Euro 2016: Top scorers, overachievers and tournament favourites
With Euro 2016 right around the corner, debate is rife on a number of topics. Who’s going to make a name for themselves? Who’s going to provide the biggest shock? And above all, who exactly is going to walk away from France with the European crown?
A history of the European Championship
Click the link below for a run-through of every European Championship tournament to date.
The Underdogs
There have been a few major shocks in the past, notably Denmark and Greece both becoming champions. Now I’m not going to argue that Albania have all the key qualities required to win the tournament; to be honest I couldn’t name most of their starting eleven. But the essence of being an underdog is that by the time the tournament is finished, you will know.
As four of the six groups will have three teams progressing, the potential for a small nation to squeeze through and produce one big upset is definitely there.
These are my top three picks for the most surprising performance this summer:
Austria
Normally, it would be hard to argue that a country who picked up 28 out of 30 points in qualifying could be an underdog. Admittedly though, they did have a relatively easy draw, even if Russia and Sweden are experienced sides. But they still possess some dangerous players. David Alaba of Bayern Munich was influencial in qualifying, scoring four goals. He’s often described as one of the most versatile players in the world because of his ability to play in central defence, central midfield, left back or the left wing. This could be a huge asset to his country as they can select him in a position that best targets their opposition’s weakness. With Premier League duo Christian Fuchs and Kevin Wimmer having excellent club seasons with Leicester and Tottenham respectively, and the immensely talented Marco Arnautovic up front, they could well be an outside bet to reach the quarter-finals.
Poland
Their qualification group proved just how good this squad is. Alongside World Champions Germany and resilient Scottish and Irish teams, Poland finished with just one loss. With Germany looking more vulnerable than they have in a while, and other top nations not convincing either, this could well set Poland up for a run to possibly the semi-finals. Having a world-class striker in Robert Lewandoski obviously helps; he finished as the top scorer across Europe in qualifying (13 goals) and also had the most shots on target (25 shots). Having Arkadiusz Milik providing a joint-best amount of assists (6 assists) shows they’re not a one-man team too. Other notable players include: Lukasz Piszczek, Jakub Blaszczykowski, and Grzegorz Krychowiak. Having finished bottom of their group on both previous occasions in the Euros, a better tournament is almost certain this time around.
Wales
A lot has been said about Wales since the start of the qualifying campaign, so they aren’t exactly flying under the radar. However, they are still viewed as rank outsiders; expected to progress from an easy group but go no further. But if they are able to secure the runners-up spot in group B, they will get arguably the best draw out of any second place team, as they would play the runner-up in group F, either the aforementioned Austria, Portugal, or international novices Iceland.
(Below, a Portuguese journalist’s view of their national squad’s prospects and issues, which suggest Wales may have a chance if they meet this summer.)
Wales could beat any of these countries when they perform to their best. Despite being tarnished with a ‘one-man team’ label, Wales have a squad packed with Premier League players. That speaks volumes about how good that ‘one man’ is: Gareth Bale. If Bale can bring his form from the 2015/16 season, for both club and country, into the Euros, Wales could potentially reach the quarter finals, which would be a huge achievement for a country making their first appearance at an international tournament since 1958.
Top Goalscorer
There are plenty of possible Golden Boot winners at this summer’s tournament, of course there are! These are some of the finest players on the planet. But some have a better chance than others.
Here are my top five picks for top Goalscorer this summer:
Thomas Muller
When you’re the son of one of the most legendary strikers, you’re bound to pick up some tricks to help you follow in his footsteps. And Gerd Muller’s little boy sure has done just that. Having scored 10 goals over two World Cups, and netting nine goals in Euro 2016 qualifying, Muller Jr. looks set to step up again for a major tournament, hence why he is heading most bookmakers lists in this category.
Cristiano Ronaldo
He’s a three time Ballon d’Or winner with over 500 career goals. But he’s never won an international tournament, despite being unrivaled in terms of individual ability against other European players. He came closest in 2004, helping his country to the final on home turf, only to be shocked by Greece. Now, 12 years later, you wonder how many more opportunities Ronaldo will have to cement his legacy with a major international trophy. In an uninspired Portugal side, it looks unlikely. But then again, CR7 is one of the finest players to ever grace a football pitch.
Antoine Griezmann
Although he may not be a stand-out player, Griezmann will most likely lead his country’s attacking line this summer, and the hosts are expected to go deep into the tournament. The pressure to succeed could be too much, be with an exceptionally talented team behind him, and a maximum of seven games to be played, this could well be the summer that Antoine Griezmann announces his presence among the world’s elite.
Harry Kane
It’s difficult to predict anything with England. Just as you think they’re on course for their best performance since 1966, everything goes down the pan. But with this summer’s tournament not showing a particular favourite, England may be able to go far. And Kane, although still relatively new to international football, has proven in his first two years in Spurs’ starting line-up that he can produce the goods.
Romelu Lukaku
Despite playing in a mediocre-at-best Everton side this season, Lukaku has proven his goalscoring credentials with 18 goals so far. He’s likely to be chosen ahead of Merseyside counter-part Christian Benteke, and in a team brimming with attacking talent — the likes of Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne and Dries Mertens will give anyone chances to score — it’s hard not to see this 22 year old hitting the back of the net on at least a few occasions.
Hear the views of a spectator at this summer’s Euros, on who he thinks could be the top goalscorer:
And finally…
Who will win Euro 2016?
It’s the question that will ignite many a pub debate in the weeks leading up to the tournament, and it’s unlikely the answer will be unanimous. It can be argued that there are six different nations harbouring realistic dreams of winning the tournament.
Here’s the online verdict:
Host nation France are being strongly tipped to give their country something to cheer about after a traumatic past 18 months.
Interestingly, third-favourites in the betting market, Spain, don’t seem to have much support, with far more people expecting the likes of Belgium, England or Italy to win it than the holders.
Here’s my run-down on the favourites:
Germany
Starting with the current World Champions, they are leading the betting market and understandably so; they’ve got a youthful but experienced squad, and came through a very tough qualifying group as winners. This champions mentality can be a deciding factor at the highest level, and it would be foolish to ignore the fact that Germany keep finding a way to succeed.
France
Strongly tipped by the public, they have one of the most exciting teams in the tournament. However, a lot of the players are still very young and haven’t played at a major international tournament before. And by qualifying as hosts, it’s been the best part of two years since they played any competitive football for their country. It will be interesting to see whether this band of talented young players can deal with the enormous expectation being placed upon them.
Spain
They’ve won the last two Euros but that doesn’t appear to hold much weight when it comes to deciding who will win it this year. This can largely be attributed to the horror show that was the 2014 World Cup, where defeats by the Netherlands — a 5–1 humiliation — and Chile, meant that they were eliminated after two matches. But a strong showing in qualifying suggests that there has been an improvement, and they would be a danger to anyone in the knock-out rounds.
Others
Seen as there was a lot of support for ‘other’ in the poll, these are the nations who could win the tournament but are still considered outsiders.
This has been called Belgium’s new ‘Golden Generation’, a tag that gets banded around countries that don’t have a great track record in tournaments and then leads to disappointment when they too fail to find success. Belgium do have some great individual players, but judging by their performance at the World Cup, that’s all they are — individuals. In a tough group, against Italy, Ireland and Sweden, they will need to find a way to play as a unit just to progress from the group. But if they do, they could go far in the tournament.
England are fourth favourites in the betting market, and with a relatively easy group, progression into the knock-out rounds should be a formality (although this is England we’re talking about). To describe the defence as shaky would be an understatement, but the raw talent of the midfield and attacking players could get the England fans off their seats this summer.
It’s worth mentioning Italy in this category also, purely because they always have the potential to be a major player in any international tournament. They’re the classic example of ‘been there, done that’, and this experience could stand them in good stead.
Of course, at the end of a remarkable domestic season, anything seems possible, as demonstrated by this fan’s take on the potential winners:
Something tells me that might be a step too far.