Euro 2020: 5 bold predictions for the tournament
Euro 2020 is just around the corner and it promises to be an exciting summer as the top European nations prepare to fight it out for continental glory. The teams have all announced their squads and the much-awaited tournament, which was postponed last year in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, promises to be an absolute cracker.
Teams like France, Belgium, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Netherlands and England, among others, have named strong squads. The managers are pulling out all the stops to ensure they bring the Euro 2020 title home. The biggest competitions almost always deliver a raft of surprises and we're expecting no less this time around.
Euro 2020 kicks off on June 11
It's hard to predict what is going to happen in the high-profile tournament with several European nations possessing star-studded squads. By the end of the summer, we will have a new set of heroes. Here, we make some bold predictions for Euro 2020.
#5 Surprise team of the tournament - Poland
Poland are the dark horses of Euro 2020. However, manager Paulo Sousa will need to be wary of his side being over-reliant on Robert Lewandowski. The Bayern Munich striker has enjoyed yet another incredible domestic season, winning the European Golden shoe after scoring 41 goals in just 29 appearances in the Bundesliga.
He is also Poland's top scorer, with 66 goals in 118 appearances. Sousa will configure his team to bring out the best of the 32-year-old striker. The supporting cast includes players like Piotr Zieliลski and Mateusz Klich, who are all coming off impressive showings in the 2020-21 season.
They also have Arkadiusz Milik, who was on loan at Marseille for the second half of the season, to support Lewandowski. He scored 10 goals and provided two assists from 16 appearances for the Ligue 1 outfit across all competitions. Napoli midfield lynchpin Zielinski has continued to flourish despite the several managerial changes that the Partenopei have undergone over the last few seasons.
He can also play in a variety of roles and alongside Leeds United's Matheus Klich and they have what it takes to provide Lewandowski with top-quality service. Lokomotiv's Grzegorz Krychowiak will be a formidable presence behind them in defensive midfield.
Their backline, led by Benevento's Kamil Glik and Jan Bednarek of Southampton, can hold their own against the very best in the business. With a bit of good fortune, Poland could go a long way in Euro 2020.
#4 Player of the tournament - N'Golo Kante
N'Golo Kante won four back-to-back man-of-the-match performances from the second leg of the quarter-final to the final of the UEFA Champions League for Chelsea. He has shown that he still has what it takes to be the difference maker on the big stage.
Kante has been in sublime form of late, covering every blade of grass on the turf and running adversaries ragged. The Frenchman will be the first name on Didier Deschamps's starting XI and for good reason. With the 30-year-old on the pitch, opposition players find it hard to play their natural game.
Kante played a starring role in France's 2018 World Cup triumph. We expect him to replicate those heroics or even do one better at Euro 2020 given the kind of form he has been in of late.