Russia, Poland, Greece and the Czech Republic will be in action simultaneously on Saturday night.
Group A is wide open so while Russia are looking to hold on to their advantage, the rest want to fancy their chances of reaching the quarter-finals at the 2012 UEFA European Championship. Before kick-off, we explain the various prospects.
What Russia, Poland, the Czech Republic and Greece need to qualify
• Russia will qualify with a draw against Greece. They will secure the top spot in Group A with a win no matter what happens in the Poland vs Czech Republic match.
• Poland need to beat the Czech Republic to qualify. Any other result will put them out of UEFA Euro 2012.
• The Czechs will qualify with a point once Russia avoid defeat against Greece. The Czechs will secure the top spot in Group A if Russia fail to beat Greece.
• Greece need to beat Russia to reach the Last 8 at Euro 2012.
What UEFA's tie-breaking rules explain
On Saturday night, it could be much more complicated to separate any of these four teams. We look into possible scenarios and explain everything based on paragraph 08.07 of the UEFA European Football Championship 2010-12 regulations.
a) Higher number of points obtained in the matches played between the teams in question;
b) Superior goal difference resulting from the matches played between the teams in question;
c) Higher number of goals scored in the matches played between the teams in question;
d) If, after having applied criteria a) to c), two teams still have an equal ranking, criteria a) to c) are reapplied exclusively to the matches between the two teams in question to determine the final rankings of the two teams. If this procedure does not lead to a decision, criteria e) to i) apply in the order given;
e) Superior goal difference in all group matches;
f) Higher number of goals scored in all group matches;
g) Position in the UEFA national team coefficient ranking system (see annex I, paragraph 1.2.2);
h) Fair play conduct of the teams (final tournament);
i) Drawing of lots
How Group A looks like before the final round of matches
| POS. | TEAM | MP | W | D | L | GF | GA | D | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EURO: GROUP A 2012 | ||||||||||
| 1 |  |
Russia | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 4 |
| 2 |  |
Czech Republic | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 3 |
| 3 | Poland | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | +0 | 2 | |
| 4 | |
Greece | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 1 |
Scenario 1 – Russia and Greece draw, Poland beat the Czech Republic
This scenario would put Russia and Poland on 5 points at the top of the table. In terms of head-to-head, the Russians and the Polish cannot be separated following their 1-1 draw on June 12.
The goal difference factor would have to be applied. Poland will qualify as group winners only if they manage to defeat the Czechs by a 4-goal margin. Russia will subsequently finish as runners-up in Group A.
Interestingly, if Russia play out a goalless draw against Greece and Poland beat the Czech Republic 3-0, both Poland and Russia will end up with 5 goals scored, 2 goals allowed and a (+3) goal difference. In that case, criteria a) to f) will be nullified. With criteria g), Russia would win Group A as they are seventh in the UEFA national team coefficient ranking while Poland are 20th.
Scenario 2: Greece beat Russia and Poland vs Czech Republic ends in a draw
Greece, Czech Republic and Russia will all have 4 points. The Greeks will be ahead of the Russians in terms of head-to-head. The Czechs will crash out having lost 4-1 to Russia earlier in the competition.
If you understand UEFA’s tie-breaking rules differently, let us know. Write a comment to voice out your confusion and let us start analyzing prospects again!
