Russia

Second up in Group D it's the pesky Ruskies, the other team along with Croatia to qualify at the expense of the hapless England team.


Russia

Official coach slogan - Russian hands are all for one, Russia is proud of her sons.

Unofficial coach slogan - If you don't let us win we will turn off your gas!

Russian football has ungone an unlikely transformation in recent years mainly thanks to an influx of Roubles from various dodgy sources (yes Comrade Abramovitch, I'm looking at you), with Russian teams increasingly making an impact in European competition, albeit mainly in the UEFA Cup (Zenit St Petersberg this year, under Dick Advocaat, joining fellow Russians CSKA Moscow as winners).

Under another well travelled Dutchman, Guus Hiddink, the traditionally under-achieving national team has also improved and despite mixed results in the qualifiers they were good enough to edge past a pathetically inept England and secure the 2nd qualifying spot behind Croatia.

The veteran Dutch coach has a great record in international football having previously led Holland and South Korea to the World Cup semi-finals (in 1998 and 2002) and Australia to the knockout round in 2006 and will be looking to take the Russians to at least the quater-finals.

With few genuine superstars (virtually all of the squad play their football in the domestic league), organisation and teamwork will be the order of the day, they are liable to line up in a typically Dutch style 3-5-2, deploying pacey wide players Aleksandr Anyukov and Vladimir Bystrov on the flanks of a technically strong midfield.

TC's prediction - To surprise a few people and qualify from a tight group, only to be beaten in a hard fought quarter-final.

Player who most sounds like a waxing service for hisuite men - Russian golden boy striker, Andrei Arshavin.