© Reuters
Hungary and Switzerland will kick-start their Euro 2024 campaigns with a Group A encounter at the RheinEnergieStadion in Koln on Saturday afternoon.
The two nations are joined in Group A by Scotland and hosts Germany, who get the tournament underway in Munich on Friday night.
We say: Hungary 1-1 Switzerland
Both nations know that victory on Saturday would provide them with a huge boost in their quest to qualify for the knockout rounds, but they may opt to take a pragmatic approach to this contest which could result in a closely-fought battle being played out in Koln.
Hungary will fancy their chances of making the net ripple as they have scored in each of their last 11 internationals, but we expect their experienced Swiss counterparts to claim a share of the spoils from their opening group-stage fixture.
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> How Switzerland could line up against Hungary
> How Hungary could line up against Switzerland
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The opening match of what is set to be a fascinating Group B at this summer’s European Championship will take place in Berlin on Saturday, with Spain tackling Croatia.
Spain are three-time winners of the European Championship, while they made the semi-finals of Euro 2020, but Croatia have never made it past the quarter-finals of this competition.
We say: Spain 1-1 Croatia
This is such a tough match to call, and we initially had Spain down as narrow winners before ultimately deciding on a low-scoring draw. Croatia deserve huge respect for their recent World Cup performances, and we believe that Dalic’s team will be good enough to claim a point in their section opener with La Roja.
> Click here to read our full preview for this match
> How Croatia could line up against Spain
> How Spain could line up against Croatia
© Reuters
Starting the defence of their European title, Italy meet Group B rivals Albania on Saturday evening, when both nations kick off their Euro 2024 campaign.
While the Azzurri are ultimately aiming to win back-to-back Euros, their neighbours are simply hoping to advance from the group stage on just their second major tournament appearance.
We say: Italy 1-0 Albania
Given the other teams’ strength in a loaded Group B, this contest will have a high-stakes feel, so it should be a tense and cautious encounter.
The points’ destiny may be decided by just one goal, with Italy having sufficient experience to get a slim win over the line.
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> How Albania could line up against Italy
> How Italy could line up against Albania
