Poland
Slovakia
Slovakia
Dangerous Poland side take on Slovakia in first Group E fixture
Poland to win 1-0
Poland, on paper at least, have the potential to be a dangerous side at the tournament this summer, especially as they are led by World Player of the Year Robert Lewandowski of Bayern Munich.
In him, they have a star striker who can pop up and score goals from just about anywhere, but their success this summer will depend on who else can produce the goods too.
With just one win from their last six, they are entering the competition on a run of rather poor form. With likely group toppers Spain and Sweden also in Group E, Poland cannot afford any slip ups here if they are to mount a serious bid for the knockout stages.
Slovakia are appeared at just their second Euros, after the first one in 2016 went down as a success with the Slovaks reaching the Round of 16.
There are no world class names in their squad, but have enough quality to pack a punch.
World Ranking: 21
Best Historical Finish at the Euros: Quarter Finals, 2016
Predicted Finish This Year: Round of 16
Reasons to be cheerful:
With Lewandowski, they have a chance against any team
A strong squad who topped their qualifying group
Reasons to be fearful:
Poor run-in to the championships with injury and too much experimentation
A tough group to progress from with three challenging sides
With 119 caps and 66 goals, Robert Lewandowski is by far and away Poland’s best player, and arguably their best-ever player. He certainly carries their hopes on his shoulders whenever he plays.
There is, however, plenty of talent surrounding him too. Napoli midfielder Piotr Zielinski is a quality technician, while goalkeeper Szczesny, midfielder Klich and defender Bednarek have all enjoyed top level careers to date.
They progressed to the Quarter Finals five years ago and, although they have a tough group to progress from, will harbour similar ambitions this time around.
Their form has been mixed to say the least coming into the tournament, with coach Paulo Sousa under pressure for experimenting too much with his tactics.
Star Man – Robert Lewandowski
With 294 goals from 329 games for Bayern Munich, Lewandowski has developed into the best striker in the world.
World Ranking: 36
Best Historical Finish at the Euros: Round of 16, 2016
Predicted Finish This Year: Group Stage
Reasons to be cheerful:
Showed their quality five years ago by reaching Round of 16
Top class players Hamsik and Skriniar at either end of the pitch
Reasons to be fearful:
Very tough group to progress from
Not enough players who can score goals
Slovakia were one of the surprise packages of Euro 2016, progressing as one of the best third-placed teams in their group, only to be beaten by Germany in the first knockout round.
They will hold similar ambitions this time around and will hope that, if they can avoid defeat here, they can go on to claim another qualifying berth.
Up front they have former Napoli forward Marek Hamsik at the top of the pitch, possessing vast experience with 126 caps and 26 goals over a 13 year international career.
At the back is a defender is his prime, Inter Milan star Milan Skriniar who has just won the Italian league last season.
They will be quietly confident of progressing from their group here.
Star Man – Marek Hamsik
One of Slovakia’s finest-ever players, the aging forward will hope for a successful tournament.
Poland are likely to edge possession
Lewandowski to score
A single goal to separate the sides
With both of these sides, you’re never quite sure what to expect.
You would back Robert Lewandowski to get on the scoresheet, having done so more times than just about anybody on the planet over the past couple of years.
Slovakia will make for tough opposition, but can they create anything going forward?
Poland to win 1-0
