The semi-finals of Euro 2020 are upon us with Italy and Spain set to grace Wembley this evening before England play Denmark on the same turf tomorrow night.
Dream Team Euros bosses need to have their XI is tip-top shape before tonight’s kick-off and perhaps they would benefit from a simple reminder of the best performing players in each position so far.
In some cases, players who have been eliminated feature among the best in their position so we’ll also provide the top three currently active players as well for maximum relevance.
TOP THREE GOALKEEPERS (OVERALL)
- Jordan Pickford (£3.5m) – 34 points
- Gianluigi Donnarumma (£4.0m) – 21 points
- Thibaut Courtois (£4.0m) – 20 points
TOP THREE GOALKEEPERS (CURRENTLY ACTIVE)
- Jordan Pickford (£3.5m) – 34 points
- Gianluigi Donnarumma (£4.0m) – 21 points
- Unai Simon (£3.5m) – 11 points
No surprise to see the two keepers boasting the best defensive records at the tournament at the top of the rankings.
Pickford is yet to concede to a goal this summer and is therefore the runaway leader among keepers.
As you can see, it’s essentially a choice of two in terms of who to back for the semi-finals as Spain and Denmark, while impressive going forward, have conceded goals.
Kasper Schmeichel (£3.0m) has just four points to show for his efforts at this stage.
TOP THREE DEFENDERS (OVERALL)
- Luke Shaw (£3.0m) – 43 points
- John Stones (£4.0m) – 40 points
- Harry Maguire (£4.0m) – 33 points
No need to provide a top three of currently active defenders as it would be exactly the same.
England’s five clean sheets have made their players utterly dominate in the defensive realm of Dream Team Euros.
Leader Shaw has three assists to his name as well – only Steven Zuber has provided more at Euro 2020.
TOP THREE MIDFIELDERS (OVERALL)
- Emil Forsberg (£2.0m) – 33 points
- Ivan Perisic (£3.5m) – 28 points
- Paul Pogba (£5.5m) – 26 points
TOP THREE MIDFIELDERS (CURRENTLY ACTIVE)
- Raheem Sterling (£5.5m) – 26 points
- Pablo Sarabia (£2.5m) – 25 points
- Ferran Torres (£3.5m) – 23 points
The top three midfielders in the rankings were all eliminated in the round of 16.
Sterling, who is now among the bookies’ favourites to be named Player of the Tournament, needs just a 7+ rating to become the second-best player in his position and a fourth goal at Euro 2020 would put him at the top of the pile.
Spain are the tournament’s top scorers and Torres and Sarabia have been key to their attacking success, the pair have four goals and two assists between them.
TOP THREE FORWARDS (OVERALL)
- Cristiano Ronaldo (£7.0m) – 49 points
- Patrik Schick (£2.5m) – 42 points
- Karim Benzema (£6.0m) – 31 points
TOP THREE FORWARDS (CURRENTLY ACTIVE)
- Harry Kane (£7.0m) – 26 points
- Kasper Dolberg (£2.5m) – 26 points
- Lorenzo Insigne (£4.0m) – 24 points
England’s captain blanked in all three group games but has come to life in the knockout stages with three goals in his last two games.
Dolberg also has three goals to his name and rather neatly matches Kane’s points tally – one of these strikers has two games left and if Dream Team Euros gaffers can correctly identify which one then they could reap the rewards.
Italy’s forwards will be very popular for the remainder of the tournament – Insigne and Ciro Immobile (£5.0m) have 44 points between them and both will fancy their chances against a vulnerable Spain defence this evening.
It may take another three goals for the best remaining forwards to hunt down Ronaldo’s tally of 49 points.
If Kane, Dolberg, Insigne or Immobile managed such a feat, they would surely walk away with a winners medal around their neck.