Group A: Poland

POLAND

WORLD RANKING: 65

TEAM CAPTAIN:  Jakub Blaszczyknowski

BEST EURO RESULT: Group Stage (2008)

THE LOWDOWN

The co-hosts head into Friday's tournament opening match as the underdogs in Group A. The Poles dress a relatively young and inexperienced team, possessing the dynamic duo of Jakub Blaszezyknowski and Robert Lewandowski, who led Borussia Dortmund to a 2nd straight German Bundesliga title this year and Arsenal's #1 goal keeper Wojciech Szczesny. Home field advantage and a 3 match win streak coming into the tournament will boost the "White Eagles" chances, but with their first 2 games against the group's two best teams (Greece & Russia) expect Poland to bow out in the first stage of the tournament. Don't worry Team Poland fans, this young team will only get better with time and this Euro 2012 experience. Watch for Poland to make major strides in Brazil at the 2014 World Cup.

PLAYER TO WATCH:  Wojciech Szczesny

The 22 year old Szczesny has cemented himself as the starting keeper for both his club team Arsenal and the Czech National team. With 10 international caps under his belt, the 6 foot 5 inch custodian will need to use every inch of his frame to keep goals out if the Poles have any chance of advancing to the quarterfinals. Despite having a formidable striker/winger partnership with Lewandowski and Blaszezyknowski, the real issue for Poland will be keeping the ball out of the net. Cracks are destined to appear in the Polish defense, so Szczesny will have to take his game to another level to keep Poland's hopes alive.

Wojciech Szczesny

PREDICTION: 4th in Group A

UP NEXT: RUSSIA

GROUP A: GREECE

GREECE

WORLD RANKING: 14

TEAM CAPTAIN: Giorgios Karagounis

BEST EURO RESULT: Winners (2004)

THE LOWDOWN

The 2004 European champions come into this year's tournament ranked 14th in the world with a nice blend of youth and experience in their squad. The aging faces of Giorgios Karagounis, Theofanis Gekas and Kostas Katsouranis are blended with youngsters Soitiris Ninis and Kostas Fortounis. Brazilian coach Fernando Santos will look to the experienced faces for mental strength and composure and moments of offensive brilliance from the young phenom Ninis.

Despite going unbeaten in qualifying, the Galanolefki have never been known as an offensive juggernaut and games against the likes of Russia and the Czech who possess similar scoring weapons and equivalent defensive acumen, could make this group a nailbiter to the end. Expect Santos to bring more a offensive approach to the Greek national team than his predecessor Otto Rehagel did. But, this may turn out to be the wrong style for the Greeks as they cannot expect to throw hay makers with the most talented teams in Europe and come out on top.

Where will Greece's goals come from? Samaras, possibly?

PLAYER TO WATCH: Sotiris Ninis

The 22 year old Albanian-born winger/midfielder will be at the heart of the Greek attack and will be looked upon for the lion's share of the team's offensive flair. Ninis, who made 2 appearances in Greece's disappointing outing in the 2010 World Cup, will look to end his 2nd international tournament on a much happier note. Regarded as one of Europe's brightest young stars, Ninis will have the perfect opportunity to show the continent why a number of top clubs on the continent were vying for his signature after his contract expired with Panathinaikos last month. Italy's Parma won the race to sign the young midfield magician, who will now be playing in Italy's Serie A come September. Is he worth all the hype? We will find out on Friday.

PREDICTION: 2nd in Group A & a Quarterfinal loss to Germany.

UP NEXT:  Poland

GROUP A : CZECH REPUBLIC

The World Cup may be the biggest soccer tournament on the planet in terms of sheer size, but few can argue against the fact that the European Championships always produces the superior on-field product. This installment of the Euros is likely to be no different, where 4 teams out the 16 total can be listed as the favorites to win European football's most extravagant prize.

With only 3 days to go, join me as I give you previews of each team taking part in Euro 2012 and include my tournament predictions for each team. We start with the Czech Republic in Group A!

CZECH REPUBLIC

WORLD RANKING: 26

Team Captain: Tomas Rosicky

BEST EURO RESULT: Winners (1976)

THE LOWDOWN:

The Czech's limp into this tournament after beating Montenegro in the qualifying round playoff, but losing to Hungary in their final warm-up match on Friday. The 1976 European champions have struggled in international tournaments of late, particularly since the retirements of Pavel Nedved, Jan Koller and Karel Poborsky. Despite having arguably the best goalkeeper in the world in Petr Cech, and veteran stars of yester year in Milan Baros and Tomas Rosicky, the Czech's lack international level talent to compete with the heavyweights in European soccer.

The most pressing concern for the Czech's will be in the attacking third of the pitch, as their leading play maker Tomas Rosicky will start the tournament with a nagging calf injury. To add their offensive woes, the strikers in the Czech stable (Milan Baros, Tomas Necid, and Tomas Pekhart) are unlikely to strike fear into the hearts of opposing defenders.

PLAYER TO WATCH: Tomas Rosicky

After the 2006 World Cup it seemed as Tomas Rosicky was ready to set the football world on fire. Prior the tournament in Germany, Rosicky had transferred to English giants Arsenal FC and during it, as he almost single handedly demolished the United States in a group stage match. Little Mozart, as he was called in his homeland, had arrived on the global stage.

Who can replace Pavel Nedved in the Czech midfield?

Unfortunately, the expectation of Rosicky being "The Next Pavel Nedved" has not panned out for Arsenal or the Czech national team due to a long list of injuries over the last 6 years. The multiple trips to the team doctor's office have affected the midfielder's quickness and shooting power significantly. This tournament may be the last chance for the 31 year old Rosicky to make an impact on the international stage. If the Czech's have any chance of getting out of this weak group, they will need Rosicky at the top of his game providing useful passes to Milan Baros and the other Czech strikers.   

Can Baros reclaim his Euro 2004 form?

PREDICTION: 3rd in Group A (Eliminated at Group Stage).

Up Next: Greece