Uefa’s Euro 2024 team of the tournament is full of familiar faces, but what about the players who burned brightly but didn’t make the final?
Goalkeeper
No one had saved three penalties in a Euros shootout until Portugal’s Diogo Costa’s heroics against Slovenia in the last 16. Unfortunately he couldn’t repeat the trick in the next game with France.
Full-backs
Joshua Kimmich made two assists and three key passes per game from right-back on Germany’s lively run to the quarter-finals, where they came unstuck against Spain.
Nuno Mendes was a dynamo for Portugal at left-back, diligent in defence and bombing up the flank to support the attack.
Centre-backs
Croatia’s Josip Sutalo was the embodiment of the “thou shalt not pass” mentality, making 4.3 interceptions, 2.3 clearances and 1.7 blocks per game.
William Saliba largely went under the radar but was flawless as he marshalled a France defence that only let in one goal in their first five games.
Midfielders
He may be 32 but no one topped Christian Eriksen’s four key passes per game at Euro 2024 as Denmark reached the last 16.
Arda Guler may have only scored once but it was one of the goals of the tournament and fizzed whenever on the pitch for Turkey.
Lastly, Xavi Simons took his fine club form into a Netherlands shirt, contributing three assists and one goal (which England fans may remember).
Forwards
It wasn’t a vintage Euros for many big-name strikers so this is a low-key trio. No one played a bigger part in Georgia’s dazzling debut than Georges Mikautadze, who bagged three goals and one assist in four games.
Christian Baumgartner only got one goal but was the attacking catalyst in Austria’s run to the last 16, and few had heard of Ivan Schranz before his three goals for Slovakia (again, including against England).