Barely two months after our body clocks had to reboot following the conclusion of Europe's domestic leagues, Australian-based football fans are about to be thrust back into the cold nights and quiet mornings of overseas competition as the 2024 UEFA Men's European Championship kicks off on Saturday morning.
Here's everything you need to know to convince your colleagues, as you stand bleary-eyed in the work kitchen, that this thing was worth ruining your sleep patterns for.Despite being home to arguably the greatest domestic league in the world, which has developed some of the game's best players and most successful clubs, it is one of football's most terrific ironies that England's men's team has never won a European Championship.
But if Euros trends are anything to go by, winning isn't as much about scoring goals as it is about stopping them, as former winners Italy, Portugal, and Greece have all shown. Squad-wise, England no longer have the aerial dominance of centre-back Harry Maguire, while its only natural left-back in Luke Shaw still isn't match fit. Indeed, form and fitness questions shroud many other defenders, too, including John Stones, Kieran Trippier, and Marc Guehi.
With the best defensive record of any other nation in qualifying for the Euros, anchored by the stellar Ruben Dias and Joao Cancelo, it also has an array of midfield and attacking weapons to choose from, with Bernardo Silva, Joao Felix, Diogo Jota, Ruben Neves and Bruno Fernandes all in the mix. The Dutch side has plenty of power at the back and out wide, though its midfield options seem either too old or too new for this dance, while Belgium still rely on veterans Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku for most of its creative attacking play, though the inclusion of tricky Manchester City winger Jeremy Doku and in-form Arsenal striker Leandro Trossard could become its most important weapons.
Three years on from winning the European Championship, it's a very different Italian team attempting to defend the title.There are glimmers of promise with a core of players drawn from Italian side Inter, which reached the 2022 Champions League final , and sprinkled with talent from Juventus, Napoli and Roma, but the team comes into the Euros having lost twice to England in qualifying, as well as drawing 0-0 with Turkey and squeaking past Bosnia-Herzegovina 1-0 in the past fortnight.
European Championship Preview Where To Watch Euros England Gareth Southgate Phil Foden Harry Kane Germany Italy France Spain Cristiano Ronaldo
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