Group C was the first to start play in Euro 2012 qualifying, with Estonia defeating the Faroe Islands in mid-August. This may be the last time Estonia tops the group, with four other nations capable of finishing in the top two. Italy is the seeded team, but with a new coach and a roster in transition, all of Serbia, Northern Ireland and Slovenia could come out of Group C.
| Pot | Team | MP | W | D | L | F | A | D | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Estonia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 3 |
| 1 | Italy | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 |
| 2 | Serbia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 |
| 3 | Northern Ireland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 |
| 4 | Slovenia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 |
| 6 | Faroe Islands | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
Fixtures
August 11, 2010 - Estonia 2, Faroe Islands 1
September 3, 2010 - Faroe Islands vs. Serbia
September 3, 2010 - Estonia vs. Italy
September 3, 2010 - Slovenia vs. Northern Ireland
September 7, 2010 - Serbia vs. Slovenia
September 7, 2010 - Italy vs. Faroe Islands
October 8, 2010 - Serbia vs. Estonia
October 8, 2010 - Northern Ireland vs. Italy
October 8, 2010 - Slovenia vs. Faroe Islands
October 12, 2010 - Faroe Islands vs. Northern Ireland
October 12, 2010 - Italy vs. Serbia
October 12, 2010 - Estonia vs. Slovenia
March 25, 2011 - Slovenia vs. Italy
March 25, 2011 - Serbia vs. Northern Ireland
March 29, 2011 - Northern Ireland vs. Slovenia
March 29, 2011 - Estonia vs. Serbia
June 3, 2011 - Faroe Islands vs. Slovenia
June 3, 2011 - Italy vs. Estonia
June 7, 2011 - Faroe Islands vs. Estonia
August 10, 2011 - Northern Ireland vs. Faroe Islands
September 2, 2011 - Faroe Islands vs. Italy
September 2, 2011 - Slovenia vs. Estonia
September 2, 2011 - Northern Ireland vs. Serbia
September 6, 2011 - Italy vs. Slovenia
September 6, 2011 - Serbia vs. Faroe Islands
September 6, 2011 - Estonia vs. Northern Ireland
October 7, 2011 - Northern Ireland vs. Estonia
October 7, 2011 - Serbia vs. Italy
October 11, 2011 - Italy vs. Northern Ireland
October 11, 2011 - Slovenia vs. Serbia
FIFA Rank:11
Elo Rank: 14
Recent Performances: Eliminated in group play at World Cup. Eliminated in the quarterfinals of Euro 2008.
Coach: Cesare Prandelli
Captain: Gianluigi Buffon when healthy, but Andrea Pirlo will wear the armband this week.
Prominent players: Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Daniele De Rossi (Roma), Alberto Gilardino (Fiorentina), Febio Quagliarella (Juventus), Antonio Cassano (Sampdoria)
Outlook: Italy has only one defender that has more than three caps, and with Gianluigi Buffon out for at least a couple more months, the Azzurri have one cap amongst their goalkeepers. Cesare Prandelli is also making his competitive debut as coach. It’s a bit fortunate that Italy gets Estonia and the Faroe Islands this week. Had they faced one of the group’s tougher teams, it could have cost them come October 2011.
Predicted Finish: 2nd
FIFA Rank: 13
Elo Rank: 14
Recent Performances: Eliminated in group play at the World Cup. Failed to qualify for Euro 2008.
Coach: Radomir Antic
Captain: Dejan Stankovic
Prominent players: Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United), Branislav Ivanovic (Chelsea), Milan Jovanovic (Liverpool), Milos Krasic (Juventus)
Outlook: At some point Italy will get its act together, but until they do Serbia may be the group’s favorites. Their only weekness may be in goal, but particularly through the midfield, the Serbians have the talent to compensate.
Predicted Finish: 1st
FIFA Rank: 56
Elo Rank: 71
Recent Performances: Fourth in UEFA World Cup qualifying group. Failed to qualify for Euro 2008.
Coach: Nigel Worthington
Captain: Aaron Hughes
Prominent players: Chris Baird (Fulham), Jonny Evans (Manchester United), Steven Davis (Rangers), David Healy (Sunderland), Kyle Lafferty (Rangers)
Outlook: As was the case in World Cup qualifying, Northern Ireland is drawn into a deep group. They can defend, but they’ll be reliant on Lafferty for goals, with the hopes that David Healy has one more effective cycle in him.
Predicted Finish: 4th
FIFA Rank: 19
Elo Rank: 42
Recent Performances: Eliminated in group play at the World Cup. Failed to qualify for Euro 2008.
Coach: Matjaz Kek
Captain: Robert Koren
Prominent players: Samir Handanovic (Udinese), Bostjan Cesar (Chievo), Valter Birsa (Zuxerre), Milivoje Novakovic (Koln)
Outlook: The Slovene players’ familiarity with each other and tactical awareness should be an advantage in this qualifying format, where teams are only together for a week at a time. If a nation is going to knock Italy out of Euro 2012 early, it should be them.
Predicted Finish: 3rd
FIFA Rank: 94
Elo Rank: 96
Recent Performances: Fifth in their UEFA qualifying group. Did not qualify for Euro 2008.
Coach: Tarmo Rüütli
Captain: Raio Piroja
Prominent players: Enar Jääger (Aalesunds), Ragnar Klavan (AZ), Andres Oper, Kaimar Saag (Silkeborg), Sergei Zenjov (Karpaty Lviv)
Outlook: A 2-1 home win to over the Faroe Islands has Estonia out to an early lead in the group, but the Faroes playing them to a 2-1 tells of the limited Estonia threat.
Predicted Finish: 5th
FIFA Rank: 117
Elo Rank: 161
Recent Performances: Sixth in their UEFA qualifying group. Did not qualify for Euro 2008.
Coach: Brian Kerr
Captain: Frodi Benjaminsen
Prominent players: Gunnar Nielsen played for Manchester City once. That makes him prominent, right?
Outlook: The Faroes registered four points in World Cup qualifying. They’re unlikely to replicate that success in this group.
Predicted Finish: 6th
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