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Home  » Sports » Euro 2020: Meet the last 16 challengers

Euro 2020: Meet the last 16 challengers

June 25, 2021 12:44 IST
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The European Championship is entering its knockout phase and the following is an overview of the remaining 16 teams:

AUSTRIA



Led by coach Franco Foda, Austria finished second, behind the Netherlands, in Group C with six points, following a 1-0 win over Ukraine in their final game on Monday.

Austria will face Italy in the last 16 on Saturday at Wembley Stadium, in London.

Austria had never previously reached the knockout phase in the European Championship, exiting in the group stage in 2008, when they were co-hosts, and in 2016 when they finished bottom of their group without a win.

Group Performance:

Austria 3-1 North Macedonia

Netherlands 2-0 Austria

Ukraine 0-1 Austria

William Hill odds to win tournament: 150-1

William Hill odds to win against Italy: 7-1

BELGIUM



The Red Devils, ranked number one in the world, ended top of Group B with 9 points, after wins against Russia, Denmark and Finland.

Striker Romelu Lukaku scored three times in the group stage and Belgium, who reached the quarter-finals at Euro 2016, before losing 3-1 to Wales, will now face holders Portugal on Sunday in Seville.

Group Performance:

Belgium 3-0 Russia

Denmark 1-2 Belgium

Finland 0-2 Belgium

William Hill odds to win tournament: 9-1

William Hill odds to win against Portugal: 29-20

CROATIA

After a slow start to the tournament, Croatia turned the tide and reached the knockouts by beating Scotland on Tuesday to clinch second spot in Group D.

The team, captained by Luka Modric, who was named world player of the year in 2018 after helping Croatia reach the World Cup final in Russia, will meet Spain on Monday at Copenhagen's Parken Stadium.

Croatia have never won the competition, reaching the quarter-finals in 1996 and 2008. They were knocked out in the last 16 in 2016 and suffered first-round exits in 2004 and 2012.

Group performance:

England 1-0 Croatia

Croatia 1-1 Czech Republic

Croatia 3-1 Scotland

William Hill odds to win tournament: 50-1

William Hill odds to win against Spain: 6-1

CZECH REPUBLIC

Despite losing their final Group D match against England on Tuesday, the Czechs reached the last 16 as one of the best third-placed teams.

The team, who have relied heavily on the goals of Bayer Leverkusen striker Patrik Schick, face the Netherlands on Sunday at the Puskas Arena, in Budapest.

The Czechs failed to progress to the knockout stage in 2016, after reaching the quarter-finals in 2012. As Czechoslovakia, they won the tournament in 1976.

Group performance:

Scotland 0-2 Czech Republic

Croatia 1-1 Czech Republic

Czech Republic 0-1 England

William Hill odds to win tournament: 80-1

William Hill odds to win against Netherlands: 9-2

DENMARK

Denmark's first game against Finland was overshadowed by the sudden collapse of midfielder Christian Eriksen, who received CPR on the pitch before being rushed to the hospital.

They eventually finished second in Group B after an emphatic 4-1 win over Russia on Monday, and edged out Finland and Russia on head-to-head goal difference, despite suffering two losses.

Delivering on their promise to "Do it for Christian", the Danes now go on to face Wales on Saturday in Amsterdam.

Denmark, who were champions in 1992, last appeared at the tournament in 2012 when they were knocked out in the group stage.

Group performance:

Denmark 0-1 Finland

Denmark 1-2 Belgium

Russia 1-4 Denmark

William Hill odds to win tournament: 20-1

William Hill odds to win against Wales: 5-6

ENGLAND



In an efficient but hardly sparkling display, England beat Czech Republic 1-0 on Tuesday to top Group D with seven points.

The Three Lions - the lowest-scoring team ever to top a Euros group, with just two goals - now move on to face Germany on Tuesday, hosting the game in their own backyard of Wembley Stadium.

England have never won the tournament, going closest in 1996 when they lost to Germany in the semi-finals. In 2016, they were eliminated at the last-16 stage by Iceland.

Group performance:

England 1-0 Croatia

England 0-0 Scotland

Czech Republic 0-1 England

William Hill odds to win tournament: 13-2

William Hill odds to win against Germany: 8-5

FRANCE



France qualified top of Group F with five points after a dramatic 2-2 draw with Portugal on Wednesday in which Karim Benzema netted twice.

Les Bleus, led by coach Didier Deschamps, will now face Switzerland on Monday in Bucharest.

World Champions France won the European Championship in 1984 and 2000, while finishing runners-up in 2016 on home soil, losing 1-0 to Portugal after extra time in the final.

Group performance:

France 1-0 Germany

Hungary 1-1 France

Portugal 2-2 France

William Hill odds to win tournament: 7-2

William Hill odds to win against Switzerland: 8-15

GERMANY



A late Leon Goretzka goal salvaged a 2-2 draw for Germany against a tenacious Hungary side on Wednesday as they narrowly avoided a shock elimination and secured the runners-up spot in Group F.

Germany, who edged out Portugal into third, due to their previous 4-2 win over the holders, next meet England on Tuesday at Wembley.

The Germans have won the tournament on three occasions: 1972, 1980 and 1996. They were knocked out in the semi-finals at the 2012 and 2016 tournaments.

Group performance:

France 1-0 Germany

Portugal 2-4 Germany

Germany 2-2 Hungary

William Hill odds to win tournament: 7-1

William Hill odds to win against England: 15-8

ITALY



The Azzurri easily clinched first place in Group A, becoming the first team to advance to the round of 16 and one of the favourites to win the tournament.

Led by Manchester City's former coach Roberto Mancini, Italy won all three matches without conceding a goal and are unbeaten in their last 30 games.

The team, led by captain Giorgio Chiellini, will meet Austria, runners-up in Group C, on Saturday at Wembley.

In 2016 Italy were knocked out by Germany in the quarter-finals, losing 6-5 on penalties, after reaching the final in 2012, losing 4-0 to Spain.

Group Performance:

Turkey 0-3 Italy

Italy 3-0 Switzerland

Italy 1-0 Wales

William Hill odds to win tournament: 6-1

William Hill odds to win against Austria: 1-2

NETHERLANDS

Captain Georginio Wijnaldum's three goals helped the Netherlands earn all nine points to finish top of Group C.

The Dutch, who will be without striker Luuk de Jong after he suffered a knee injury on Tuesday, will face the Czech Republic on Sunday in Budapest.

The Netherlands have taken part in nine previous European Championships and were crowned champions in 1988. They reached the semi-finals in 1992, 2000 and 2004. However, they lost all three of their group games in 2012 and failed to qualify for the 2016 edition.

Group performance:

Netherlands 3-2 Ukraine

Netherlands 2-0 Austria

North Macedonia 0-3 Netherlands

William Hill odds to win tournament: 9-1

William Hill odds to win against Czech Republic: 7-10

PORTUGAL



Reigning European champions Portugal squeezed into the last 16 as one of the best third-placed sides following a 2-2 draw with France in their final Group F encounter.

Cristiano Ronaldo has already netted five goals, moving past France's Michel Platini as the record goalscorer at European Championship finals, and has matched Iran's Ali Daei as the most prolific international marksman ever with 109 goals.

Portugal, who finished level on four points with second-placed Germany and a point behind group winners France, will take on Belgium on Sunday in Seville.

Portugal, who have participated in seven European Championships, ended their long wait for a major title by defeating France 1-0 after extra time in the 2016 final.

Group performance:

Hungary 0-3 Portugal

Portugal 2-4 Germany

Portugal 2-2 France

William Hill odds to win tournament: 10-1

William Hill odds to win against Belgium: 2-1

SPAIN



Spain came to life on Wednesday, crushing Slovakia 5-0 to shrug off a slow start to the competition and finish second in Group E.

Spain, whose captain Sergio Busquets missed their first two games following a positive COVID-19 test, will next face Croatia on Monday in Copenhagen.

Spain won the tournament in 1964, 2008 and 2012, when they defeated Italy 4-0 to become the only team to retain the title. They were knocked out by Italy in the last 16 in 2016.

Group performance:

Spain 0-0 Sweden

Spain 1-1 Poland

Slovakia 0-5 Spain

William Hill odds to win tournament: 15-2

William Hill odds to win against Croatia: 6-10

SWEDEN

Sweden won Group E to reach the last 16, ensuring top spot after a stoppage-time goal gave them a 3-2 win over Poland on Wednesday.

Midfielder Emil Forsberg, who scored three in the group stage, will likely provide Sweden's goal threat when they face Ukraine in Glasgow on Tuesday.

After a third-placed finish in the 1992 tournament, Sweden failed to qualify in 1996 and only went past the group stage on one other occasion in 2004 when they reached the quarters.

Group Performance:

Spain 0-0 Sweden

Sweden 1-0 Slovakia

Sweden 3-2 Poland

William Hill odds to win tournament: 50-1

William Hill odds to win against Ukraine: 7-5

SWITZERLAND

Switzerland reached the last 16 after finishing third in Group A behind Italy and Wales.

The team, led by former Lazio coach Vladimir Petkovic, beat Turkey 3-1 in Baku last Sunday, to make it through as one of the four best third-placed teams, and will face France on Monday in Bucharest.

After exiting the competition in the group stage in 1996, 2004 and 2008, the Swiss's best effort came five years ago when they reached the last 16 before losing to Poland on penalties.

Group Performance:

Wales 1-1 Switzerland

Italy 3-0 Switzerland

Switzerland 3-1 Turkey

William Hill odds to win tournament: 100-1

William Hill odds to win against France: 6-1

UKRAINE

Despite losing to Austria and the Netherlands in Group C, Ukraine reached the knockout phase as the fourth best third-placed team ahead of Finland in Group B and Slovakia in Group E due to a better goal difference.

The team, led by coach Andriy Shevchenko, will face Sweden on Tuesday in Glasgow.

Ukraine have never reached the knockout phase, exiting at the group stage in 2012, when they were co-hosts, and in 2016.

Group Performance:

Netherlands 3-2 Ukraine

Ukraine 2-1 North Macedonia

Ukraine 0-1 Austria

William Hill odds to win tournament: 100-1

William Hill odds to win against Sweden: 23-10

WALES

Wales reached the last 16 after finishing second in Group A despite losing to table-toppers Italy last Sunday.

The team, which features Juventus midfielder Aaron Ramsey as well as Real Madrid's Gareth Bale, will play Denmark on Saturday in Amsterdam.

Wales ended a nearly 60-year wait to play in a major tournament by qualifying for Euro 2016 where they proved to be a surprise package, reaching the semi-final, where they lost to eventual champions Portugal.

Group Performance:

Wales 1-1 Switzerland

Turkey 0-2 Wales

Italy 1-0 Wales

William Hill odds to win tournament: 80-1

William Hill odds to win against Denmark: 9-2

Photographs: Getty Images

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