The clock is ticking down fast now. In our final analysis piece prior to this afternoon’s kick-off, we cast an eye over Group D. Analysing the results, lineups and injury worries, we reflect on each nation’s respective performances over the last few weeks of friendlies and look for potential signs of starting XIs as Fantasy managers frantically whip their squads into shape before the tournament finally gets underway:
England
Roy Hodgson’s men have taken to the field just twice over the last few weeks. Both games resulted in wins and saw England grab clean sheets, with a victory in Norway followed by a triumph over Belgium at Wembley last weekend.
Ashley Young has proven to be the main source of attacking threat over Hodgson’s two games in charge. Handed a role up front, the United winger notched the winner against Norway thanks to an Andy Carroll assist, before teeing up Danny Welbeck to clinch victory against the Belgians on Saturday afternoon; priced at 8.5 in the McDonald’s game and classified as a midfielder, he’s the second most popular player in England’s ranks, with 13.7% ownership.
Likely Lineup
With Gary Cahill out due to a jaw injury, Joleon Lescott is likely to step in alongside John Terry in the heart of defence. Priced at 5.5 in the McDonald’s game, the City centre-half offers Fantasy managers the cheapest route into Hodgson’s back-four and should benefit from the recovered balls rule, in the event of his side conceding. Leighton Baines could come into contention on the left, though, if Ashley Cole fails to recover from a stomach bug.
Elsewhere, James Milner’s work-rate has seen him start both games under Hodgson – he looks set to edge out Theo Walcott on the right of midfield, though there are question marks over who will start on the opposite flank. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Stewart Downing have begun one game apiece for Hodgson, though the former’s inexperience may go against him, with Hodgson renowned for his more pragmatic approach – Young could well move wide left once Wayne Rooney’s two-game suspension is served, though. Up front, it’s a battle between Carroll and Welbeck to partner Young in the meantime; Carroll’s recent form and aerial ability could see him edge it here, though the role looks up for grabs.
Likely Starting XI: Hart; Johnson, Terry, Lescott, Cole; Milner, Parker, Gerrard, Downing; Young, Carroll.
France
Laurent Blanc’s side are in sparkling form ahead of Monday’s match with England. Les Bleus warmed up for the Euros by winning all three of their friendlies to take their unbeaten run to 21 games; they battled back to beat Iceland 3-2 after going two goals down before seeing off Serbia 2-0 and sweeping Estonia aside 4-0 last Tuesday.
Mathieu Debuchy and Philipp Mexes highlighted their threat from the back with a goal apiece in the Iceland win; Debuchy is priced at 5.5 and seems to be the cheapest route into the French defence, though has just 3.1% of owners right now. Olivier Giroud provided a pair of assists after climbing off the bench, while fellow-sub Franck Ribery also impressed by bagging a goal. Ribery was amongst the goals once again in the Serbia game, notching the opener before Florent Malouda sealed victory with an effort from outside the box. The Bayern man made it three goals in three games by scoring against Estonia in addition to providing an assist, while Karim Benzema’s brace and assist helped justify his 21% ownership. Giroud’s threat from the bench was highlighted once against as he set up Jeremy Menez to seal the rout.
Likely Lineup
With Bacary Sagna out injured due to a broken leg, Debuchy looks the preferred option over Anthony Reveillere at right-back, having started two of the trio of friendlies. At left-back, Patrice Evra missed training yesterday due to a thigh problem but the injury is just a minor one – he is expected to return to the starting XI on Monday. Alou Diarra also skipped training as a result of a knee issue but he is also expected to be ready to deputise for injured first –choice midfielder Yann M’Vila, with the latter possibly returning for the second group match against Ukraine. Benzema was another who missed Thursday training after picked up a back problem on the flight to Poland but will be ready for the opener.
Likely Starting XI: Lloris; Debuchy, Mexes, Rami, Evra; Diarra, Cabaye, Malouda; Nasri, Benzema, Ribery.
Sweden
Erik Hamren’s side chalked up victories in both of their recent friendly matches to stretch their winning streak to four. A 3-2 win over Iceland was followed up by a 2-1 triumph against Serbia but while they continue to impress going forward, problems at the back remain – they have a single clean sheet in their last eight games, picked up against Bahrain in mid-January.
Unsurprisingly, it’s been Zlatan Ibrahimovic who has stood out in those last couple of showdowns. The Milan man scored two and assisted one of the Swede’s five goals, with one of his strikes coming courtesy of a converted spot-kick; priced at 8.0 in the McDonald’s game, he’s picked up 25.2% ownership and looks a decent captaincy option for the final Matchday of round 1 against Ukraine. Ola Toivonen has crept under the radar in comparison; he also scored twice and provided an assist in those couple of games yet, despite a price tag of 5.5, has found a place in just 1.1% of Fantasy teams. Seb Larsson grabbed an assist for Ibrahimovic’s opener against Iceland, while Christian Wilhelmsson climbed off the bench to notch the winner.
Likely Lineup
In goal, Andrea Isaksson was subbed off in the Serbia game with a thigh problem, though this was thought to be no more than a precautionary measure. Andreas Granqvist started both the friendlies, one at right-back and the other at centre-half; with Mikael Lustig the favourite at right-back, Granqvist is set to battle Jonas Olsson for the slot alongside Olof Mellberg in the heart of defence. There is also uncertainty at left-back, with Martin Olsson and Behrang Safari each handed a start over the pair of games.
Rasmus Elm has also started both the friendlies. He played in the double pivot alongside Kim Kallstrom against Iceland before injuries to others saw him shift to the left flank for the following match. Toivonen is another player who has shown adaptability. He was handed a role on the left in the first friendly but with Johan Elmander and Markus Rosenberg unavailable through injury for the Serbia match, he was handed the lone forward position. Given his above-mentioned form, though, it looks likely he will maintain his starting position up front, with Ibrahimovic handed a roving role behind him.
Likely Starting XI: Isaksson; Lustig, Mellberg, Granqvist, M Olsson; Svensson, Kallstrom; Larsson, Ibrahimovic, Elm; Toivonen.
Ukraine
The co-hosts started off their recent spate of friendlies with a 4-0 hammering of Estonia before slumping to back-to-back defeats. A 3-2 loss at the hands of Austria ended their six-match unbeaten run before a stomach big decimated the squad and saw them slip 2-0 to Turkey.
Fantasy favourite Andriy Yarmolenko grabbed a goal and three assists in the first two games, though two of those assists came courtesy of converted penalties by Oleg Husiev. The latter scored a total of three times over those matches and, priced at 6.5 in the McDonald’s game, is a definite alternative to the more popular Yarmolenko – the downside is that he plays at right-back but is classified as a midfielder. Andriy Voronin and Artem Milevskyi were also amongst the goals against Estonia, with Andriy Shevchenko providing an assist for the latter’s strike after climbing off the bench.
Likely Lineup
Andriy Pyatov looks set to get the nod between the sticks, having started two of the three friendlies. The food poisoning scare has made it more difficult to second-guess Blokhin’s intentions in other positions, however; the left-back position looks to be an even battle between Yaroslav Rakitskiy and Yevhen Selin, with the latter a little cheaper at 5.0 to 5.5 in the McDonald’s game. The big question remains up front. Voronin and Marko Devic started the first two before taking ill and, going on that alone, seem to be in the driving seat to lead the line. Shevchenko has appeared as a half-time sub in all three games, however, and, given his wealth of experience, will surely be used as an impact player if he fails to make the starting XI. Milevskyi has started one and featured twice in the second 45 and is another who is likely to be given game time as the matches progress.
Likely Starting XI: Pyatov; Gusev, Mykhalyk, Khackeridi, Selin; Yarmolenko, Tymoschuk, Nazarenko, Konoplyanka; Voronin, Devic.
