GROUP B
Euro 2008 betting punters looking to pull out a few shocks should probably steer clear of Group B as co-hosts Austria and Poland, both looking to make a mark in their first-ever appearance in the tournament, will have their work cut out to prevent the favourites Germany and impressive Croatia from marching into the last-eight.

Without being disrespectful to the Austrians had they not automatically qualified for Euro 2008 as joint hosts then it would be fair to say they would not have got near the finals in a qualification campaign. Coach Josef Hickersberger’s side is made up largely of home-based players, although Premier League fans will recognise Middlesbrough’s combative defender Emanuel Pogatetz.

Pogatetz has barely featured for Austria in recent years after falling out with his coach but their reconciliation and his return could be timely as the side have looked weak defensively since the turn of the year. A 3-0 friendly defeat against Group B opponents and neighbours Germany was followed by an unbelievable 4-3 loss at the hands of the Netherlands in March, having led the match 3-0 at one stage.

Three-times winners of the European Championships Germany will arrive with one eye on adding a fourth title to their collection. Joachim Low’s side is still largely made up of the players which reached the World Cup semi-finals on home turf under the guidance of Jurgen Klinsmann two years ago.

Skippered by Chelsea’s midfield star Michael Ballack and containing prolific strikers such as Bayern Munich duo Lukas Podolski and Miroslav Klose along with Schalke’s Kevin Kuranyi, there is a glut of goals in the squad as they proved with 35 in qualifying – although 19 did come in one game against San Marino.

Hertha Berlin’s Arne Freidrich, Bayern’s Philippe Lahm and Real Madrid’s Christoph Metzelder are likely to be the crux of the backline which conceded just seven goals on their way to Austria and Switzerland. Croatia will bid to go one better than their previous best record of reaching the quarter-finals in England 12 years ago.

Slaven Bilic’s side are no strangers to English football fans with two victories against then coach Steve McClaren’s side during qualification – the 3-2 win at Wembley in the final game condemning the Three Lions to a summer off. The loss of Arsenal’s Eduardo da Silva to a badly broken leg will be a huge blow to their aspirations, but Bilic’s squad has more than enough quality to ensure they follow Germany into the knockout stage.

Manchester City defender Vedran Corluka, new Tottenham midfielder Luka Modric and Niko Kranjcar of Portsmouth’s midfield engine room are immediately recognisable, while there is great experience in the form of skipper Niko Kovac and defensively in the shape of AC Milan’s Dario Simic and Borussia Dortmund’s Robert Kovac. The Croats’ qualifying wins in England and Israel, along with a goalless draw in Russia, suggests they also have the mental toughness not to let pressure threaten their chances.

Poland will be participating in their first European Championships after an impressive qualification in which they came out top of their respective group a point ahead of the much-fancied Portugal, who they took four points off.

GERMANY
Team Profile
How did they perform in EURO 2008 qualifying?
Germany were the first side to secure qualification for the finals with a 0-0 draw in the Republic of Ireland on 13 October 2007, although a couple of aberrations took some of the gloss off a generally impressive campaign by Joachim Löw's side.

Germany broke the record for the biggest ever European Championship win, beating San Marino 13-0 away on 6 September 2006, with Lukas Podolski scoring four goals – only the second German player after Gerd Müller put four past Albania in 1967 to manage that feat.

They were held to a surprising 1-1 draw by Cyprus in Nicosia on 15 November, but made amends in their next game, beating Czech Republic, the eventual Group D winners, 2-1 in Prague through two Kevin Kuranyi goals.

They met the Czechs again after they had secured qualification, but left the pitch to catcalls after losing 3-0 in Munich – a result which saw Karel Brückner's visitors through to the finals.

They finished second in their group after a 0-0 draw against Wales in their final qualifier.

How did they perform in the 2006 FIFA World Cup?
Germany did not feature in the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification round as they were the hosts of the final tournament.

Germany won all three of their games in the group stage of the finals against Costa Rica (4-2), Poland (1-0) and Ecuador (3-0).

In the knockout phase they progressed to the semi-finals with victories against Sweden (2-0) and Argentina (4-2 on penalties after the match had ended 1-1).

The hosts were then eliminated by Italy (2-0) but did finish third after a 3-1 win against Portugal.

Striker Miroslav Klose ended the tournament as leading scorer, winning the Golden Shoe with five goals.

How did they perform in EURO 2004?
Germany were involved in the finals for the ninth successive time, qualifying for the eighth successive occasion having hosted the final tournament in 1988. In those eight qualifications, they have finished top of their qualification round group every time.

In qualifying for EURO 2004, Germany won five and drew their remaining three matches to finish four points clear of Scotland. Nevertheless, their only comprehensive victory came in their final match, a 3-0 defeat of Iceland in Hamburg with Michael Ballack (9), Fredi Bobic (60) and Kevin Kuranyi (79) on target.

Two two-goal victories were recorded home and away against the Faroe Islands, with their other successes coming away against Lithuania (2-0) and at home against Scotland (2-1).

In their three draws at home against Lithuania (1-1), away against Scotland (1-1) and away against Iceland (0-0), Germany never trailed.

But their performance in the final tournament disappointed with only two points from three group stage outings. Draws were recorded against the Netherlands (1-1) and Latvia (0-0) before Germany exited the competition following their 2-1 defeat at the hands of the Czech Republic in a repeat of the EURO '96 final.

What is their best performance in the European Championship?
Germany have won the competition once since reunification (1996) but three times overall having earlier won the competition in 1972 and 1980 as West Germany. The Czech Republic were defeated in the 1996 final at Wembley, Oliver Bierhoff scoring the golden goal winner five minutes into extra-time after having earlier scored their equaliser 17 minutes from time. Patrik Berger had given the Czechs a 59th-minute lead from the penalty spot.

Germany advanced from the group stage with defeats of the Czech Republic (2-0) and Russia (3-0) before holding Italy to a scoreless draw. Their reward was a quarter-final match against Croatia which Germany won 2-1 before they defeated England in the semis on penalties after the match ended 1-1 after extra-time.

Key facts
• Germany have not won a match in the final tournament of a European Championship since winning the competition in 1996. Since then, Germany have played six matches, drawing three and losing three with three goals scored and eight conceded.

All-time record
• Germany lead the way with three tournament victories to date. In 1972 and 1980 they won the competition as West Germany, but their 1996 success came after reunification. France are the only other country to have won the competition more than once following successes in 1984 and 2000.

Up until the end of qualifying for EURO 2008, Germany had appeared in the European Championship on eleven occasions, and had played 110 matches. In that time, they won 67, drawn 29 and lost 14 of those fixtures with 224 goals scored and 77 conceded.

Coach Profile - Joachim Löw
Not many eyebrows were raised when Joachim Löw stepped up from his position as Germany assistant coach to take centre stage after Jürgen Klinsmann stood down after the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The former midfielder had heavily influenced tactics and lineups, and was a major force behind Germany's attacking approach, with Klinsmann saying: "He has always been much more than an assistant coach to me."

The right man
The Schonau-born Löw proved that he was the right man for the job in EURO 2008 qualifying, with Germany the first nation apart from the two co-hosts to book a place in the finals. Löw was promptly handed an extension to his original two-year contract, which takes him through until 2010, and German Football Association president Theo Zwanziger declared the move "a clear signal that we are heading towards EURO 2008 and the 2010 World Cup with confidence in his philosophy". Affectionately known as Jogi, Löw is widely regarded for his innovative training methods and his pride in seeing young players fulfil their potential.

Experience
Löw played for VfB Stuttgart, SC Freiburg and Eintracht Frankfurt, making 57 Bundesliga appearances as well as appearing 181 times in the second division. He hung up his boots in summer 1995, but had already been coaching part-time at Swiss side FC Winterthur. He took the reins at Stuttgart in July 1995 and guided them to the 1996/97 German Cup, and the final of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in the following season where they lost 1-0 to Chelsea. He then won the Austrian championship with FC Wacker Tirol [then known as FC Tirol Innsbruck] in 2001/02 before a spell at FK Austria Wien. He also had stints in Turkey at Fenerbahçe SK and Adanaspor AS.

Löw loyal to his 4-4-2 formation
Having performed impressively at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Germany are eager to prove they can repeat the feat at EURO 2008 without the benefit of home advantage.

Consistency counts
Though coach Jürgen Klinsmann gave way to his former assistant Joachim Löw at the start of qualifying, the squad has changed little from the one that finished third at the World Cup. Christoph Metzelder, Per Mertesacker and Philipp Lahm remain first choices in defence, with Lahm likely to replace Arne Friedrich at right-back, allowing Marcell Jansen to show his class on the left.

Klose certainty
Up front, Miroslav Klose's impressive international record is sure to earn him a place in Löw's favoured 4-4-2 formation, and the battle is between Kevin Kuranyi, 2007 German Player of the Year Mario Gómez, and Lukas Podolski for the second striker's role. Podolski also gave Löw, and Bastian Schweinsteiger, plenty to think about by performing well when deployed on the left side of midfield.

Midfield adjustments
Löw's commitment to 4-4-2 is devout, although with Bernd Schneider injured, he has two possible arrangements for his rejigged system. The experienced Torsten Frings is sure to anchor midfield, either playing alongside a defence-minded Michael Ballack with two attacking wide men, or with two other holding midfielders, allowing Ballack to resume the attacking role he enjoyed at the 2002 FIFA World Cup finals.