The Boys in Green will look to beat the odds against the Blazers with a profound reliance on their defensive line-up to avoid a defeat.
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Republic-of-Ireland-c2987 will lock horns with Croatia in the second match of Group C in Euro 2012 finals on Sunday, June 10th at 19:45 GMT.
The Green Shirts go into the match compiling a win and a draw in their two warm-up games against Bosnia and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Norway-c2974 and Estonia correspondingly.
The last time the two teams met was in last August where the game ended in a goalless stalemate.
Ireland
The Men in Green may look underdogs in a pool with the likes of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Giovanni-c14985 Trapattoni.
The fact that Ireland finished second in their qualifying campaign and beat http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Estonia-c2894 in a two-legged playoff, should serve to wash of any remaining notions that the Irishmen have lost the match before it has started.
Ireland may not be the most attractive team to watch, but Trapattoni’s presence has ensured that they continue to provide consistent results. They are on a 13-match unbeaten streak, and their veteran tactician has already stated that their first priority
in the game will not be to illicit a win but to avoid a defeat. So, the Green Shirts can be expected to concentrate their efforts in their defence.
The Irish will also rely heavily on their English Premier League talent to get them a break at the front, and the added experience of Robbie Keane can prove to be decisive in that respect.
Trapattoni’s men scored 10 goals from set-pieces in the qualifying stage of the Euros, and the veteran manager’s tactical prowess can once again play a vital role in their Euro campaign.
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Croatia-c2879
The Blazers also finished second in their qualifying campaign for the Euros, and are faced with a similar situation as their opposition in the upcoming match. The team will brace themselves for a momentous effort in their first match of the tournament in
order to assure themselves, and the world that they have what it take to survive the ‘group of death’.
Manager Slaven Bilic has a lot of talented players like http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Eduardo-c12034 at his disposal. However, the heart of their engine is the charismatic Luka Modric of Tottenham Hotspur, and the Vatreni will rely profoundly on the gifted playmaker
to drive them towards a convincing victory over the Green Shirts.
Team News
Ireland
The Irish keeper http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Richard-Dunne-c31070, and Sean St Ledger to form the defensive line, and are expected
to go with the usual Damien Duff, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Glenn-Whelan-c15057, and Aidan McGeady line-up in the midfield.
Their all time highest scorer Robbie Keane will lead the Irish attack alongside Shane Long, if the Italian manager opts to play preferred his 4-4-2 formation.
Expected Starting Line-up: Given, O'Shea, Dunne, St Ledger, Ward, Whelan, Andrews, McGeady, Duff, Keane and Long
Croatia
Slaven Bilic has lost the services of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Vedran-Corluka-c35947 is also reported to have limped out of the practice session, and his availability for the game against Ireland
is also under doubt.
Expected Starting Line-up: Eduardo, Jelavic, Perisic, Rakitic, Modric, Vukojevic, Pranjic, Schildenfeld, Corluka, Srna and Pletikosa
Players to Watch
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Robbie-Keane-c31215 (Ireland)
The striker is the highest goal scorer in the history of Ireland, and is the only Irishman to have passed the 50-goal mark in his international career. The star may be ageing but has not lost all of his lustre as yet, and this will probably be his last opportunity
to make his mark on the Europe’s big stage. Defence and stability are the two most outstanding features of the Irish game, and the team will look towards the LA Galaxy striker to provide them with a break in the all important opening match.
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Luka-Modric-c22857 (Croatia)
The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder could very well end up playing for Manchester United next season, and there is a very good reason for that. The Croatian is a gifted playmaker who forms the heart of the Blazer’s engine, and the team will not only depend
on him to dictate the flow of the game, but also to provide them with the decisive assists and shots on goal to capture a win.
The 26-year-old can easily be pointed out as the most important player of the match, and will most likely be blamed for whatever result Croatia manage to illicit from their first game of Euro 2012.
Predictions
More than a clash of a favourite and an underdog, Ireland vs. Croatia will represent the desperate struggle of two second-to-best teams looking to survive the ‘group of death’ that contains the likes of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Italy-c2926 and Spain. Both teams will jostle each other
with great passion in order to gain some ground to launch an upset qualification to the quarter-finals stage.
While the sturdy Irish defence will be the greatest challenge for Croatia, performing equally well in both halves of the pitch will be the test of the match for Trapattoni’s men.
The fans can expect an entertaining game with both the teams finding the back of the net, and can expect Ireland to pull a spirited upset against the Blazers.
Prediction: 2-1 to the Irishmen.
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