Alan Dzagoev justified his position as leader of the Captain Poll for Matchday 2, Day 1 by notching yet again this evening as Russia drew 1-1 with Poland. Jakub Blaszczykowski grabbed the co-hosts’ equaliser while, in the early kick-off, Vaclav Pilar scored for the second successive game as the Czech Republic bounced back from their 4-1 mauling at the hands of Dick Advocaat’s side in Matchday 1.
Despite a yellow card late in the second half, Dzagoev picked up an extra point due to the recovered balls rule, meaning he – like Pilar – sits on seven points, or 14 with the armband. Blaszczykowski picked up 8 points, or 16 with the armband, and their respective captaincy owners must now decide whether it’s worth sticking with what they have or gambling for more. Looking at tomorrow’s encounters, several options look enticing and we’ve rolled out the Captain Poll for you to have a say.
Portugal square up to Denmark in the early kick-off with Paulo Bento’s side desperate for a win in order to stand any chance of progressing. Cristiano Ronaldo will be heavily backed to open his account tomorrow, while Nani’s 3.7% of owners will be looking for a points return against a side that conceded 27 shots in their group opener.
The Danes already have three points in the bag after downing the Dutch in their opener – can Michael Krohn-Deli follow in the footsteps of Dzagoev and Pilar and notch in back-to-back games or will Nicklas Bendtner rise to the occasion for the Group B underdogs?
The later game could well be one of the showdowns of the tournament. Holland face Germany at 7.45pm with Bert Van Marwijk’s side knowing that if the Danes grab a point in the earlier kick-off, they will need to avoid defeat to keep their chances of making the knockout stages alive. Robin Van Persie had eight shots in the game with Denmark, while Wesley Sneijder created 10 goalscoring opportunities for his team mates – both will be looking to produce the goods, while Arjen Robben and Ibrahim Afellay will add plenty attacking threat against their bitter rivals.
Joachim Low’s first XI is packed full of attacking talent with plenty of options from the bench. Of the likely starters, Mario Gomez will be looking to get amongst the goals once again after nodding home the winner against Portugal, while Mesut Ozil’s creativity and the threat of Thomas Muller and Lukas Podolski from out wide is sure to play a part in what is shaping up to be a scintillating encounter.
