Despite Spain’s emphatic success at Euro 2008 it’s interesting to see that the Iberians are still available at 7/1 to win the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

That’s a price that should place football punters on red alert because despite the retirement of coach Luis Aragones this side has a nucleus of players good enough to bring them joy in South Africa and beyond.

The likes of Fernando Torres, Cesc Fabregas and Sergio Ramos all have long and distinguished careers ahead of them and can form a formidable bedrock for the new managerial appointment to build upon.

Confidence is everything in football and Spain’s Euro 2008 win can inspire them to greater things.

Brazil and Argentina head the betting at 5/1 and 11/2 respectively but those two footballing giants appear to have been priced up more on reputation than substance. Neither country made the semis in the 2006 World Cup.

Germany - outclassed by Spain in the Vienna final - are fourth favourites at 9/1 alongside Italy, who were no better than mediocre at Euro 2008.

However, two years can be a long time in football and that’s something Fabio Capello will bear in mind when weighing up his chances of turning England’s hopes around.

Certainly, if they had competed at Euro 2008, it is hard to imagine England going beyond the quarters. They’ll need to improve somewhat if they are to make an impression in Africa.

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A mouth-watering Vienna final awaits totesport punters following Spain’s classy semi-final win over Russia.

Joachim Low’s Germany are the masters at delivering big performances when it really matters and with players like Michael Ballack, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Lukas Podolski they are obviously a threat to anyone.

But Luis Aragones’s men are really coming of age at Euro 2008 and they were particularly impressive in the Russia semi.

Liverpool’s Fernando Torres and Arsenal’s Cesc Fabregas were a constant menace and Real Madrid right back Sergio Ramos surely produced one of the most tireless displays ever witnessed.

A 3-0 win was a fair score-line given Spain’s display and they have now stuck seven goals past Gus Hiddink’s quality side over two matches.

Although it could be argued that the Russians never really got out of second gear. And what happened to their star playmaker Andrei Arshavin?

For sure, Germany are more formidable opponents than Russia. But have they got the defensive capabilities to handle the sublime Fabregas and the rampaging Torres?

Low will be concerned that his side have conceded a collective six goals to Turkey, Portugal and Croatia. Spain are better than those three sides.

Conversely, Aragones will be mindful that Germany are probably the best side his team have faced yet.

Despite the loss of Davis Villa through injury and the label of being perennial tournament bottlers the Iberians can put all that behind them and cover themselves in glory on Sunday.

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If the Spanish were good enough to beat Russia 4-1 in the group stages surely the punting logic is to go back to the well and drink again with Luis Aragones’s in-form side?

A quarter-final win against Italy is enough to send the confidence and morale of any side soaring so it is easy to see why totesport make the Spanish such strong favourites for Thursday’s Vienna showdown.

But anyone who witnessed the display of Gus Hiddink’s Russians in defeating Holland will know that the Spanish are no certainties to win this game. Physically, technically and tactically the Eastern Europeans were superior to Holland in every department.

Hiddink’s side have come on leaps and bounds since their opening defeat to Spain with victories against Sweden, Greece and then the Dutch.

The key has been the return of Andrei Arshavin. Suspended for Russia’s opening two games versus Spain and Greece he is fast becoming the player of the tournament. Surely it can’t be a coincidence that Hiddink’s men are now starting to look the real deal with Arshavin in the side.

And in Hiddink they have arguably the best coach at the finals. The Dutch maestro took Netherlands to the 1998 World Cup semi-finals and then South Korea to the 2002 World Cup semis. Don’t be surprised if he leads his latest charges to the final of Euro 2008.

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Comeback kings Turkey produced a sensational victory against Croatia in the quarter-finals but suspensions look set to finally take their toll on Fatih Terim´s gutsy side.

Semi-final opponents Germany were probably secretly celebrating just as loudly as the Turks after the boys from the Bosphorus eliminated Croatia - the country that of course beat Joachim Low´s men 2-1 in the group stages.

That´s not a fixture the Germans would have relished - but against a severely depleted Turkish outfit they will really fancy their chances.

For the one-sided looking Basel showdown the Turks are certain to be without Volkan Demirel, Emre A??k, Tuncay ?anli and Arda Turan through suspension - and they also have a lengthy injury list. The number of available outfield Turkish players currently stands at just 13!

The totesport match favourites have no such problems. With almost a full bill of health and key players in outstanding form it could be a case of how many can Germany win by?

If the brilliance of inspirational skipper Michael Ballack wasn´t enough, the Portugal performance of Bastian Schweinsteiger, who scored once and set up the other two goals in the 3-2 win, marks him out as a real threat to Turkey.

Throw in the striking threats of Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski and we could have the makings of a mismatch.

Take the Germans to win by two clear goals or more with totesport.

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Having emerged successfully from the “Group of Death” Italy can see off the so far sizzling Spaniards in what has all the makings of a classic quarter-final encounter.

The Azzurri were written off as no-hopers following their 3-0 drubbing against Holland and a lacklustre 1-1 draw with the Romanians. But Roberto Donadoni´s men showed all their survival instincts to come fighting back with a 2-0 win over inept France to cement their spot in the quarters.

Luis Aragones´s Spain are in tip-top form with wins against Russia, Sweden and Greece but there still remain huge question marks over their “bottle” for the knockout stages of tournaments.

Will their reputation as tournament chokers prevail and have they already peaked with those impressive group wins?

Indeed, there could be similar comparisons with the 2006 World Cup when Italy started poorly and improved throughout whereas the Spanish started like a Ferrari only to burn out.

Examine Italy´s silverware cupboard with that of Spain´s and you get a clue as to which side will handle the occasion best.

totesport.com install Italy as underdogs for this match which seems reasonable considering Spain´s brilliant group efforts. But the World Champion Italians are packed with tournament winning pedigree and that could well swing the punting pendulum in their favour.

Not so pretty on the eye, but they have the tools to get the job done in Vienna.

Don´t be surprised if Italy have to go to extra-time and penalties to book their place in the semis but they should do it. Totesport have plenty of markets around that eventuality.

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Having witnessed Croatia´s efforts at Euro 2008 thus far, England manager Fabio Capello might just be a worried man.

That´s because England are scheduled to meet the Croats on September 10 in their 2010 World Cup qualifying group. It will be Capello´s second competitive match as an England manager - the Three Lions play Andorra four days prior to that game.

Slaven Bilic´s side produced a brilliant display to defeat tournament favourites Germany 2-1 in the group stages and of course famously defeated Steve McLaren´s England at Wembley during qualification.

Historically, England´s results against the Croats have been something of a mixed bag. They first met them in 1996 with the match ending 0-0.

England then beat the former Yugoslavian sector twice (including a memorable 4-2 win at Euro 2004). But the Croats have of course held all the aces since then with two wins - the most recent coming in that Wembley qualifier when Mladen Petric´s late strike earned a dramatic 3-2 victory.

The second group match against Croatia is on September 9, 2009 at Wembley and it is clear that Capello will need to have improved England considerably by then if they are to hold any hopes of reaching South Africa.

The bad news for England supporters is that the current Croatia side has youth on its side and is likely to be even better by the time they clash in the Balkans later this year. Crocked Arsenal striker Eduardo is likely to be back to boost their forward line as well.

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Portugal and Czech Republic got off to perfect starts thanks to respective 2-0 and 1-0 wins over Turkey and Switzerland.

Portugal were very impressive and could well have scored more heavily. Cristiano Ronaldo hit the post with a trademark free-kick, Nuno Gomes shook the woodwork twice, and Pepe and Raul Meireles bagged the all-important goals that see Felipe Scolari’s side move to the top of Group A.

The Iberians’ next clash is a tasty looking game against Czech Republic. The Czechs looked an accomplished side in passing a tough test against hosts Switzerland.

With a win apiece expect to see a more relaxed approach from both sides. Indeed, this game could well see more than two goals for punters looking at the totesport overs and unders market.

We expect Scolari’s side to narrowly come through against Karel Bruckner’s team.

Portugal’s tournament form is absolutely outstanding. Including the Turkey victory, Scolari’s side have now won six successive group phase matches at European Championships and World Cups.

Switzerland take on Turkey in the group’s other game.

Without injured key player Alexander Frei, the Swiss will struggle to beat their opponents, but a vociferous home support should see them earn a draw.

The Turks showed little in offensive mode against Portugal but their experienced defence will nullify any Swiss attacking threat - leading to a likely stalemate.

As always totesport have a stunning selection of betting opportunities on Euro 2008.

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We recently said that Croatia were a touch overrated and the manner in which Slaven Bilic’s team made such a meal of beating Austria confirmed our beliefs.

Despite being handed a penalty after four minutes the Croats really toiled to win 1-0 against the poorest side at Euro 2008.

Croatia supporters will say that a win is a win but they should note that the Austrians enjoyed an eye-watering 65% of the possession.

There is little doubt that Bilic’s side need to vastly improve for the match against Germany, who won 2-0 against the Poles.

Ironically it was a Polish born German that did for Poland. Lukas Podolski’s double inflicted the damage for Joachim Low’s side but Poland did show some promising signs in defeat.

They should really have drawn level in the first half when Celtic hit man Maciej Zurawski dragged his shot wide when it looked easier to score.

Surely if that had gone in we would have witnessed a different game. However, Germany as always must be respected for their all round resilience. They will surely be too strong for the Croats.

Group B’s other fixture sees Austria play Poland in Vienna.

Leo Beenhakker’s Poles must be supported to win the game. Poland’s performance against the Germans means they can head into this game with optimism of getting a much needed three points under their belts.

As always totesport have a stunning selection of betting opportunities on Euro 2008.

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Past tournament history suggests that three goals should be enough to earn punters an each-way return in the Euro 2008 top scorer market.

And with that figure in mind Germany’s Michael Ballack looks well worth investment at 28/1 with totesport.

With no Didier Drogba to wrestle for the ball when Germany win a free kick the Chelsea ace will dominate all of the dead ball action in offensive areas.

Joachim Low´s side have been pitched into one of the weakest looking groups at the finals (Austria, Croatia, Poland) and it is fair to say that the Germans will be confident of scoring plenty of goals against that opposition.

Expect Ballack to be right in the thick of things. Another aspect in the attacking midfielder´s favour is that he had the benefit of a short domestic season and will be a lot fresher than many at the finals.

He was injured and on the sidelines for eight months before slowly easing back to his very best form as Chelsea came up just short in the Premiership title race.

He will literally be raring to go when his country get their tournament underway against Poland.

Another player worth a look is Switzerland´s star man Alexander Frei who is 50/1.

He became Switzerland´s all-time leading goalscorer when he bagged two goals against Liechtenstein a recent friendly.

Switzerland have home advantage going for them which could well give Frei a run to the knockout stages. Of the dozen previous times the European Championships have been played - a host nation has reached the semis at least.

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Totesport’s Euro 2008 markets offer the discerning football punter an absolute plethora of opportunities to strike it rich this summer and the straight forecast prediction of Group B throws up a great bet.

Germany to finish first and Poland finish second is a 4/1 chance and is well worth an interest. Joachim Low’s Germany are the class side in a section that also includes Croatia and Austria.

With Michael Ballack orchestrating things from midfield and Miroslav Klose leading the front line the Germans have too much for their group opponents and should comfortably finish in first place.

The race for second looks a closer affair with Croatia and Poland far superior to group weaklings Austria. Many pundits consider Croatia to have the upper hand on Poland, hence the 6/4 quote for it to be a Germany/Croatia straight forecast.

But most of those pundits have read too much into Croatia’s win at Wembley that did for a poor England side under Steve McLaren. Croatia might not be as good as most think and it is worth remembering that they have been robbed of their best player through injury.

Arsenal striker Eduardo scored 10 goals in 12 qualifying matches and is the chief reason they are at the finals but he’ll now be watching the tournament on TV after sustaining a broken leg following a challenge from Birmingham’s Martin Taylor.

Poland qualified for the finals with aplomb, topping a group that included leading tournament fancies Portugal. Racing Santander striker Ebi Smolarek bagged nine goals in a campaign that saw Leo Beenhakker´s boys win six straight matches.

Smolarek can fire the Poles to second spot in the group and reward punters who bag some of that 4/1.

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