Russia are gaining momentum all the time on the eve of Euro 2012 and they have been well-backed to start with three points on Friday.
Dick Advocaat’s side, now no bigger than 21.0 to go all the way and lift the trophy, start their campaign with a match against Czech Republic and I think they’ll get underway with a win.
Russia played some of the best football at Euro 2088 before coming up against the mighty Spain in the semi-finals and, while it has taken a while for them to rediscover their best form, plenty of those stars from four years ago remain.
Advocaat has overseen his side stretch their unbeaten run to 14 matches in their recent warm-up friendlies for the finals and a 3-0 win over Italy in Zurich was the highlight. It’s easy to get carried away with seemingly meaningless results but Russia were excellent and confidence must be flowing through the squad.
Previously dependent on one or two star men, Russia are now very much a team unit and with a goal threat from just about every part of the pitch, they could go a long way.
With goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev having been passed fit, Russia’s Dutch manager will be able to field his first choice XI against Czech Republic and it is one which conceded just four goals in qualifying, keeping seven clean sheets in ten matches.
Group A looks very winnable for any of the four nations but I rate the Czechs are the outsiders and they limped into the finals having beaten Montenegro 3-0 in the play-offs.
Long gone are the days when they had their sights set on the latter stages of major tournaments and with striker Milan Baros a doubt with injury for the opener on Friday, scoring goals looks set to be a problem.
A 2-1 defeat to Hungary in Prague on Friday was hardly ideal preparation for coach Michal Bilek and his players and the 2.40 on offer about a Russian win will certainly do for me.
3pts Back Russia (vs. Czech Republic) @ 2.40 (Bet Victor)