What happens when you put three of the top-10 ranked teams in the world in the same group?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You create the \u2018Group of Death\u2019 at Euro 2024. Italy are the Cup holders while Spain won Euro<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2008 and 2012, and Croatia made the semifinals at the 2022 World Cup. Could all three<\/p>\n\n\n\n
advance to the knockout stage? Can Albania wreak havoc as the forgotten team? The \u2018Group<\/p>\n\n\n\n
of Death\u2019 has some interesting possibilities this summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Group Winner: Spain -150<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Spain was dominant in qualifying, losing just once in 8 matches and scoring 25 goals while<\/p>\n\n\n\n allowing just 5. La Roja\u2019s loss to Scotland was their only loss in all competition since 2021, a<\/p>\n\n\n\n run that included victories over Croatia and Italy en route to winning the Nations League Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, Spain will face those opponents again and because of those two wins, they are favored to<\/p>\n\n\n\n win the group. While there are some young, promising players in the mix like Pedri and Lamine<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yamal, there are questions of a lack of experience. Still, Spain has the likes of Ferran Torres<\/p>\n\n\n\n and Alvaro Morata and certainly has the team to go all the way in Germany.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Key player: Alvaro Morata<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Alvaro Morata is the all-time leading goalscorer for Spain at the Euros with 6 goals in 10<\/p>\n\n\n\n matches. And through the first 26 games in LaLiga, he notched 14 goals for Atl\u00e9tico Madrid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Morata has a knack for scoring for his national team, tallying 34 goals in 69 caps. He is also the<\/p>\n\n\n\n only player in Spain\u2019s history to score at least 3 goals in multiple European Championship<\/p>\n\n\n\n tournaments. He did that in 2016 and 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Group Winner: Italy +275<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n They are the defending champions but have been drawn into a tough group. Luciano Spalletti<\/p>\n\n\n\n took over the side last September and many hope he can do with the national team what he did<\/p>\n\n\n\n with Napoli last season, comfortably winning Serie A. While there is a need for a legitimate<\/p>\n\n\n\n goalscorer up front, the Azzurri has some world-class players in Federico Chiesa, Federico<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dimarco, Alessandro Bastoni and Nicolo Barella. Italy does have a slight advantage opening<\/p>\n\n\n\n against Albania as a win would put them in a great spot to move on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Key player: Gianluigi Donnarumma<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Italy has always been known for defense and goalkeepers, and if they plan to repeat, Gianluigi<\/p>\n\n\n\n Donnarumma will be a big reason. He\u2019s one of the best goalies in the world and was the hero in<\/p>\n\n\n\n the penalty shootout victory against England at the 2020 Euro Final.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Group Winner: Croatia +400<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Will this be the summer Croatia finally breaks through on the international stage? In the last two<\/p>\n\n\n\n World Cup tournaments Croatia has finished runners-up and third but at the Euros, they were<\/p>\n\n\n\n eliminated in the round of 16 in 2020. For whatever reason, Croatia hasn\u2019t been able to get past<\/p>\n\n\n\n the quarters at this event. The golden generation remains intact and Zlatko Dalic has been<\/p>\n\n\n\n successful with his squad. If Croatia can get results against Spain or Italy it should move them<\/p>\n\n\n\n into the knockout stage, where anything is possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Key player: Luka Modric<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n This is likely Luka Modric\u2019s last major tournament on the international stage and he\u2019ll try to end<\/p>\n\n\n\n his career with a bang. While he\u2019s 38-years old, Modric isn\u2019t showing any signs of slowing<\/p>\n\n\n\n down. Croatia will go as far as this maestro takes them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Group Winner: Albania +2800<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Albania would need a miracle against these powers to even get a result. They finished third at<\/p>\n\n\n\n the 2016 Euros defeating Romania in group play. Albania was a surprise winner of their<\/p>\n\n\n\n qualifying group edging the Czech Republic and Poland. This tournament appears to be a three<\/p>\n\n\n\n and done for Albania, leaving with some nice parting gifts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What happens when you put three of the top-10 ranked teams in the world in the same group? 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