarding his place in the team."
Is there any chance of Portugal qualifying from Group B and who are the favourites are to win Euro 2012? - Ali Muhammad Shahid
Ben Hayward: “My pre-draw favourites were Spain, Germany and Holland. The fact that Portugal - one of the outsiders for the title - have been drawn in a group with two of those makes it extremely difficult for Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. to qualify. But it's not impossible.”
RB: “I think that the form shown by Germany over the course of the last two years has been incredibly intimidating, and they should start the tournament as favourites, even ahead of Spain, who have had their troubles against well-organised defences.
"The Netherlands will be the other side to watch, and the fact they've both been drawn in the same group makes for an explosive start to the tournament.”
Clark Whitney: “A month ago it might not have been so clear, but after Germany's 3-0 win over the Netherlands in November, Joachim Low's side will be favoured to win the so-called ‘group of death’."
How vital will Fernando Torres, who has endured a miserable 11 months since joining Chelsea for £50 million in January, be for Spain if he is included in their Euro 2012 squad? - Oscar Chavez
BH: “Vicente del Bosque has been patient with Torres and the Chelsea striker looks set be called up, even on his current, less-than-impressive form. However, on such form he isn't likely to be a key player for Spain in Poland and Ukraine.
"He was a peripheral figure as they won the World Cup last summer and he is likely to be again unless he can return to his best in time for next summer. So far from vital.”
With Poland, Greece, Russia and Czech Republic all in Group A, is it one of the worst groups in the history of the European Championships? - Bharat Sharma
Kris Voakes: “It's probably fair to say that most of us were holding out for one of the bigger names from pot 2 to make it into Group A in order to spice it up a little, but it could turn out to be one of the more intriguing groups. "
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Make Your Prediction Choose match
Spain - China
Spain
China
Prediction Submitted
Most Popular Predictions
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Spain 8-0 China
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Spain 4-0 China
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Spain 5-0 China
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21:50 BST -
And here are some quotes from today's goalscorer, Danny Welbeck: "It's still the same, me and Ashley [Young] playing together.
"We know each other's games and obviously we're training with each other day in and day out.
"So, it was really good to start up top with him."
"We know each other's games and obviously we're training with each other day in and day out.
"So, it was really good to start up top with him."
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