Showmax’s EURO XI

Unfortunately, the time has come to say goodbye to yet another thrilling football tournament.

The 2024 UEFA EURO tournament was everything and more than a football fan could ask for, with nail-biting wins, last minute goals, sublime skills, plenty of breakout stars, and eventually a worthy winner in the tournament.

With the tournament having come to an end with Spain being crowned champions, Showmax have picked out their team of the tournament.

Goalkeeper

Jordan Pickford (England)

Jordan Pickford often splits the critics at club level, but he has never let anyone down for the national team.

England conceded just three goals on their route to the final and Pickford was once again a penalty shootout hero – as he has been so many times for his country.

Defence

Jules Kounde (France)

From a defensive point of view, Kounde was the best right back at the tournament. He completely nullified Jeremy Doku in France’s win over Belgium and limited Rafael Leao as best as anyone could despite being left one-on-one with the Portugal winger.

William Saliba (France)

Despite his brilliant performances for Arsenal, William Saliba wasn’t even expected to be first choice for France this EUROs.

Didier Deschamps begrudgingly started the tournament with him and Saliba barely put a foot wrong.
France conceded just one goal in their first four games as Saliba put on a defensive clinic before Spain proved just too strong in the semifinals.

John Stones (England)

Stones made 10 clearances and recovered the ball 24 times in the tournament.

England maintained two clean sheets and only conceded four goals in six matches with him commanding the back line.

Marc Cucurella (Spain)

One of the surprise success stories at EURO 2024, Cucurella showed why Chelsea were prepared to pay so much for him two years ago.

Cucurella was crucial for Spain’s system at EURO 2024 as he inverted into midfield as well as providing an overlapping threat for Nico Williams down the left.

Midfield

Ngolo Kante (France)

France’s Ngolo Kante made a comeback into the national team after a long time but it felt like it was the same World Cup winning captain because of his performance in the middle of the park.

Kante was a work horse in the midfield and made some crucial defensive tackles and blocks to help the French backline. Kante even made 28 passes into the final third showing his attacking contributions as well, which indicates he has had an all-round performance in Euro 2024.

Fabian Ruiz (Spain)

Fabian Ruiz was perhaps the classiest midfielder on show at EURO 2024, as he displayed all of his technique and elegance in Germany.

After a number of years of flattering to deceive at club level, Ruiz finally showed all of his class in a brilliant Spain midfield trio.

Rodri (Spain)

Rodri started all but one of Spain’s seven games at the tournament, forming an influential central midfield partnership with Fabián Ruiz. The Manchester City man was among the scorers in La Roja’s 4-1 round of 16 victory against Georgia but was forced off at half-time in the 2-1 final win against England.

Attack

Lamine Yamal (Spain)

Yamal made history at EURO 2024 as he became the youngest player to ever appear and score at a European Championship.

At the age of still 16, Yamal curled home a stunning equaliser in the semi final win over France – a goal that is already iconic.

The wonderkid was a constant threat down the right wing for Spain with his dribbling and creativity, and he had four assists in the tournament.

Jamal Musiala (Germany)

When Jamal Musiala gets the ball at his feet and starts running at players in tight spaces he can be unstoppable.

This was the case at times at EURO 2024 as Musiala was Germany’s most impressive performer. The attacking midfielder scored three goals and was a constant menace before Germany were unluckily eliminated by Spain in the quarter finals.

Cody Gakpo (Netherlands)

EURO 2024 was one of the worst tournaments in history when it came to performances from attackers and strikers.

Cody Gakpo was one of the very few to perform up to a decent level and he was his nation’s best player as they made it to the semi-finals.

The Liverpool attacker scored three goals and also delivered one assist, as he delivered a number of impressive performances.

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