Mega Euro Preview

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So I definitely don’t have enough time to do all the clubs I want to preview before the tournament kicks off.

I’d love to do something like this for the COPA America too, but I don’t know if I’d be able to give the insight I’d be happy with outside the main nations. I might touch on the big teams next week though.

My Picks For the Tournament

Okay, let’s start off with my basic tips for the tournament. I think the winner will be one of these three sides. Ranked in order.

1. France

2. Italy

3. Belgium

Now, don’t get me wrong, if I was a betting man I’d take the field over those three teams - but there’s no point sitting on the fence, and there’s also no point picking half the field.

Who I Think Might Disappoint

In a similar way, here’s a few teams that I think will disappoint this tournament.

1. Germany… They’re a weird one. Definitely a team that are less than the sum of their parts with a coach that is past his prime and on the way out. And they’re in a terrible group - there’s a chance they don’t win a game. However…. It’s fucking Germany - They’ll probably win the thing. Just watch.

2. England. Now, before you start here me out. I think of England in major tournaments like the Knicks in basketball - again, here me out. Betting on the Knicks’ under win total was a lock every year. The team, no matter the quality, was always overrated by the bookies. I think England are similar. They’re always at short odds. So, the way I think they’re a disappointment is because they’re basically the betting favorite and I don’t think they’re the favorite to win.

The Big Guns - Super Hobby Relevant Guys

Here are a few of the big hobby relevant guys that have a lot to gain/lose in this tournament. Each player name is a link to their eBay search page.

I’m not going to mention more than one player per squad here.

• Cristiano Ronaldo: Already cemented as one of the best players of all time (I’m not getting into that debate here), but Cristiano Ronaldo has an opportunity to win another major international tournament after winning the Euros last time around. I’d say this is likely to be his last Euros, but I’m not going to rule out a 39 year old Ronaldo at the 2024 tournament.

• Harry Kane: All eyes will be on Harry Kane to lead England to a Euro title. On top of this, there’s a large chance that Kane will be moving to another club this offseason, so it could be a massive few months for him. I really wanted to put Jude Bellingham here though, because I think he’s going to be a star.

• Kylian Mbappe: Mbappe vs Haaland is looking like it’ll be the next Messi vs Ronaldo debate. Mbappe already has lead his side to a World Cup, and he’ll look to add a Euros on top of that… I’ll also draw some heat away from his performances in the Champions League semi final, and the habit he’s got of throwing himself about.

  On a side note - refs should 100% be giving yellow cards for that shit. But they never will with the big guys. And on a side-side note… Players should also cop a yellow for getting in a referee’s face - no other sport allows that bullshit.

Under the Radar Players

I didn’t want to mention too many ‘big’ players because, well, I would imagine you know who they are if you’re reading an article like this. Also… There’s a bunch of under-the-radar guys that I think might impress a few during the tournament. Again, player names are links to eBay searches.

• David Turnbull: The 21-year-old Celtic man was a shining light during a horrendous season at Celtic. He averaged 3.1 shots per 90 and 3.7 chances created per 90 in the Scottish Premiership this season. The combined figure of 6.8 – per 90 is easily the highest in the division. If you compare his numbers to those in Europe’s top five leagues, the only two players with 2,000+ minutes played put up a higher combined number… Lionel Messi (8.1) and Kevin De Bruyne (7.2).

• Elif Elmas: Already with over 20 caps to his name, 21-year-old Elmas is North Macedona’s best player. In 2019, he joined Napoli in a deal worth up to €19m, and has already racked up more than 50 Serie A appearances. He’s very impressive and will get a chance to shine in North Macedona’s games.

• Oleksandr Zinchenko: You mean the left back? Yep, the left back. However, Zinchenko is a Pep fullback - so a midfeilder that’s been shoved into the backline. In fact, Zinchenko was actually an attacking midfielder as a prospect. However, when the 24-year-old plays for Ukraine, he gets to be one of the main guys - and he’s fucking good at it. Ukraine have a sneaky good side and I think they’ll turn a few heads during their games.

Youngsters to Look At

Rather than just looking at a few guys - I’m going to name-spam some young players that I’m really looking forward to seeing in these Euros.

• Alexander Isak (Sweden): The young Swede is no stranger to those in the hobby. He scored 17 league goals for Real Sociedad and was one of the best strikers in La Liga. The ex-Dortmund guy is wanted by a few sides - and he has a buyback option at Dortmund, so look for them to bring him back if Haaland goes this offseason.

• Tomas Suslov (Slovakia): Likened to teammate, Arjen Robben, Suslov is Slovakia’s youngest ever international and has been impressing in Holland.

• Alex Kral (Czech Republic): Czech guys and getting linked to West Ham, name a better duo. Anyway, Moyes is onto something because these Czech dudes are nice. Kral is primed for a breakthrough.

• Orkun Kokcu (Turkey): A really solid central midfielder who goes about his business the right way. He won’t turn too many heads with his intense attacking displays, but I’ve seen him linked to Arsenal and Leeds recently so a move might be on the cards. He’s also the only bloke I really spent money on with Sorare.

• Adam Hlozek (Czech Republic): Told you these Czech guys are nice. Holzek is a fucking stud. Put it this way… Despite missing four-and-a-half months with a foot injury, he finished as the joint-top scorer in the Czech top flight, with 15 goals in just 19 appearances for Sparta Prague. Again… linked to West Ham.

• Jeremy Doku (Belgium): Doku will hold a special place in my heart because he was one of the first scouting reports I wrote for this newsletter. A fun-to-watch dribbler, Doku is a star in the making and will look to take over as Belgium’s main man after the golden generation become the grey generation.

• Christoph Baumgartner (Austria): A young goal scoring and creative midfielder that will play big minutes for Austria.

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