Euro 2016: Top 5 fastest players so far in the tournament
The football fans all around the world are still reeling in the hangover of one of the most exciting group stages in the recent history of international football tournaments. The UEFA Euro 2016 group stage saw 24 teams taking part in it instead of 16 for the first time in its history.
For the tournament biggies, be it Dimitri Payet or Andres Iniesta, who were outstanding performers for their teams in the first two matches, or even a certain Cristiano Ronaldo, who gave his all in the last group F match to drag Portugal to the knockouts. On the other hand, some unfancied nations showed brilliant teamwork and defied all odds to make it to the next round.
Although here we are focussing on a specific physical aspect of the players which, if not the most important, certainly is ONE of the most important attributes to have in today’s football – Speed. Fast players can bring a directness to the team, they can outrun the opposition and become a medium to wreak havoc on the opponent’s defence.
Most of the teams have one and same is the case in Euro 2016, usual suspects to be one of the fastest might be Gareth Bale, Raheem Sterling or Ronaldo. But here is a list of five players who have clocked the highest speeds in the tournament so far and it features none of the above-mentioned favourites.
*The sprint speeds have been rounded off.
#5 Yannick Carrasco (Belgium) – 32 km/h
Carrasco, who joined Atletico Madrid from Monaco last season, scored five goals and gave four assists for the Los Rojiblancos in the 2015-16 season. He really caught everyone’s eye after his Champions League final equaliser against Real Madrid.
The 22-year-old winger has played a total of 150 minutes in three matches for the Red Devils in the Euro 2016, starting in the 3-0 win over Ireland and 1-0 win over Sweden, and coming off the bench in their opening match, a 2-0 defeat against Italy.
Carrasco, who prefers playing on the right flank is fifth in this list of fastest players in the tournament so far.