I know this entry is a bit late because the show started on the weekend, but the next major footballing tournament is upon us: the European Championships ( aka Euro 2008 ).

Sometimes i do feel a bit sorry for top-flight European players. After playing club football every week from late August until the end of May, every two years they don't get much of a holiday because they have to play in either the World Cup or the Euros.

Then i think about the hideous amounts of money they earn, and the feeling quickly goes away.

I actually like the Euros a lot more than the World Cup as a footballing spectacle, and that's not just because Greece amazingly won the thing last time around. I dunno, it seems to me that UEFA puts on a much more classier show than FIFA does.

Anyway my picks for the tournament this year are Spain, France, Holland, and my dark horse being Croatia.

The teams i don't want to win are Italy (i've always hated Italian football), Portugal, and Greece. The last choice might surprise you (me being Greek and all), but the Greeks have been playing an extremely negative form of football - even worse than the Italians - and i really despise defensive negative football. It kills the game as a spectacle, and teams should not be rewarded for 'playing not to lose' rather than actually trying to win.