It’s do or die for Denmark as they face all conquering Germany in their last group game (possibly their last Euro 2012 game) on Sunday night. What lines are the soccer bookies putting on the table for us, and which one are worth a look?
It’s
a tale of two tournaments when these sides meet Germany look to be the only
side in Euro 2012 with a 100% with two wins out of two, unless the Ukraine beat
France on Friday night (something that the soccer odds makers have at 3/1). Denmark need a
win to progress (and even that might not be enough) as they are tied on points
(3) with Portugal who play bottom of the table Netherlands at the same time.
Before
Euro 2012 kicked off no-one would have thought that the Netherlands would go
through the tournament winless, and pointless. Should they beat Portugal,
something they are 13/8 to do (and Denmark lose to Germany) the second place
qualifier in Group B will be decided on the higher number of points obtained in
the head to head match played between the teams in question (according to
paragraphs 8.07 and 8.08 of the regulations, and amendment to 8.07 adopted by
the UEFA Executive Committee) which would mean Portugal go through.
To
give you some idea of how that might pan out, Portugal are 14/5 to go through
and Denamrk are 4/9. The bookies have Germany as favourites to top the group,
although it’s still mathematically possible that Portugal or Denmark could both
go through at Germany’s expense. Possible yes, likely no! Germany are 1/33 to
qualify, 1/9 to top Group B, while Portugal are 40/1 to top the group and Denmark
are 8/1.
Best begun is half done.
Denmark
had a cheeky 1-0 win in their game, against the luckless Netherlands as
the Dutch dominated the 90 minutes only
to waste numerous efforts, with Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie the main offenders.
The Dutch side wasted 28 shots at goal leaving a single Michael Krohn-Dehli
first-half strike to decide the game.
Germany
also made a winning start to Euro 2012 after Portugal had threatened to
frustrate Joachim Loew's side thanks to a Mario Gomez second-half header.
Both
second games were tight affairs
Mario
Gomez gave the Netherlands a real old school lesson in finishing as the Bayern
Munich striker engineered Germany’s 2-1 win, although Holland’s Robin van
Persie (who wasted a golden chance to put the Dutch ahead) gave them hope with
a consolation goal.
Vorwards
to glory mein herrs!
Germany
now need just a point from their last game to reach the last eight, and a draw
on Sunday night is available at 11/4.
Denmark will be highly aggrieved if they fail to progress past the
group stages as they are one of just nine sides to have won the European
Championship and were strong in qualifying, losing just once and finishing
ahead of Portugal. Things have changed in the Euro 2012 Group stages though.
Denmark kicked off the tournament 10/1 shots to win Euro 2012 but are now 80/1
shots, behind Poland.
This
match kicks off at the same time as the Portugal Netherlands match so keep an
eye on the crowd and fans listening in to the other match to see if Denmark will
be done up like a kipper by Portugal, or gifted a favour by the Netherlands.
The
shortest correct score odds on a Denmark win are on 1-0 at 12/1 (behind five
German victories and a pair of draws). If you want a chance at a fat return
back Denmark winning 2-1 at 20/1, but if you want to actually see a return,
back a German victory.
Uber
allez
If
there’s any doubt about Germany’s likely progression to the next stage of the
competition, you should know that Germany are ranked number 2 in the world by
FIFA, they went into the tournament at 3/1 to actually win it and are now 5/2;
they’ve won the competition three times before (in 1972, 1980 and 1996) and the
drunken Irishman on the train last night said they’d win it, what more could
you ask.
Prediction:
German coast through 2-0 available at 7/1.