© EuroFootball.com
On Friday at 19:00 Lithuanian time, the draw for the group stage of the 2012 European Championship will take place in Kiev. The ceremony will be broadcast live on LTV2 television.
The biggest attention will likely be on the strongest team from the Old Continent and the planet, Spain, which may have to compete with teams such as Germany, Portugal, and France in the first stage.
"We are in a more difficult situation than in 2008 when we were just contenders," said Spanish coach Vicente Del Bosque. "Now we have to defend the title, so the responsibility is even greater. In addition, our opponents have strengthened: the Netherlands, Germany, England, Italy, France. It will be really tough."
Next year's European Championship in Poland and Ukraine will start on June 8 and continue until July 1.
"We are looking forward to a very interesting tournament with the best European teams according to the rankings," said the coach of the German national team Joachim Low.
Fabio Capello, who leads the English team, seconded him: "The European Championship is stronger than the world championships. After all, European teams took first, second, and third places in the World Cup."
Meanwhile, Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo, whose team is in the third pot, hoped to avoid the Spanish team: "I would not want to play in a group with Spain. It would be better to meet the favorites in a later stage of the tournament."
France, coached by Laurent Blanc, is also not lacking in ambitions, having not lost in 17 consecutive matches.
"We have improved a lot, although our recent friendly matches against the USA (1-0) and Belgium (0-0) may not show it," he insisted. "I am sure that we are more respected abroad than before. The Germans want to avoid us, and that is a compliment. I can assure you that we also do not want to meet them."
Since 2016, when the continental tournament will take place in France, 24 countries will compete in the European Championships.
EURO 2012 draw pots:
First pot: Poland, Ukraine, Spain, Netherlands
Second pot: Germany, Italy, England, Russia
Third pot: Croatia, Portugal, Greece, Sweden
Fourth pot: France, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ireland
