England are among the favorites to win the Euro. Photo: Getty Images/Rob Newell
Following the completion of the Euro 2024 qualifying groups, Telegraph Sport has ranked the 21 teams that made it to the final, from worst to best. Three more countries will join them in the playoffs.
21) Romania
Finished unbeaten and finished top of their qualifying group ahead of top-ranked Switzerland, although they were also only drawn against Kosovo, Belarus and Israel during the knockout stages. campaign. Gheorghe Puskas, the former Reading striker, will lead the attack, and at the back they will have 21-year-old Radu Dragusin, who was a player in the Juventus youth team before moving to Genoa on a permanent basis this season after a successful loan.
20) Czech Republic
What can we expect from them after coach Jaroslav Shilgovy announced live on television this week that he was resigning? He was still on the field at the time and said the pressure on him was too much. They just beat Moldova and secured their place in the final.
19) Albania
They are the lowest ranked team to qualify for the tournament, ranking 59th on the FIFA list. Recent draws with Moldova and the Faroe Islands are unlikely to inspire confidence in qualifying from the group in Germany, but they also have Chelsea striker Armando Broya looking to make a name for himself on the international stage. Feel the atmosphere of the Premier League with their leadership with Sylvinho, assisted by Pablo Zabaleta.
18) Slovakia
Only Portugal beat them in qualifying, Iceland and Bosnia are their strong rivals, and Luxembourg scored shock victories. Their reliability will come in the form of Paris Saint-Germain centre-back Milan Skriniar, who was on the radar of Premier League teams when he previously played for Inter Milan, and partner David Hanko from Feyenoord, while in midfield Among them is Stanislav Lobotka from Napoli.
17) Slovenia
They were completely pushed aside by Kazakhstan earlier in the week and needed a late goal from Benjamin Verbic to secure victory and second place in their group behind Denmark on head-to-head basis. They have not competed in the tournament since 2000 and their last major tournament was the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, so reaching the final is a huge achievement for the team led by Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak. Benjamin Sesco is their potential star.
Benjamin Sesco is one of the best young strikers in Europe. Photo: Getty Images/Jurij Codrun 16) Turkey
Finishing top of their group ahead of Croatia shows what they are up to after a hugely disappointing Euro 2020 where they were considered dark horses but ended up losing all three group games. Former Italy striker Vincenzo Montella has been head coach since September and was encouraged by the friendly win over Germany, which followed the win over Croatia.
15) Serbia
She took second place after Hungary in her group. Aleksandar Mitrovic and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic are currently in Saudi Arabia, but will be looking to show their class at the highest level, and the attack with Dusan Vlahovic and Dusan Tadic will be a problem for most defenders.
14) Hungary
They qualified from Group G without losing a match despite having to qualify from the group they were expected to qualify from. Beating England home and away last year, including a 4-0 win at Molineux, is the benchmark for his side, led by Dominik Szoboszlai, the Liverpool midfielder who has looked right at home in the Premier League since his summer transfer from RB Leipzig. .
13) Switzerland
Having reached the knockout stages of the World Cup, they will not be able to score points next year with a team full of experience but also high level. Granit Xhaka has joined Bayer Leverkusen and is a key player in their surprise Bundesliga title run. Xherdan Shaqiri and Denis Zakaria add to their quality, while Fabian Schar and Manuel Akanji are familiar faces to those who watch Premier League football.
12) Austria
They finished just one point behind Belgium in qualifying, and although David Alaba is their only player in the Galaxy, there is quality in their squad and their captain plays behind a midfield that includes Konrad Laimer (Bayern Munich), Christoph Baumgartner (RB Leipzig) and Marseille. Sabitzer (Borussia Dortmund). Marko Arnautovic, 34, is still in the squad and will take part in the end-of-season tournament on loan at Inter Milan.
David Alaba will be a key player for Austria at the Euros. Photo: Getty Images/Guenther Iby 11) Denmark
Their place in next year's finals was secured even before the shock defeat to Northern Ireland during the current international break. The Danes have extensive experience in the Premier League with Kasper Schmeichel, Joachim Andersen, Andreas Christensen, Christian Eriksen and Pierre-Emile Hoiberg. They also have Rasmus Hoylund, who saved his best performances for Manchester United for Europe.
10) Scotland
Wins have been hard to come by lately, but the hard work was done earlier in qualifying, beating Spain, Norway and scoring a double over Cyprus. This shows that they suit any team when they click on them. They will be hoping Scott McTominay is dangerous in his advanced position, while John McGinn and Billy Gilmour give them control in midfield.
9) Croatia
Luka Modric may be 38 years old, but no country would want to play against him. Marcelo Brozovic isn't the same player either, aged 30 and playing in Saudi Arabia, but writing Croatia off in any match would be dangerous, even if they lost to Wales and Turkey in October. They also boast Joschko Guardiol, who at home at Manchester City was considered one of the most promising defenders in Europe.
8) Netherlands
Question marks remain over the outstanding striker, with Wout Weghorst scoring the weekend winner against Ireland to book his place in the final. He really showed that he enjoyed this event at the World Championships. Ronald Koeman has great players in Javi Simons and Cody Gakpo. Dutch football king Marco van Basten questioned Virgil van Dijk's style as captain.
7) Germany
They were left out of qualifying as tournament hosts, but worrying friendly defeats led to the sacking of Hansi Flick and the appointment of Julian Nagelsmann, although defeat to Turkey at the weekend was unlikely to raise expectations. The new coach has at least two bright talents — 20-year-old Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala. The victory over France, albeit in a friendly match, showed that they are still capable of big victories.
Kai Havertz plays on the left flank is Julian Nagelsmann. Photo: Reuters/Leonhard Voeger 6) Italy
In two qualifying defeats to England, the hosts showed they are capable of moments of brilliance but can also be beaten. Luciano Spalletti's influence may take some time to come after Roberto Mancini's loss to Saudi Arabia's wealth, and the Serie A betting scandal looms over them, costing Sandro Tonali.
5) Spain
They are downsized compared to previous competitions, where Luis de la Fuente was in charge after taking charge of Spain's youth teams. They are among the top seeds, but the victory over Georgia came at a high price: Gavi suffered a serious knee injury. They are Nations League holders but the defeat to Scotland showed they can fail during matches too. In transition after the departure of Luis Enrique.
4) Belgium
There are still players from the Golden Generation, although Eden Hazard has retired from football. Jan Vertonghen, 36 and back at Anderlecht, is still in the squad and their attack is still led by Romelu Lukaku. Injuries to Kevin De Bruyne (hamstring) and Thibaut Courtois (anterior cruciate ligament) are cause for concern, although it should not be forgotten that until March 2022 Belgium were ranked number one in the world. Jeremy Doku is their brightest young talent. .
3) Portugal
Their entire attack will be channeled through Cristiano Ronaldo, who is not yet talking about retiring from the sport but is certainly in Last Dance territory as in the competition he won in 2016, Roberto Martinez has a wealth of talent in all other areas: Ruben Diaz, Bernardo Silva, Bruno. Fernandez — and that's just those based in Manchester. João Palinha is a potential star of a tournament that is flying under the radar.
2) England
Gareth Southgate has his sights set on becoming the number one team in the world and there is a feeling in his squad that only winning Euro 2024 will regarded as a success. This is the result of reaching the final in 2021 and having a stable team, plus the small matter of Harry Kane scoring goals and Jude Bellingham emerging as the best young talent in Europe.
1) France
It takes ruthlessness to win by a scoreline 14-0 against any opponent, which is what they did against Gibraltar. After coming so close to winning the World Cup, they were unstoppable in qualifying, their only blemish being a friendly defeat to Germany. With Kylian Mbappe they can win any game and they also have the Galactico engine room in Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouameni.
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