Avoiding Germany the hope for most in Euro 2016 draw

Next year’s tournament in France, the first to have 24 teams, will feature a new second round that includes the top four third-place finishers.

Those in Pot 1 are hosts France, holders Spain – who beat the Azzurri in the 2012 Final – World Cup winners Germany, England, Portugal and FIFA World Ranking number one side Belgium.

Germany coach Joachim Low says his world champions do not fear any of their potential opponents at Euro 2016 ahead of Saturday’s draw in Paris. The Turks managed to keep the Netherlands out of this tournament in a stacked qualifying group, which the Czech Republic actually won.

It faces debutant Northern Ireland in the opening game, but has one key difference to the team that lost 3-2 in Northern Ireland in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers: Robert Lewandowski, who scored 13 out of Poland’s 33 goals in qualifying and is now tearing it up in the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich.

Each team will be placed in one of six groups (A to F) with four teams per group. Turkey was the Pot 4 side to avoid while Czech Republic, so strong in qualifying, is an impressive, attacking unit under coach Pavel Vrba and is a dark horse that should not be discounted.

The draw for the group stages of Euro 2016 will take place this Saturday, with the home nations set to find out who will they meet in the first round of the tournament in France.

Whether Platini will be in attendance at the ceremony in Paris hinges on him winning his appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against a 90-day ban from all footballing activities while an investigation goes on into a payment he received from Federation Internationale de Football Association in 2011. Platini, whose representatives called the decision a “sham procedure … that constituted a patent violation of the presumption of innocence”, can not run for the presidency while under suspension. Turkey shot down a Russian war plane last month, leading to increased tensions between the two countries.

With or without Benzema, there will be plenty of star power throughout the expanded 51-match schedule. Gareth Bale will finally get a chance to shine on a big stage for Wales. “It’s normal, it’s never won a major title”, Ronaldo said in a recent interview with The Associated Press. I am confident as we have so often proved that we are in the position to use our time wisely to prepare.