Czech Republic come up against pre-tournament favourites England in Group D, as well as Croatia and Scotland. Can they qualify for the knockout phase? Or are they set for an early exit?
• Manager: Jaroslav Silhavy
• Current FIFA World Ranking: 40th
• Best European Championship finish: Runners-Up (1996)
After reaching the final in 1996 and the semi-finals in 2004, the Czechs have only made it out of their group once in the previous three tournaments. Let’s assess what the current crop of players could achieve.
Goalkeepers: Tomas Vaclik (Sevilla), Jiri Pavlenka (Werder Bremen), Ales Mandous (Olomouc).
Defenders: Vladimir Coufal (West Ham), Pavel Kaderabek (Hoffenheim), Ondrej Celustka (Sparta Praha), Tomas Kalas (Bristol City), David Zima (Slavia Praha), Jan Boril (Slavia Praha), Ales Mateju (Brescia), Jakub Brabec (Viktoria Plzen).
Midfielders: Lukas Masopust (Slavia Praha), Vladimir Darida (Hertha Berlin), Tomas Soucek (West Ham), Antonin Barak (Verona), Alex Kral (Spartak Moskva), Tomas Holes (Slavia Praha), Petr Sevcik (Slavia Praha), Jakub Jankto (Sampdoria), Adam Hlozek (Sparta Praha), Jakub Pesek (Liberec), Michal Sadilek (PSV).
Forwards: Patrik Schick (Leverkusen), Michael Krmencik (PAOK), Matej Vydra (Burnley), Tomas Pekhart (Legia).
Czech Republic will come up against Scotland, Croatia and England during the group stage, starting with a match against Scotland in Glasgow on June 14.
After that, the Czechs face Croatia on June 18 before facing off against England in what could be a hugely decisive game at Wembley on June 22.
Tomas Soucek: Soucek heads into Euro 2020 on the back of a hugely successful season with West Ham. The towering midfielder played in all 38 of the Hammers’ league matches, scoring ten goals along the way.
For the national side, Soucek has bagged seven goals in 33 appearances. Along with West Ham teammate Vladimir Coufal, he looks set to play a key role for Czech Republic at the Euros.
Czech Republic have been placed in a tricky group. They may be able to get the better of Scotland, although Croatia and England will pose far greater tests.
Nobody would be overly shocked if Silhavy’s side made it to the knockout phase, but they could easily fall at the first hurdle.
Prediction: Group Stage