It is on to the business end of Euro 2012 betting for the group stage, as Greece v Russia kicks off the final round. It may be worth considering your betting for this match at Bet365, as the online bookmaker offers great insurance on Euro 2012 matches with their 0-0 Bore Draw special, which covers lost stake refunds on any losing First Goalscorer, Last Goalscorer, Anytime Goalscorer, Half Time/Full Time, all Correct Score Markets and all Scorecast markets if the game ends in a 0-0 draw. The highly rated online bookmaker Bet365 offers a free £200 bet for new customers registering an account.
Russia v Greece Euro 2012 odds at Bet365
Russia 8/11, Draw 13/5, Greece 4/1
This is Group A, where all four teams have a chance at qualifying for the knock-out stages. Russia started the tournament with an absolute bang, demolishing an open Czech Republic 4-1, which made everyone stand up and take notice. It was not just about the result either, it was the positive attitude which Dick Advocaat’s men had taken towards the game. They were open, flowing and dangerous flooding forward. However, they could not deliver the same degree of performance as they were held to a 1-1 draw against co-hosts Poland in their second match. Young play-maker Alan Dzagoev had fired them ahead, but the Russians conceded an equaliser to a stunning strike from Poland to end up with just a point. Still, the Russians go into their final round of matches with a one point advantage over the Czech Republic and a draw against Greece will be enough to put them through. Of course, the Russians will still want to go out and gun for the win, because there is going to be a big advantage in gaining top spot in the group.
Whoever finishes top of the group will have the honour of avoiding Germany in the quarter finals. So that is a big enough incentive to go out and try to take maximum points. The Russians are in command in the group, and they have played the best football overall. They do need Andrei Arshavin to fire though, because he was brilliant in the first game and made Russia hum like a well oiled machine, but he was pretty anonymous against Poland and that is why Russia didn’t hit their heights. Still, there is quality a plenty in the ranks of Russia, and they are not short of fire-power If Arshavin can pull the strings alongside the young influence of Dzagoev, who has netted three times in two games, then Russia can stride into the knock-out stage. In Greece v Russia betting, they are the ones who have a bigger advantage in terms of quality in pushing forward, and creativity as well. Greece can’t match the overall quality of Russia. They should be able to get their foot on the ball, stroke it around and dictate the pace of play. Another thing to their advantage, is that Greece really have to come out and grab a win to maintain any hopes of qualifying, so the Greeks could even be more open than they normally are.
Greece have failed to score more than one goal in their last seven matches. They have picked up just one win in that run.
Greece have to win or they will be going home. There is a scenario in which three of the four teams could end up with four points, and if that happens, Greece will move through to the knock-out Still, first things first, and Greece have to find a way to get at the Russians. Anything less than a full on assault for three points is not going to suffice for Greece. There really isn’t much point in approaching this game with too much of their regular caution. After a brilliance second half display in their group opener against Poland, which ended in a 1-1 draw, Greece couldn’t muster a response after going down 2-0 against the Czech Republic in their second match. They had once again left themselves with a lot of work to do, and this time they couldn’t pull it back. So do Greece, the 2004 European Champions have anything left in the tank to really go out and grab a last gasp win. Three points for the Greeks would put them level on four points with Russia. It would also mean that Greece would move above Russia, after picking up more points in the head to head against them. So there is still a window of opportunity if the Greeks are brave enough to go and get it. So it really is win or bust for the Greeks.
Surprisingly the Greeks have had some poor lapses in concentration at the back, which is very uncharacteristic of them. They have built their reputation on being hard to beat, but they have been guilty of losing focus at times. Coach Fernando Santos knows that Greece have been in tight spots before and have squeezed through. However, at Euro 2012, Greece have looked just a little unprepared tactically for some reason. They should be stronger at the back for Russia as they get Sokratis Papastathopoulos back from suspension. Most of Greece’s attacking options have come with high balls and there truthfully hasn’t been a lot of quality on the deck. It hasn’t worked for them so far, so they need to find a bit of a different approach from somewhere.
Prediction: The Greeks have looked a bit shaky, which is surprising. Going up against Russia who are on a 16 match unbeaten stretch, and up against a Russian defence which has conceded just 4 goals in thirteen matches, then the Greeks are unlikely to have enough to get through this. Russia also hold a 13-3 head to head record against the Greeks. A Russia -1.25 Asian Handicap may be worth a look at for 7/4 at online bookmaker Bet365.
