UEFA Euro 2024: Who are the underdogs?

We wrote about the favorites at the upcoming Euro, and on this occasion we will pay attention to the underdogs at the tournament in Germany. We will see one national team for the first time at the Euro, and it is almost certainly one of the underdogs, and there are several other national teams that we could comfortably classify as underdogs in the tournament that takes place from June 14 to July 14 in Germany.

UEFA Euro 2024 Underdogs: Georgia make Euro debut

Among the underdogs in the upcoming tournament, we can certainly include Georgia, which will play at the Euro for the first time in history. The very placement at the Euro is a great success for this national team. A few years ago, Georgia missed the opportunity to qualify for the Euros when they were defeated by North Macedonia in the playoff final, but this time they defeated Greece in the playoff final, so they will make history in Germany.

The main star of this team is Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, a Napoli player, while they are led from the bench by a former Bayern and French national team player. All in all, this is a team with modest quality that has little chance of progressing as it is placed in a group with Portugal, Turkey and the Czech Republic.

Albania

Georgia is justifiably ranked among the underdogs because it won a not easy group, and what can we say about Albania, which will be placed in the group of death with Spain, Italy and Croatia at the Euro. Unlike Georgia, this national team has already participated in the Euros once, since we watched them at the Euros in France in 2016. Albania then even achieved one victory against Romania. It ranks among the underdogs in this championship because of the aforementioned competition in the group, and like Georgia, this national team seems to have modest quality for this level of competition.

They managed to finish the qualification ahead of the Czech Republic and Poland, which we will also see at the Euros, and if the draw had been different, the question is whether this national team would have made it to the Euros. This national team is led from the bench by former Brazilian and Barcelona player, Sylvinho. The team stands out for its defensive qualities because the pillars of the national team are the defenders who play in Italy, Berat Djimsiti, Ardian Ismajli and Elseid Hysaj.

Slovakia

Slovakia is participating in the Euro for the third time in a row, but regardless of that fact, it ranks among the underdogs in this tournament. In the previous two tournaments, Slovakia achieved one victory each, and in 2016 they managed to get to the knockout stage, but were convincingly defeated by Germany. This national team does not play excessively attractive football, and it can be said that they were quite lucky with the draw in the qualifiers in which they finished behind the superior Portugal in the group and ahead of Luxembourg.

The most outstanding players are from the defensive part of the team, namely Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dubravka and PSG defender Milan Skriniar. Like the previous two national teams, this one is led by a foreigner, and in this case it is Italian expert Francesco Calzona, who led Slovakia and Napoli at the same time last season. Unlike Albania and Georgia, Slovakia might be able to get to the knockout stage because they will compete in the group with Belgium, Romania and Ukraine.

Slovenia

Slovenia has participated in the Euros only once so far, so this national team is quite rightly classified as one of the underdogs in the tournament. This national team is participating in the Euro after 24 years after finishing behind Denmark and ahead of Kazakhstan and Finland in the qualifiers. Among the outstanding players there is the goalkeeper of Atletico Madrid, Jan Oblak, as well as Benjamin Šeško, who is currently playing for RB Leipzig but is expected to make a lucrative transfer to one of the bigger clubs very soon.

From the bench, Slovenia is led by experienced domestic expert Matjaž Kek, who has already led Slovenia to a major competition. In 2010, he led Slovenia from the bench to the World Cup. This means that he achieved two out of three placements in major competitions that Slovenia has achieved so far. They will be in the group with another national team that is returning to the Euro after 24 years, and that is Serbia. As rivals, they will still have England and Denmark, with whom they also played in the qualifiers. In this competition, he seems to have little chance of making it to the knockout stage.

Romania

We can also classify Romania as underdogs, although it could potentially reach the knockout stage because it competes in the same group as Slovakia. Of all the mentioned national teams classified as underdogs, Romania has so far made the most appearances at the Euro. We will see this national team for the sixth time at the Euro. Romania has good qualifications behind it, in which it managed to leave behind Switzerland, which is a regular participant in major competitions and has not recorded a single defeat.

The first star of the team led by local expert Edward Iordanescu from the bench is defender Radu Dragusin, who plays for Tottenham. In the group in which Romania is placed, the first favorite is Belgium, and the Romanians could enter the fight with Ukraine and Slovakia for the second place, which would bring only the second placement for Romania in the knockout phase of the Euro.