Nate’s 9: Teams that
can win Euro 2016
For the
first time in the history of the tournament, the Euros are going to have 24
teams in its finals. Whether you think its overindulgence or about time, we’re
about to have a month long tournament for the world’s greatest soccer
continent. Personally, I’m for the expansion in this sport as opposed to the
expansion in NFL playoffs, March Madness, etc. Each tournament is unique and I
think they have to be viewed as such, but European soccer has reached the point
of even the 24th best country being pretty good (Slovenia,
Netherlands, Greece, Denmark and Norway all missed out, and they have made and
won tournaments in the past). I think we all know that the 68th best
college basketball team has no legit shot at the title whatsoever and it’s only
for financial purposes and at the unspoken exploitation of the athlete that
they even went from 64 to 68 in the first place. The games are played on
Tuesday, and well, aren’t they supposed to be in school on a Tuesday? (Their main
argument against a football playoff) Hmm... As for the NFL comparison, I think
we can all agree that we already don’t like 7-9 teams in the playoffs and by
adding two or even four more, could add teams that finish with that record on a
yearly basis. Just seems like money to me. And while I do believe that 16 to 24
expansion does generate serious revenue, think of how excited the citizens of Northern
Ireland , Albania ,
Wales and Slovakia
are going to be come tournament time. Well, right or wrong, here are my 9 early favorites to lift the coveted European Championship trophy in the summer of
2016. (So much can change though. Injuries, Group Drawings, Poor Team
Selection...)
#9 - Republic of Ireland/Poland. I just couldn’t dwindle it
down to nine as I can’t really separate these two nations. I picked Poland ,
because they have the world’s hottest ST right now in Robert Lewandowski who
could almost win a tournament by himself the way Peter Schmeichel did for Denmark
in 1992. I picked Ireland
because they currently have great team spirit, and if Greece
can do it in 2004 when they had some of the smallest odds in the history of the
tournament, then why can’t a team with that similar spirit do so in 2016? Martin
O’Neill is a magician as well, and has been getting the best out of these
players over the last few months.
RI one to watch – Seamus Coleman. Could be discussed as one
of the best FB’s in the world if he can take that next step in June.
#8 – Italy .
The last time I doubted them this much, they lifted a World Cup trophy
(2006). They did really well in 2012 to
make it to the final and beat Germany
along the way. I’m just not sure with
the talent remaining that they can make a huge push to win Euro 2016, but they
do have some nice pieces to make it interesting. Daniele De Rossi is one of the
world’s best defensive midfielders when healthy, and becomes the engine to this
Italian side. Gianluigi Buffon is known the world over, and is still one of the
better GK’s playing right now. He might not be able to win a tournament by
himself like he did in 2006, but he still gives the Italians an advantage. Not
much talent in the attack though could leave Italy
vulnerable for goals and a legitimate shot at the title.
#7 – England .
The last time I gave them this much credit (2004), they really should have won
the tournament, but got knocked out on penalty kicks in the QF's (somewhat of a theme, I
believe). For the last 20 years, or
since they had a really good chance at winning in ’96, I almost feel like
they’ve underachieved. Considering they’ve had greats like Frank Lampard, Steven
Gerrard, John Terry, Alan Shearer, Sol Campbell, Paul Scholes, and David
Beckham among others, it’s almost shocking that they’ve never even gotten to a
semi-final. While I don’t think this is a team that is going to reach those
heights this time around either (They always seem to find a way not to), I do like the
possibilities this squad has to offer. The front 3 of Harry Kane, Wayne Rooney
and Raheem Sterling can be difficult to handle, and all 3 are capable of
providing different ways to score. John Stones is on his way to reaching the
heights of a Campbell, Terry or Rio Ferdinand. Joe Hart finally gives them the legit #1 GK that they’ve craved since David Seaman. I would be amazed if England
finally lifted the European trophy, but this group has the potential to make
things interesting.
#6 – Croatia .
They shocked the world when they finished in 3rd place at the 1998
World Cup in France .
Ever since that tournament, I’ve followed them from afar, and I think they
finally have their best shot at a trophy.
I’ve believed for about 6 months now that Croatia
has the best central midfield pairing in the entire world in Luka Modrić and
Ivan Rakitić. These two already linked up in 2012, and were just a goal shy of
getting past Spain
to get out of the group. Now, I believe that both of them are even stronger,
and both are the main cogs in their respective club teams (Real Madrid and Barcelona ). They have great passing sense, can score from
long range, play box to box, and run relentlessly for 90 minutes. If Croatia
can figure out the rest of the midfield (Mateo Kovacić, Marcelo Brozović and
Ivan Perisić in my humble opinion) and provide Mario Mandžukić with ample
opportunities, they could find themselves playing in games that matter near the
end.
#5 – Portugal .
The one man show. They actually have a bit of talent throughout their squad,
but I think that Cristiano Ronaldo is looking forward to the pressure as a
result of their embarrassing showing in the 2014 World Cup and will try to win this thing on his own. His time to win an
important trophy on the national team is growing short and this may be
realistically his last chance. As a result, I push Portugal
ahead of England
and Croatia
where I otherwise wouldn’t in other circumstances. The rest of the team has a
little bit of talent, but it hasn’t really come together. Nani is inconsistent;
Joao Moutinho disappears on the national team.
Pepe, Bruno Alves, and Fabio Conentrão all peaked a few years ago, and
haven’t been replaced adequately. But at the end of the day, this one man show
of CR7 could be enough to lift the desired trophy.
#4 – France .
The first year I really embraced soccer as a sport was the year 1998, and my
first lesson was realizing my mistake when laughing at the chances of the
French before the 1998 World Cup. When I started playing FIFA, I never chose France
because they only had 2 players worthwhile (not quite) in Zinedine Zidane and
Didier Deschamps. I picked Germany ,
Italy , England ,
Holland , Brazil Argentina
well before I would consider France .
So imagine my surprise when they pulled in the trophy in the first World
tournament that I ever committed to (I watched the 1994 final, but that was it.
And I got bored). Now, for the first time since 1998, France
hosts a major tournament. And once again, I don’t consider them a favorite. But
if the youngster quintet of Anthony Martial, Antoine Griezmann, Paul Pogba,
Raphaël Varane and Kurt Zouma piece things together quickly, I could be
realizing more mistakes in the near future.
#3 – Belgium .
I really wanted to put them 2nd, but a lack of experience in big
matches wouldn’t leave the back of my mind. I love this current squad probably
more than any other national team in the world sans Germany . They have everything built in to be
successful over a 6 week period. They have a world class keeper in Thibaut
Courtois. They have a defensive back line that’s difficult to penetrate and a
top CB in Vincent Kompany who also controls set pieces, organization, etc. He’s
underrated as one of the great defenders from this generation. They have about
11 quality players in midfield roles, and can present any opponent with any
type of look that they so require. Eden Hazard, Axel Witsel and Kevin De Bruyne
have locked up 3 of the 5 spots for most games, but to have guys like Marouane
Felliani, Dennis Praet, Adnan Januzaj, Radja Nainggolan, Mousa Dembele, Dries
Mertens and Kevin Mirallas available for any type of game is a pleasant problem
for Marc Wilmots (a lovely player in his own right) to have. Most of the
options up top are young, but once again they have all styles for all matches.
Christian Benteke will likely be first choice if fit, but with Romelu Lukaku and
Yannick Carrasco available on the bench, they can knock back any team that
tries to be physical with them. My personal favorite for the title, but to do
so, they have to beat 2 very capable sides ahead on this list.
#2 – Germany . The reigning world champions and well
deserved. They went through a lot of crises in order to get to this point in
world football. Rewind back to 2000 when Germany
got 1 point from 3 European championship games. I remember it well; I was
there, and the Germans were miserable. And everything changed. They poured
money, time and resources into the youth of the sport, and while it took about
a decade to truly see the results, Germany
is back to being a world powerhouse, and the amount of young talent still
coming through is absurd. I look at the players that are likely to miss out on
next year’s tournament, guys like Max Meyer and Leon Goretzka of Schalke 04, Julian
Weigl and Ilkay Gündoĝan of Dortmund, the Bender twins, a fit again Lukas
Podolski. Miroslav Klose and Philip Lahm both retired from the national team as
well, and I don’t think they’ll miss a beat. Any country would love to have
those types of selection headaches, and I don’t think Joachim Low’s going to
get it wrong. That said, we all know the German style of play now and it’s a
lovely counter-attacking style that requires stamina for the full ninety
minutes. I don’t see too many teams giving Germany
problems, and I’d put them at top favorite if it wasn’t for the intangibles of
a certain familiar Mediterranean side.
#1 – Spain .
While certainly not having the luster that the 2008-12 trophy lifters had, this
team will still be a force to be reckoned with. And they were terrible, and I
mean really, really bad in the 2014 World Cup down in Brazil .
Maybe they had it coming; complacency always tends to set in after a long
period of success with the same players, and Spain
hadn’t changed much over the years. Same GK, same midfield, same striker and
their lack of interest showed in the shellacking by the Netherlands .
That’s why I think they will wake up for this tournament. Vincent Del Bosque
has shown great tactical understanding over the years, and this team feeds well into what he wants from a side. They will play a high-pressure possession
game, and try to dictate tempo with their short passes and overlapping runs
from the back. Gerard Pique, Sergio Ramos, Javi Martinez and Jordi Alba are all
in the prime of their careers and have a great understanding with one another.
It’s the midfield that he’ll need to sort out, but this current group of 4 that
includes: Andres Iniesta, Juan Mata, David Silva and Santi Cazorla bears
watching. Great technical players all, their gift for playing a flowing style
of football will be justified when they take the trophy back to Spain
for the 3rd time running.
My European 2016 11
GK – Iker Casillas (Spain )
LB – Jordi Alba (Spain )
CB – Mats Hummels (Germany )
CB – Vincent Kompany (Belgium )
RB – Sergio Ramos (Spain )
CM – Luka Modrić (Croatia )
CM – Paul Pogba (France )
AM – Raheem Sterling (England )
AM – Gareth Bale (Wales )
ST – Robert Lewandowski (Poland )
ST – Alvaro Morata (Spain )
