Euro 2024 best and worst performers: Germany, Spain sparkle as England, France flop

With the conclusion of the group stage on Wednesday fans can now look forward to the knockout stage of Euro 2024 with potentially mouth-watering clashes awaiting spectators given France, Portugal, Germany and Spain have all qualified into the same bracket.

The first three rounds of fixtures have given some insight into what we might expect as the tournament progresses, with the likes of Spain and hosts Germany looking like strong contenders to win the competition considering their impressive performances so far.

However, others like England and France have come in for criticism from fans, pundits and commentators due to repeated lacklustre showings and severe underperformance relative to the quality of their squads.

Despite Gareth Southgate's side qualifying into the more favourable bracket, they may have to encounter the likes of Austria, who have demonstrated against both France and the Netherlands that they are capable of punching above their weight.

With this in mind, let's take a look at Euro 2024's three best performers and three biggest underperformers so far.

Who have been the best teams at Euro 2024 so far?

Spain

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Known for their strict and risk-averse positional football under previous manager Luis Enrique, Spain have arguably been Euro 2024's best performing side under current boss Luis de la Fuente.

Indeed, De la Fuente has encouraged a more direct style of play from his team and the likes of Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal have benefitted from a quicker tempo and more frequent vertical passing.

This change in style was on full display as Spain emerged victorious over Croatia in their opening game on June 15 despite the fact that they had less possession than their opponents for the first time in a competitive match since the Euro 2008 final against Germany, ending a run of 136 such matches in which Spain enjoyed the majority of possession.

The performance of youngster Lamine Yamal has been a particular highlight in Spain's forward line this Euros, and for the Barcelona starboy to be having such an impact at just 16 years of age is testament to both his immense talent as well as De la Fuente's management.

However, although the strength of their attack was clear to see against Croatia, it is Spain's showing against Italy that truly sets them apart from the rest.

Despite only winning 1-0 thanks to an own goal from Riccardo Calafiori, the Spanish were unfortunate to not have scored more considering they had 20 shots, six big chances and 57% possession.

While stats can sometimes misrepresent the realities of a match, it is fair to say that Spain's statistical dominance was reflected on the pitch, with Italy struggling to play out from the back and failing to generate any real momentum due to being consistently stifled.

Germany

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After a series of disappointing performances at major tournaments many had lowered their expectations of hosts Germany ahead of Euro 2024, but new manager Julian Nagelsmann has made significant change in his short tenure.

Germany's 5-1 opening-day victory against Scotland on June 14 has set the tone as the biggest-ever win for a host nation of the European Championship and was also the biggest margin of victory for any side in the opening match of the tournament.

Some might point to the fact that Scotland have traditionally struggled at major tournaments and are in fact yet to make it out of the group stage of either a World Cup or a European Championship, but their performances against Hungary and Switzerland were also strong even if not as high scoring.

For instance, Germany have averaged the most goals, the most shots on target and the most accurate passes per match, as well as the most possession of any side at Euro 2024.

At an individual level, despite announcing his intention to retire from professional football, legendary midfielder Toni Kroos has looked as calm and composed in possession as ever, while young stars Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala have caused havoc in the final third.

Germany's turnaround has coincided with a wider appreciation of the coaching talents of Nagelsmann, whose reputation had taken a hit after a turbulent time at Bayern Munich.

Honourable mention: Austria

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Ralf Rangnick's Austria have been the surprise of the tournament so far having topped a group that also featured France and the Netherlands.

The intensity of Austria's aggressive approach has at times been suffocating for opponents, and the players' commitment to such a playing style in spite of the inherent defensive risk it entails is admirable.

Rangnick's time as Manchester United interim boss had arguably marred the perception of his skills as a coach and a tactical innovator, but his time with the Austrian national team has led many to praise his management style.

Even though they lost their opening game against France on June 17, few teams can claim to have placed as much pressure on Didier Deschamps's side as Austria, and it was only the individual quality of the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Theo Hernandez that gave Les Bleus the victory.

Midfielders Nicolas Seiwald, Florian Grillitsch and Marcel Sabitzer have been able to provide a great balance of defensive coverage as well as contribution to the Austrian attack, and this was key to their victory against the Netherlands last time out on Tuesday.

Who have been the most disappointing teams at Euro 2024 so far?

England

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The Three Lions came into Euro 2024 as one of the favourites to win the competition but, after the group stage, it is fair to say many fans have become less confident.

Indeed, Southgate has come under fire for incorrectly profiling several members of his squad including Trent Alexander-Arnold, Phil Foden and Kieran Trippier.

His issues with team selection have led to a lack of balance on the pitch, and many members of England's talented squad like Declan Rice, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka have been unable to showcase their best level.

Others have criticised Southgate for implementing an overly cautious approach as exemplified by the fact that England ranked 22nd out of 24 teams in terms of xG, 16th for touches in the opposition box and 14th for big chances created over the course of the group stage.

Against Denmark on June 20, though England had taken the lead in the 18th minute through a Harry Kane goal, their response was to defend in considerably deeper zones and this allowed Denmark to gain territory where they then exerted greater pressure on the England backline.

Southgate will be pleased that his side have avoided being in the same bracket of the knockout stage as Germany, Portugal, France and Spain, but their performance levels have arguably been the most disappointing of any team at the Euros so far, especially considering the quality at Southgate's disposal and the level of expectation going into the tournament.

France

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France have faced remarkably similar criticism to England at Euro 2024, with many arguing that Didier Deschamps's side are often too passive, as well as overly reliant on individual talent to achieve results.

To Deschamps's credit, he has been able to find the right balance in certain areas of the pitch, most notably on the left flank between Mbappe and Hernandez, who were both key in the victory against Austria on June 17.

However, given the talent in the squad France's performances have been far from ideal, and this is evidenced by the fact that Les Bleus have failed to score from open play and needed an own goal to beat Austria.

The omission of Antoine Griezmann from the starting XI last time out against Poland was also a peculiar decision given his ability to link midfield to attack, a quality that was sorely missed on Tuesday.

To add to this, France's second-placed finish in Group D means that if they were to reach the Euro 2024 final they have to face Belgium in the round of 16 and could potentially face Portugal in the quarter-final, as well as one of Germany or Spain in the semi-final.

Without a major improvement in performance level, it is difficult to see how France can make it through the latter stages of the competition.

Dishonourable mention: Belgium

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Perennial underperformers Belgium won just once in a group that consisted of themselves, Slovakia, Romania and Ukraine, and while they did progress into the round of 16 following their 0-0 draw against Ukraine on June 26, they have done so in second place and will face one of the pre-tournament favourites, France.

Belgium can still boast talented players such as Kevin De Bruyne, Amadou Onana and Leandro Trossard, but much like France and England there appears to be a disconnect between many of their star players.

Romelu Lukaku has also been a frustrated figure in the forward line, and he has already had three goals ruled out.

Elsewhere, the lack of minutes afforded to Lois Openda by manager Domenico Tedesco has been questionable given the striker scored 24 goals in 34 Bundesliga matches last season for RB Leipzig.

Additionally, at the end of the game against Ukraine, De Bruyne appeared to grow frustrated at fans who booed the players that walked up to thank them for their support.

While it is fair to say that not many expected Belgium to win the competition, the quality of the players at their disposal must lead to better performances than those produced so far if they are to advance in the tournament.

Unpredictable knockout football

Although the group stage can be used as an indicative tool for forecasting the rest of Euro 2024, knockout football has often proved difficult to predict.

As such, although Spain, Germany and Austria have performed better than England, France and Belgium, much could change from now until the final on July 14.

Written by
Lewis Nolan