Euro 2008
2008-06-07 - Switzerland vs Czech Republic
A Sports Betting Pick by Gooner
UEFA Euro 2008 - Group A
Saturday 7th June 2008 - KO 17:00
SWITZERLAND
Jakob Kuhn is stepping down as Switzerland coach after UEFA EURO 2008 but he's determined to mark the end of his 7 year reign as national coach with a successful showing - whatever that might mean.
Kuhn's Swiss side were unbeaten in the 2006 World Cup, advancing to the knockout stage before being eliminated on penalties by the Ukraine - but I was there that night in Germany and Switzerland played with little enthusiasm to go forward.
Now the Swiss seem to be playing a more interesting brand of football - which worked early on - but will they continue to try it - after four losses in a row and a particularly heavy defeat at the hands of Germany?
RESULTS IN LAST 9 MONTHS (all friendly)
07.09.2007 Wien N v Chile W 2-1
11.09.2007 Klagenfurt N v Japan L 3-4
13.10.2007 Zürich H v Austria W 3-1
17.10.2007 Basel H v United States L 0-1
20.11.2007 Zürich H v Nigeria L 0-1
06.02.2008 London A v England L 1-2
26.03.2008 Basel H v Germany L 0-4
CZECH REPUBLIC
The Czech Republic are once again considered a possible dark horse for a major tournament after qualifying for the Euro 2008 finals.
Germany took the headlines in Group D with some big early wins, but it was the Czech Republic who won the section.
Much of their strength is based around a defensive set-up that conceded just five goals in qualifying. The four-man defence forms an impenetrable barrier to many teams and in goal they have the formidable Petr Cech.
With midfield lynchpin Tomas Rosicky absent with a knee injury, Marek Matejovsky will shore up a midfield that also includes Jaroslav Plasil, defensive midfielder Jan Polak and the creative David Jarolim.
RESULTS IN LAST 9 MONTHS
08.09.2007 San Marino A v San Marino W 0-3 ECh(q)
12.09.2007 Czech Rep H v Ireland W 1-0 ECh(q)
17.10.2007 Germany A v Germany W 0-3 ECh(q)
17.11.2007 Czech Rep H v Slovakia W 3-1 ECh(q)
21.11.2007 Cyprus A v Cyprus W 0-2 ECh(q)
06.02.2008 Cyprus N v Poland L 0-2 Friendly
26.03.2008 Denmark A v Denmark D 1-1 Friendly
HEAD TO HEAD
These two sides last clashed back in 1999 when the Czech Republic cruised to an easy 3-0 win.
Overall the Czech Republic / Czechoslovakia hold a 3-1-1 advantage in 5 competitive fixtures.
THE VERDICT
Switzerland have improved markedly in the last 9 years since the last clash with the Czech Republic, but there is a feeling that the World Cup in 2006 may have been the peak for this side.
Home advantage will help the Swiss who are unbeaten in their last 10 competitive fixtures, but a series of recent friendly losses suggest that imght be a bit of a false statistic.
The Czech side are well ranked, and have scored some impressive results in qualifying, and are my favourites here.
The Pick :
Switzerland 1-2 Czech Republic
