UEFA Euro 2024: 5 players likely to earn a move after impressing at the spectacle in Germany

New Delhi: With the UEFA Euro 2024 now officially in the history books, Luis de la Fuente’s Spain have been crowned the kings of Europe, winning their fourth UEFA Euro title, the most by any team in the competition’s history. The month-long spectacle in Germany was filled with exciting action, feel-good moments and high-octane entertainment that kept the fans on the edge of their seat.

Every major International tournament is an opportunity for players to showcase their talents to a wider audience as they’re performing at a grander stage and are being watched by more people than usual. Players who put this opportunity to good use often end up being snapped by better clubs than they were with before the tournament began.

The previous two editions of the UEFA Euro saw Joao Mario and Mikkel Damsgaard both earn a move to Inter Milan and Brentford in the Premier League on the back of successful showings in the tournament. Even after the previous editions of the FIFA World Cup, players like Enzo Fernandez, Azzedine Ounahi, Mateo Kovacic, and Benjamin Pavard all switched clubs following impressive tournaments for their national teams.

Players like Georges Mikautadze, Riccardo Calafiori and Robin Le Normand all impressed in the tournament and are on the verge of completing moves to AS Monaco, Arsenal, and Atletico Madrid respectively and many other players will join the list of players who earned moves to bigger clubs after impressing in Germany this summer.

1) Dani Olmo (Spain/RB Leipzig)

Starting the list off with one of the Golden Boot winners of the tournament, Dani Olmo had an amazing UEFA Euro 2024 with Spain, which was capped off by winning the title in Berlin. While not in the starting XI for all the games, Olmo would grab his chances whenever given and ultimately ended the tournament with three goals and two assists each, level-on goal contributions with the young player of the tournament, Lamine Yamal.

It’s not just his goal contributions that helped his country but it’s the timing of them as he scored in all of Spain’s knockout fixtures before the final, grabbing a goal and an assist against Germany in a man-of-the-match display in the quarter-finals. The RB Leipzig man has impressed in his time in Germany and contributed to 13 goals in just 25 matches for the Red Bull side last season.

He has a €60 million release clause in his contract which expires on July 20th as Spain made it to the final and with clubs like Chelsea, Manchester City and Barcelona interested in the Spaniard, it seems likely that he’ll make a switch from RB Leipzig.

2) Giorgi Mamardashivalli (Georgia/Valencia)

The 25-year-old was one of the best goalkeepers of the tournament, helping his side earn a draw with Czechia and keeping a clean sheet in a famous 2-0 win over Portugal which secured their qualification from the group stages. While Georgia were seen as the weakest team in the tournament, Mamardashivalli made sure to change that perception as he was a wall in the Geogian goal.

Even though he only managed one clean sheet in his four games, he made a total of 30 saves in the tournament, the most for any player in Germany. No other keeper even made 20 saves in the UEFA Euro 2024 showcasing how far Mamardashivalli left his competition behind. His man-of-the-match performance against Czechia saw him make 10 saves in a single game and such a performance would serve him well in the transfer market.

He’s been linked with a move away from Valencia since before the tournament began but the links have only increased ever since his debut in the competition. Clubs like Chelsea, Newcastle, and Atletico Madrid are interested in the current Valencia man and he could be the second Georgian to make a move after the tournament.

3) Marc Guehi (England/Crystal Palace)

This is going to be a huge summer at Selhurst Park as owner Steve Parish and manager Oliver Glassner will have a huge task at hand to stop Palace’s talented young players from leaving. They’ve already lost Michael Olise, who moved to Bayern Munich, while Eberechi Eze continues to be linked away from a move with Spurs interested.

Marc Guehi could join his England teammate on that list after a brilliant tournament in Germany. The ex-Chelsea academy graduate was Gareth Southgate’s first-choice centre-back at the UEFA Euro 2024, only missing the game against Switzerland due to a suspension in England’s run to the final. Guehi formed a solid partnership with John Stones at the heart of England’s defence, ensuring his side remained unbeaten till the final.

Having won 24 of his duels and making 28 recoveries for his side in Germany, while also earning an assist for himself, Guehi was one of the most underrated defenders in the tournament and with big Premier League clubs like Manchester United, Liverpool, and Tottenham interested in the defender, it’ll be tough for the Eagles to keep ahold of their best defender.

4) Xavi Simons (Netherlands/PSG)

PSG and Netherlands’ young star Xavi Simons was one of the shining stars in Ronald Koeman’s side. One of the only youngsters trusted by Koeman at the Euros, Simons was the Netherlands’ best player in Germany as they made the semi-finals of the UEFA Euro for the first time in 20 years. The versatile attacker, capable of playing anywhere in attack ended the tournament with one goal and three assists in just over 450 minutes at UEFA Euro 2024.

His only goal of the tournament came in the semi-finals against England when he scored an absolute banger from outside the box to give his side the lead. The 21-year-old also created the most chances for his side, levelling with Cody Gakpo on 12. He spent the last season on loan in Germany at RB Leipzig from PSG, contributing to 25 goals in 43 games.

With PSG open to letting the player leave on loan, and Simons himself wanting to quit the Paris club, the young attacker has the choice of returning to RB Leipzig or heading to Bayern Munich, both of whom are interested in the Dutch attacker.

5) Nico Williams (Spain/Athletic Bilbao)

Rounding the list off with the person responsible for setting the path to Spain’s victory over England, Athletic Club Bilbao’s Nico Williams announced himself on a global stage at the UEFA Euro 2024. The younger brother of Bilbao legend Inaki Williams, Nico had a spectacular campaign with Spain, capping it off with the opening goal for his country in their 2-1 win over England in Berlin.

Contributing to three goals in the tournament, his partnership with Lamine Yamal was the key to Spain’s success and both of them combined for Spain’s opener in the final. In addition to his goal contributions, he also created 13 chances for his side while garnering 29 touches in the opposition box on his way to lifting the trophy.

He contributed to 27 goals in just 37 games for Bilbao as they lifted the Copa Del Rey last season, and his performances have drawn the attention of Barcelona, who are trying to pair Nico and Yamal at the club level as well. With a release clause of €58 million in his contract, his move away from Bilbao looks imminent.

 Every major International tournament is an opportunity for players to showcase their talents to a wider audience and those who put this opportunity to good use often end up being snapped by big clubs after the tournament ends.   Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today