CONTENDERS STARTING TO SHOW: We’re down to the last eight, many of the contenders are still left, with a surprise or two remaining in the competition. Most notably of course is Iceland who dispatched a dreadful England team on Monday night. England fell right into Iceland’s trap the other day. They allowed them to have possession, and once England reached a threatening position they were hunted down immediately. I could spend more time analyzing what the English did wrong, but lets look forward to the upcoming games.

DANGER TEAM TO ADVANCE
This is the stage of the competition where games are notoriously tight. In the last 16 you had several sides who were happy to make it through the grou, so they may as well give it a go and play an open game. The mentality changes as you progress further. Most of the sides left in the tournament would have had the quarter final as a minimum expectation, so they will not want to go out at this stage. This is particularly true for Poland and Portugal. Both would have come in with an outside glance of making a run to the final, and they have a great chance to do so.

Neither side will want to lose themselves the game here, so I anticipate it to be quite a cagey affair for the main part. Of course Poland will be very careful of Ronaldo. As I have mentioned before, if you keep him quiet then you have an excellent chance of winning the game. With the back four this Polish side possess I think they will be be able to contain him. They have some big bodies there to take away some of his threat in the air, and you know they will attack every single ball so it won’t be easy.

There’s a goal for Poland in this game when looking at their two front guys against this Portugal defence. Poland were the better side against Germany and had the better chances, in particular one Milik sitter. I can see them grabbing a goal for sure, but I’m not 100% convinced they will keep a clean sheet. At the end of the day, Ronaldo is one of the two best players in the world, and if he has one of those days, there is simply no stopping him. I think Poland will get the job done here, but it may not be in 90 minutes. Verdict – Back Poland to Qualify at 2.42

NOTHING TO SEPARATE THEM
This is a very tough one, to me there is nothing we have seen thus far in the tournament that can separate these two sides. One came in as a favourite to win it all and has been good but not spectacular. The other came in under the radar and have performed excellently. But I still find it tough to pick a clear winner.

Italy were excellent against Spain in the last round, fully deserving the win. They also played excellently against Belgium in their first game, again completely shutting the opposition out. They will expect the German’s to play a similar style to what Spain did in the last round, but perhaps a bit more direct which could cause them some trouble. Having a big guys up front like Gomez will be something they may look to utilize as it is something that Spain were missing in trying to break down their stubborn defence.

Both of these sides will show each other a lot of respect in this game. The Italians know about the threat Germany hold going forward, and will look to absorb as much pressure as possible. Germany know that the Italians are quite good on the counter attack so will be cautious towards this. I don’t expect this to be as cagey an affair as the first quarter final, but I think it will be incredibly close. We have two excellent managers coming up against each other here and it will be an interesting tactical battle. To me it is a coin flip of who will go through, but in the 90 minutes I don’t see there being anything to separate the two sides. Verdict – Back the Draw at 3.05

WAIT THIS ONE OUT
There is so much unknown in this game that I really can’t think of what bet to place before kick off. We don’t yet know how good a side either of these sides are. Wales have gotten to the quarter final which is great, but when we look back at the quality of their group we can’t really say they have been excellent. They then defeated Northern Ireland who to be honest never offered much going forward. Then you look at Belgium, poor against Italy, looked excellent against Ireland but I think we made them look better than they are. They were dodgy against Sweden and finally they demolished a Hungary side who looked clueless.

This all depends on how Wales try to approach this game. I think they need to enter with caution, and be a bit defensive. Particularly out wide. I know Davies likes to get forward, but if the result of that means that Hazard or De Bruyne get even an inch of space then I think he needs to sit back. If the Belgian creative guys get a hint of space they will destroy Wales. Just look at what they did against Hungary. If Wales force them backwards or at least sideways on the ball then I fancy them to go through.

I haven’t seen enough from either side yet in this tournament to predict what game plan the two will approach the game with. To give a tip right now on a result could result in some big loss, so my advice would be to let the game develop a small bit before putting your money down. Wait for in play to bet

IT HAS BEEN FUN
What a refreshing surprise Iceland have been in this tournament. Of course England fans won’t think this right now, but you have to admit this Iceland story is brilliant for the minnows of this world. This has been a year of the underdogs and Iceland are continuing that trend on the International stage. They have yet to lose a game at EURO 2016, with a nation this size that is extraordinary when you consider their opposition.

France have been quite impressive thus far. I don’t think they have been the best team at the tournament, but they have shown they have some clear danger in their side. Ireland had a good game against France, but were undone in ten minutes by the hosts. This is what they can do to teams. They are stacked with talent, and while they may not click for a full 90 minutes, when they do it is scary for the opposition.

As fun as it has been watching Iceland defy the odds throughout the tournament, I’m afraid it will come to an end in the quarter final. There is too much at stake for France. They are the hosts and the favourites. They will be extremely up for this game after watching what Iceland did to England. Iceland are going to be defensive, they have been all tournament. I just can’t see them keeping this France team out. They can easily adopt a front six approach, and at some stage they will break you down. The height of Giroud will be a threat, something England didn’t have and I think it will give them the edge to get through. Verdict – France -1 at 5.8

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