We continue our series of articles on the upcoming Euro 2012 tournament in Poland and Ukraine by taking a final look at Group C. Having run the rule over the three other contenders, this time it’s the turn of the favourites and defending champions, Spain:

Vicente Del Bosque’s side square up to Italy in their opening group match, in the tournament’s first real eye-catching showdown. This takes place on Sunday June 10 at 5pm before Spain then face up to the Republic of Ireland four days later, with a 7.45pm kick-off on Thursday June 14. Their final group game pits them against Croatia on Monday June 18; again, this takes place at 7.45pm.

Spain are expected to cruise through the group stages comfortably, though Italy’s defensive record of just two goals conceded in 10 qualifying matches is likely to test the defending champions in that afore-mentioned opening fixture. The Republic of Ireland finished second to Russia in qualifying before seeing of Estonia 5-1 in the play-offs, while Croatia also needed a play-off win against Turkey to ensure their progress, after coming second to Greece in their qualifying group.

The Road to Qualification

Del Bosque’s side ran away with their qualifying group, winning all eight of their matches. Spain racked up a total of 26 goals and scored at least twice in every one of their games; indeed, such was their attacking potency, they managed to find the net at least three times in six of their qualifiers. At the back, however, they were surprisingly slack in terms of Fantasy prospects; although they conceded just six goals, Spain returned just three clean sheets, with Scotland the only nation to score more than once against them, in a 3-2 win for the visitors at Hampden Park.

Most Appearances: Villa & Ramos (8), Busquets, Pique & Casillas (7)

Top Goalscorers: Villa (7), Silva (4), Llorente (3)

Top Assists: Silva (3)

The Likely Lads

Sergio Ramos doesn’t come cheap. Priced at 8.0, he is the joint most expensive defender in the McDonald’s game but with six goals for his country so far, the Real Madrid man has found the net more times than any of Del Bosque’s other defenders, suggesting he has the most potential of any of the Spanish backline at both ends of the pitch. Spain’s possession game means their opponents are likely to sit deep and look to break on the counter but, while this may frustrate their attackers, the defending champions could rack up the clean sheets at the back as a result – given their pricey options in midfield and attack, the value could well prove to be in Spain’s defensive assets.

Classified as a midfielder in the McDonald’s game but likely to be fielded in the front three, Andres Iniesta looks a strong out-of-position candidate. With uncertainty surrounding other positions in Spain’s first XI, Iniesta offers the security of starts that will instill a little more confidence in Fantasy managers willing to fork out 9.5 for his services. So far, 28.4% have already acquired him, far more than any other player in Del Bosque’s squad.

There’s no way we can overlook Xavi here. The Barcelona playmaker arrives on the back of a superb season, where he contributed 10 goals and seven assists in 26 La Liga starts, in spite of his club’s second place finish. Xavi is likely to monopolise Spain’s set-pieces and corners and, given his national team’s thirst for goals, is best-placed of any of Del Bosque’s side to rack up the assists. Similar to Iniesta, he’s priced at 9.5 but has proved far less popular with Fantasy managers thus far, with just 10.9% snapping up his services.

Cheeky Punt

Thanks to David Villa’s recent withdrawal, Spain are added to the ranks of sides that could well frustrate Fantasy managers up front this summer. With Holland and Germany’s respective forward lines already proving difficult to second guess, Villa’s absence means it’s likely to be a straight fight between Fernando Llorente and Fernando Torres for the central striking berth, with Alvaro Negredo further back in the pecking order. While Llorente has yet to feature in Spain’s friendlies thus far, Torres celebrated his starting role in the first XI by grabbing a goal against South Korea last night, while Negredo also notched after climbing off the bench. The potential for goals is obviously strong but with just one more friendly left, Del Bosque’s intentions for the central role still look unclear – at present, then, selecting either one clearly comes at a risk.

A look at David Silva’s qualifying stats highlights the City playmaker’s potential within the Spanish set-up. Playing six of the eight group matches, Silva was second top scorer with four goals and also provided more assists than any of his international teammates – although he’s likely to feature wide right, Silva has also been trialled as a false nine, with Del Bosque keen to integrate him into the starting XI. Priced at 10.5 and classified as a forward, he’s far from cheap but may turn out to be a more secure option for Fantasy managers eying up the Spanish front line.

Jordi Alba looks likely to be Spain’s regular left-back over the course of the tournament. While Ramos comes in at 8.0 in the McDonald’s game, Alba is a lot more budget-friendly in comparison, with a price tag of just 6.5 – ideal, perhaps, for those Fantasy managers looking for a way into the Spanish defence without having to break the bank. The Valencia man demonstrated his attacking potential in the previous La Liga campaign, returning two goals and five assists for third placed Valencia. Alvaro Arbeloa is another defensive option who could benefit from his nation’s possession game. Priced at 7.0 he’s a little more expensive than Alba but, with Carlos Puyol out of the tournament, Arbeloa is set to reprise his right-back role for Real Madrid, with Ramos partnering Gerard Pique in the middle.

Further Analysis

Group A Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Russia
Group B Denmark, Gemany, Holland, Portugal
Group C Croatia, Italy, Republic of Ireland