Euro 2012 Top Goalscorer Betting Preview

European and World Champions Spain are naturally the favourites to defend their title at Euro 2012 and are priced at 5/2 with Paddy Power. However, Germany and Holland should be realistic challengers and represent better value at 7/2 and 15/2, but it’s in the Euro 2012 Top Goalscorer Betting market where a bit of bang for your buck could really be earned.

On the face of it, the favourites could be expected to claim top spot in the goalscorer market too, but this isn’t necessarily the case for 2012. David Villa suffered a season threatening injury in the World Club Cup finals with Barcelona, and despite planning a return to action before June, he isn’t guaranteed a starting place in the group stages. Also, fellow striker Fernando Torres has endured a torrid season so far at Chelsea, perhaps wishing he too could have a spell on the sidelines away from increasing tabloid scrutiny. Villa is available at 10/1 and Torres at 18/1, with neither representing much real value.

Instead Fernando Llorente, the Athletic Bilbao hitman, could prove to be a wise bet. With Villa possibly struggling for match fitness and Torres struggling to find the net all season, he could be the man to lead the Spanish line at the European Champions.

Elsewhere, Germany are strongly fancied to upset the odds and push Spain all the way in June, and the top goalscorer odds suggest so too. Bayern Munich’s Mario Gomez, who’s been on many Premiership team’s radar in years gone by, is favourite at 9/1. He’s having an excellent season with the German side so far, helping them to the top of the Bundesliga and into the Champions League knockout stages.

Miroslav Klose, the man he replaced in both the national side and club lineup, is at 14/1, and while Gomez is the German’s number one, the wily old fox Klose has a knack of performing when it matters, at the business end of major tournaments. Germany may appear to have a more difficult group than Spain, but a recent 3-0 dismantling of the Dutch in a friendly showed that they’re streets ahead of anything Europe can offer, and even Spain will fear them.

Outside the top two favourites in the outright betting, Portugal forward, Cristiano Ronaldo is available at 12/1. He’s yet to make a huge impact on the international stage, and with a Portugal side who scraped through the play-offs, he might not have too many chances to score. Germany and Holland are expected to qualify from this group, so potentially playing in only three games doesn’t bode well for the Real Madrid man.

Holland’s Robin Van Persie is arguably one of the best strikers in the world on current form, and is also 12/1 to be top goalscorer in Poland and Ukraine. Tiredness may be an issue however, having been largely responsible for anything positive in Arsenal’s Premier League campaign so far, and he could feature in every game they play until May, which would affect his chances come June.

Other notable punts may be France’s Karim Benzema, in fine form at Real Madrid, who’s available at 20/1, but again, his countries failings may see him short of game time.

The tabloids top character Mario Balotelli is Italy’s striker of choice in the betting markets, also at 20/1, but recent antics should rule him out. Will he even play every game for his country? Will Italy make it out of a tricky group which includes Spain, Ireland and Croatia?

England’s hopes may lie with Wayne Rooney, who can be backed at 33/1, but let’s be honest – England never score a huge amount of goals at International Finals. A friendly win over Spain last year may flatter to deceive, and there’s better value elsewhere.

Outsiders:

Eduardo – Croatia – 50/1

Croatia always punch above their weight when it counts, and may sneak through behind Spain in Group C, and will then play the winner of Group D in the next round – France, England, Ukraine or Sweden and the Croats pose enough of a threat to squeeze past any of them.

Thomas Muller – Germany – 22/1

Not quite an outsider, but the elusive forward knows how to break into the area to back up his sides counter attacking style, and gets on his fair share of crosses. One to watch.

You can find all the Top Goalscorer Betting along with outright, group betting and stage of elimination at Paddy Power Football Betting.

Tags: England, Euro 2012, Fernando Llorente, Spain, Wayne Rooney