Every group of Euro 2016 has offered some entertaining international football. Well, some did worst but some teams and players really stand out this year. Here are some of the stage takers and the best teams that make us love football.
Croatia proved that they are not just any team and they can indeed make it this year. Given that the lead player, Luka Modric, was injured, the whole team did not lose hope against Spain. It only shows how dedicated the team was in winning and having a position in the Euro 2016.
The fairy tail continues for Iceland as they haven't lost a match and seem confident and quite capable of upsetting England at the round of 16.
Gareth Bale never let his country down this year. He played well and brought his team members at the height of the game. This big time player just led the rally against Russia at an overwhelming score of 3-0. He made a historic three goals for the last three games. Now everyone certainly consider Wales a big threat in the tournament.
Wales and Iceland were among our Euro 2016 dark horses suggestions.
Eric Dier, though a new face in this league, has proven to be a man of great future in football. He has been an outstanding player for the English this year. However, England will have to do better, if they are to reach the latter stages of the tournament.
Dimitri Payet has pulled out some outstanding performances and definitely is the main man for France. He had a crucial role in his team winning the first two games and topping group A. The football predictions are of course in favour in France to defeat Ireland and reach the quarterfinals.
Robert Lewandowski and Zlatan Ibrahimovic are just some of the big names that didn't score a single goal, but Lewandowski will have his chance against Switzerland, while Sweden left the competition after two defeats and a draw.
Russia managed an impressive draw with England, but afterwards lost twice and left huge doubts whether they can perform well as a host of the World cup 2018. Speaking about some of the worst teams this year, Russia is surely in that list. Austria and Ukraine have also disappointed, even though they both have a good squad, but simply didn't come up to expectations.
For the big names at Euro 2016 such as Italy, Germany and Spain it was business as usual and they had no problem of qualifying for the knockout phase. The road to the final will be tough for those teams, as the one finalist will be determined by Germany, Italy, Spain, France and England.
Overall, the small nations really entertained and performed quite well. Croatia, Wales and Iceland have proved they have the quality to upset any opponent.