Euro 2008: Top 10 Bets

Best Bookies, Betting, Bookmakers, Euro 2008, Fixed Odds, Football, Tipsters | selectabet | June 7, 2008 at 7:00 am

1. Who Will Win Euro 2008?

Germany may not be the best team at Euro 2008 but they are the most likely to win it. The draw has been very kind to them as they’ll avoid France, Italy, Netherlands and Spain until they reach the final. Whilst all those teams cut each other’s throats the Germans will only have to contend with the likes of Croatia, Czech Republic, Portugal, Switzerland and Turkey on their way to the Final.

That for me means they have to be the team to beat. By the time the final comes around they’ll be nicely warmed up, whilst their opponents will have come through a gruelling couple of battles with other big nations.

At 4/1(888 Sport,Blue Sq, Ladbrokes, Skybet, William Hill) they’re not the biggest price ever but there are plenty of reasons why I they’re the ones to back.

2. What about a Dark Horse?

I’ve read lots of pundits tip Switzerland to surprise a few people at Euro 2008. Mostly this is based on the fact that at every Championship so far, the home nation has made at least the semi-finals – and Switzerland look a better bet than Austria. But there just isn’t enough form for me to make a call on how good or bad the Swiss actually are.

I like the look of Croatia but think they’ll really miss the goalscoring threat of Eduardo so won’t be getting involved with them.

Instead I’m really sticking my neck out going with Russia. Russian teams have had a good season in Europe with Zenit winning the UEFA Cup in May. I also saw Spartak Moscow at close hand earlier in the season and they we’re unlucky to miss out on the Champions League on penalties to Celtic.

Then of course there’s the Hiddink Factor. He’s already proven himself to be master of getting the most out of his teams. Remember he took South Korea to the semi-finals in World Cup 2002. I wouldn’t back against him in a head-to-head with any of the other Euro 2008. They’re in the tough half of the draw, otherwise I’d be tipping them to win but as an outside bet they’re worth a wee each way investment at 28/1(Bet Direct, Betfred, Stan James, Totesport).

3. Who’ll finish Top Scorer?

With five goals to his name in both the 2002 and 2006 World Cups, Miroslav Klose has already proven he can deliver at this level. Given the group that Germany are in, and in particular that game against Austria I think he’s in with great shout of coming out on top of the scoring charts. Given that I think Germany will make it to the final that will give Klose more games than most and the 10/1 at Paddy Power on him being top scorer looks like a decent price.

An outsider might be Karim Benzema of France. He’s just finished top scorer in France for Lyon and is starting to emerge as a first choice pick in Raymond Domenech’s team. If the French have a successful tourney it could be down to his goals. At 33/1 (Coral) he’s worth an each way punt.

4. Player of the Tournament

Voted Player of the season in Germany, Frank Ribery is coming into the tournament in great form. With France in a tough group they’ll need to pull a few performance out of the bag just to make it to the quarter finals. Ribery is a key man for them and is 20/1 with Boylesports and Paddy Power to be named the Tournament’s Best Player.

5. Top Premiership Goalscorer

There aren’t too many real contenders in this market which makes it quite interesting. Ronaldo (3/1 Paddy Power, William Hill) and Fernando Torres (3/1) are both favourites with Chesea’s Michael Ballack (10/1) and Nicholas Anelka (14/1) next in line.

There’s no arguing with Ronaldo’s goal scoring form domestically but he plays to different strengths in the Portuguese set up so might not be as prolific this month.

Spain face a few teams that are more defensively minded in Group D in Greece and Sweden so Torres might find goals hard to come by. And there’s no guarantee that Anelka will feature prominently for the French.

That leaves Michael Ballack at 10/1 (Ladbrokes). He weighed in with few important goals for Chelsea last season and may be on penalty duty for the national team. This looks a cracking bet and I’ll be having some of it.

6. Highest Scoring Team

It has to be Germany. They’re in the easiest group and will play more games most. 5/2 at Centrebet is well worth taking.

7. Group Winners

This is a tricky one, so I’d only be having a small wager on it. But my pick for the Group winners are Czech Republic (29/10), Germany (4/6), France (2/1) and Russia (9/2). That foursome would pay 80/1 at William Hill

8. Not to Qualify

This one might be a wee bit easier. The four I’d go for is Turkey (4/11), Poland (1/2), Italy (13/8) and Sweden (4/7).

9. Who’ll Ref the Final?

Howard Webb is England’s only representative at Euro 2008 and he’s 14/1 with Paddy Power to referee the final in Vienna on June 29th. If he has a good tournament in the Group stages he might just be worth a small outside punt, after all it’s not as if England’s participation will prevent him from refereeing in the latter stages.

But the favourite is Slovakian ref Lubos Michel. He seems to be flavour of the month at the moment and at 9/2 (Paddy Power) he looks like the safest option.

10. Banker Bet

I’d have to go with Germany to win their Group at 4/6. They shouldn’t be troubled too much by anyone in there. The only danger is that by the time they come to play Austria in the last game, Germany will know who the will face in the Quarter Finals if they top the group. If they’re so inclined they could see out a draw or worse to finish second by design.

But it is worth backing at 4/6 (Bet365, Bet Direct, Betfred, BlueSq, Ladbrokes, Stan James, William Hill).

Let me know what you think are the best bets of Euro 2008 in the comments below.