Match 11 - Croatia v Germany / Tareq Quiroz / 12 June 2008 / Leave a comment

With the first games out of the way the groups are now beginning to take shape. Prior to the start of the tournament the general consensus was that Germany and Croatia were the most likely to progress from what isn't the toughest looking collection of teams. As expected both teams picked up maximum points in their first games without really hitting top form.

The second round of games brings these two group giants together in a clash that could well decide who tops the group. Slaven Bilic and Joachim Loew will look at this fixture as the first real test and both coaches will be eager to stamp their authority against opponents that they could quite conceivably be meeting again in the semi-finals.

Unsurprisingly, Germany go into the game as clear favourites and after an impressive win over Poland you would expect them to name the same starting line-up on Thursday evening. The same applies to Croatia although there has to be half a chance they will make a change to try and shore up the centre of their midfield. Neither team were that convincing in defence and this may be a game that produces a few goals.

Looking through the markets it is clear that there has been a slight momentum shift in recent days in terms of good support for the Germans. I am still not convinced by them however and will take them on until they produce the goods against a decent side. Therefore I am going to side with Croatia in the Asian Handicap market as my first punt on the match. I think the Croats will be much better against this higher-class opponent and I fully expect them to get a result out of the game. The Croatia +0.5 is the recommendation at current odds of around [2.24].

As mentioned previously I see goals in this game and more importantly an early one from Croatia. Germany were almost caught on the hop early against a lacklustre Poland and they will not get away with such sloppy defending against the skilful Croats. After assessing the relevant markets I think it is the Half Time/Full Time market that offers the best value. The Croatia/Croatia option is very appealing and is a must bet at [15.0].

All Spurs fans will be pretty pleased with what they saw from their big summer signing, Luka Modric. He was lively on the ball in their opening game although he did go missing during a difficult second half. Whilst he is a danger, I fancy another Premiership player to get on the scoresheet. Nico Kranjcar represents decent value in the To Score market at odds of around [10.0]. He has a blockbuster of a shot and might just catch Lehmann grasping at thin air.

We haven't witnessed any really nasty encounters as yet and I don't see any good reason why this should be the first. The only issue I can see is that the Croats have a habit of throwing themselves to the ground at any given opportunity. This action alone often results in lots of silly cards, so although there may not be many bad tackles I can still see the card count reaching quite a high number. Check out the Booking Odds market and more specifically the 9pts and Over option, this is a must bet at anything around [2.1].

In what is widely regarded as the easiest half of the draw it is time for two of the big guns to show what they have got, but who will it be who secure their place in the knockout stages. Could the pre-tournament favourites suddenly find themselves under pressure entering the final group game?

Tags: Euro 2008 betting, Euro 2008 odds, Nico Kranjcar