Euro 2012
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Played
June 16, 2012 7:45 PM BST
Stadion Miejski — Wrocław
Referee:‬ C. Thomson‎
Attendance:‬ 41480‎
 
72′ Petr Jirácek
 

Czech Republic - Poland Preview: Hosts fight for last-eight berth as Group A comes to a close

Both sides will approach this match knowing that a victory would seal them a place in the quarter-finals of the European Championship

By Daniel Edwards

More On :  Czech Rep., Poland, Czech Rep. vs Poland
  PROBABLE LINEUPS

CZECH REPUBLIC

Cech
Gebre Selassie, Sivok, Kadlec, Limbersky
Hubschman, Plasil
Jiracek, Rosicky, Pilar
Baros
POLAND
 
Szczesny
Piszczek, Wasilewski, Perquis, Boenisch
Dudka
Blaszczykowski, Polanski, Murawski, Obraniak
Lewandowski

Petr Cech and Tomas Rosicky are two serious injury doubts for Czech Republic as they hope to confirm their place in the next round with victory over the hosts in Wroclaw. The Chelsea goalkeeper stated that he expects to be on the pitch when questioned on Thursday, but the Arsenal man is struggling with an Achilles problem and only played 45 minutes of the 2-1 victory over Greece.

If Rosicky is ruled out, Viktoria Plzen's Daniel Kolar could deputise in the playmaking role. Elsewhere, however, Michal Bilek should name the same side that overcame the Greeks, with Tomas Hubschman starting in front of the defence after an impressive performance in Tuesday's match.

Having completed a one-match suspension following a red card against Greece, Arsenal keeper Wojciech Szczesny is expected to reclaim his place between the post for a game Poland have to win to continue their Euro 2012 campaign.

Meanwhile, a slight doubt also hangs over the head of Ludovic Obraniak. The midfielder reacted angrily to being substituted during the 1-1 draw with Russia, but has subsequently apologised and is expected to keep his place for Saturday's clash.

  DID YOU KNOW?
  • Czech Republic currently occupy second place in Group A, having rallied from a bruising defeat against Russia to pick up three points against Greece. A win would assure them qualification, while a tie leaves the Central Europeans hoping that Russia will deny the Greeks victory in order to avoid an early trip home.

  • The current name is the fourth title under which the Czech Republic have played since joining the international stage. The team were known as both Bohemia and Austria-Hungary before World War I, and then as a unified Czechoslovakia, which lifted the 1976 European Championship.

  • Coach Michal Bilek represented both Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic during his playing career, and has been in charge of the national team since 2009.

  • The Czechs have enjoyed an impressive record at the European tournament. Since entering for the first time and finishing second to Germany in 1996, the country has qualified for every finals and also took third place in 2004.

  • Poland hold a slim advantage over Saturday's rivals looking back over the history of the team's encounter. The Euro 2012 co-hosts have won three of the five matches played since the formation of the Czech Republic team, with no games ever ending in a draw so far.

  • The last time the two met was in qualifying for the 2010 World Cup. A 2-1 win for the Poles on home soil was followed by the Czech team winning 3-2 in front of their own fans, although both missed out on the tournament held in South Africa after failing to qualify from Group 3

  • Poland have not played in the knock-out stages of a major competition for 26 years. A last-16 finish in 1986 was the last time the nation made it out of the first round, while 2012 is only the fourth tournament they have reached since that World Cup.

  • Having drawn both their previous games 1-1, Poland know that a win will guarantee their place in the last-16. Anything else, however, will lead to elimination.

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Field Report
Reader's Predictions
Top 3 Predictions
  • Czech Rep. 1-2 Poland
    21.11 %
  • Czech Rep. 2-1 Poland
    15.41 %
  • Czech Rep. 1-1 Poland
    10.72 %
Head to Head
Euro 2012 ‎(EC)‎ Jun 16, 2012 Czech Rep. 1 - Poland 0
  • Player Ratings
  • Match Report
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World Cup Qualifying - UEFA ‎(WCQ)‎ Oct 10, 2009 Czech Rep. 2 - Poland 0
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World Cup Qualifying - UEFA ‎(WCQ)‎ Oct 11, 2008 Poland 2 - Czech Rep. 1
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International Friendlies ‎(FR)‎ Feb 6, 2008 Poland 2 - Czech Rep. 0
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Last Five Matches
Czech Rep.
Mar 26, 2013Armenia 0 - Czech Rep. 3WCQ
Mar 22, 2013Czech Rep. 0 - Denmark 3WCQ
Feb 6, 2013Turkey 0 - Czech Rep. 2FR
Nov 14, 2012Czech Rep. 3 - Slovakia 0FR
Oct 16, 2012Czech Rep. 0 - Bulgaria 0WCQ
Poland
Mar 26, 2013Poland 5 - San Marino 0WCQ
Mar 22, 2013Poland 1 - Ukraine 3WCQ
Feb 6, 2013Ireland 2 - Poland 0FR
Feb 2, 2013Poland 4 - Romania 1FR
Dec 14, 2012Poland 4 - Macedonia FYR 1FR
Odds
Returns: Czech Republic £33.00 PaddyPower Sign up to Paddy Power for £250 in free bets
Returns: Draw £75.00 WilliamHill Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25
Returns: Poland £510.00 WilliamHill Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25
Team News
Available Squads
1Petr CechGoalkeeper
2Theodor Gebre SelassieDefender
3Michal KadlecDefender
6Tomas SivokDefender
8David LimberskyDefender
13Jaroslav PlasilMidfielder
-Václav Pilař
17Tomas HubschmannMidfielder
18Daniel KolarMidfielder
19Petr JirácekMidfielder
-Milan Baros
16Jan LastuvkaGoalkeeper
23Jaroslav DrobnýGoalkeeper
4Marek SuchyDefender
-Roman Hubnik
10Tomas RosickyMidfielder
-Milan Petržela
12Frantisek RajtoralMidfielder
25Vladimír DaridaMidfielder
-Tomas Necid
-Jan Rezek
20Tomas PekhartStriker
21David LafataStriker
22Przemyslaw TytonGoalkeeper
2Sebastian BoenischDefender
13Marcin WasilewskiDefender
15Damien PerquisDefender
20Lukasz PiszczekDefender
-Dariusz Dudka
7Eugen PolanskiMidfielder
10Ludovic ObraniakMidfielder
-Rafael Murawski
16Jakub BlaszczykowskiMidfielder
9Robert LewandowskiStriker
1Wojciech SzczesnyGoalkeeper
-Grzegorz Sandomierski
-Grzegorz Wojtkowiak
-Marcin KamińskiDefender
14Jakub WawrzyniakDefender
-Adam Matuszczyk
8Maciej RybusMidfielder
18Adrian Mierzejewski Midfielder
-Rafal Wolski
21Kamil GrosickiStriker
17Artur SobiechStriker
-Paweł Brożek
Players to Watch
Milan Baros
Milan Baros
Position:
Squad Number: 0
Games Goals YC RC
0 0 0 0
Only Jan Koller has scored more in Czech colours than the current Galatasaray forward. After a quiet start to the tournament, all eyes will be on Baros as the nation's lone striker to break his scoring duck and lead his team to the knockout stages.
Robert Lewandowski
Robert Lewandowski
Position: Striker
Squad Number: 9
Games Goals YC RC
3 1 1 0
Lewandowski is a truly international-class striker who has the ability to break most defences. The Dortmund man is only 23 but has already racked up 15 goals for Poland, and the co-hosts will look to him as their target man to punish the Czech defence.
Prediction
A tight, nervy affair is in store for Saturday's clash, with both teams needing a win but neither able to afford defeat. Home advantage could prove decisive for Poland in front of their own fans, as they sneak a narrow win to stay in the competition.
Editor's Prediction
Czech Republic 0
Poland 1
Top Scorers
Player   Goals Penalties
Fernando Torres Fernando Torres
Striker
Chelsea 		3 0
Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo
Striker
Real Madrid 		3 0
Mario Gomez Mario Gomez
Striker
Bayern 		3 0
Mario Balotelli Mario Balotelli
Striker
Milan 		3 0
Mario Mandzukic Mario Mandzukic
Striker
Bayern 		3 0