NEWCASTLE United midfielder Yohan Cabaye has tipped England to finish above his native France and win their group at this summer's European Championships.

Cabaye has established himself as a key member of France's first-choice midfield in the last 12 months, and is expected to start his nation's opening Euro 2012 fixture on June 11.

That games pits France against England, who are heading into this summer's tournament with limited expectations after a dreadful showing at the last World Cup and a recent change of manager that has left Roy Hodgson with little time to prepare.

Nevertheless, Cabaye expects England to be strong next month, and has picked out the Three Lions as the likeliest winners of a group that also features Sweden and co-hosts Ukraine.

"It's a difficult group," said Cabaye, who made his international debut in France's first game after the 2010 World Cup, a match that saw Laurent Blanc leave out all 23 players who had travelled to South Africa.

"Ukraine will be a strong team. They're at home and that will count for a lot. We beat them last year, but it wasn't at all easy.

"Then you've got Sweden, who are traditionally powerful and have one of the world's great players in (Zlatan) Ibrahimovich.

"But for me, England are the favourites. They're the first team we come up against and they're likely to be the most difficult to beat. They have had some uncertainty surrounding their coach, but for me England have great players who are all very dangerous.

"We'll have to prepare well for the game and we'll have to play well if we want to win and get our campaign off to a good start."

Cabaye is one of two Newcastle players in France's provisional squad, with winger Hatem Ben Arfa also hoping to survive Blanc's final cut later this month.

Cabaye goes into this summer's tournament on the back of a stellar first season at St James' Park that saw him more than justify the £4.8m Newcastle paid to sign him from Lille last summer.

The 26-year-old started 34 of the Magpies' 38 league fixtures, blending superbly with Cheik Tiote and establishing himself as one of the most effective central midfielders in the Premier League.

His composed passing was a key feature of Newcastle's attacking threat, but his work rate and commitment were equally impressive, attributes he feels have improved during his time on Tyneside.

As a result, when he lines up against England in 17 days time, he feels he will do so as a better player than the one that left Lille.

"It's definitely helped me being at Newcastle because there are a lot of great players and full internationals there," he said. "Every game we play is hugely intense.

"You come up against big teams all the time, strong teams, and there are no easy matches. I've learnt a lot.

"Playing in midfield in England is a real lung-buster. In France there's a lot more emphasis on the tactical side of the game, but the full-on nature of football in the Premier League is really helpful when it comes to being ready to play at international level."

And while expectations in France are every bit as low as they are in England after a calamitous World Cup showing two years ago, Cabaye could yet find himself playing for one of Euro 2012's liveliest outsiders.

For all of their previous problems, France can call on the likes of Karim Benzema, Franck Ribery, Samir Nasri and Yann M'Vila as they look to follow up their 1984 success.

"It's my first big competition so I don't really know what to expect to be honest," said Cabaye. "But I'll definitely be giving it my all and I'd like to think that we'll behave well and represent our country in the right way.

"The first objective is to qualify from our group of course. Anything can happen in a single match - we've seen that with the French team recently. We've beaten some big teams since the World Cup - England, Brazil, Germany - so we know we can do it."