So the 2024 European Championship is in the books. Football failed to come home – again – and England fans were left with a familiar feeling of disappointment, even though reaching the final has to be regarded as an achievement. With the way the team has played over the last few years, maybe we should take a look at England to win World Cup odds for 2026?
But, getting back to the Euros for a minute, there were plenty of Arsenal players on show over the month’s worth of top-tier international football. Only one of them ended up with a winner’s medal though. David Raya was part of the victorious Spain squad, although he only got to play in the dead rubber match against Albania at the end of the group stage. He did manage to keep a clean sheet though.
What about the other Arsenal players? Let’s take a look back at another heart-breaking tournament for England fans and see how our boys got on. Here are our thoughts about some of the best – and worst – performing Gunners in Germany this summer.
Declan Rice
Almost universally considered to have enjoyed an excellent first season at the Emirates last season, Declan was one of many England players to falter because of the way that the national side sets up. He tended to sit much deeper at the Euros than he does for Arsenal and those barnstorming runs we are all used to just were not part of the game plan for England.
Southgate’s tactics meant that Rice was forced to play a game he is not as suited to and regularly gave the ball away during the group games, in particular. He did get better as the tournament went on though and saved his team on a number of occasions as opponents looked to push forward.
Oleksandr Zinchenko
After everything that Ukraine has gone through in the last few years, just making the Euros via the playoffs was a huge achievement and a source of pride for the country. But things went wrong very early for Zinchenko and his team when they were humbled by Romania in the opening game.
The Arsenal left back was not entirely to blame for his side’s loss but he didn’t exactly excel either. He laid on the assist for the first goal against Slovakia – a game Ukraine went on to win – but then wasn’t selected against Belgium. Not the greatest tournament for Zinchenko, it has to be said.
Kai Havertz
Havertz was given the opportunity to play up front for Germany in the same way as he has for Arsenal but the results ended up being very familiar. A spirited team player, with incredible ball control, he is not a natural goalscorer and was forced to give way to others when push came to shove.
He did score twice in the tournament, both from the penalty spot and caused German fans to get very excited at times. But he had no answer to the brilliance of the Spanish in the quarterfinal (alongside his teammates) and ultimately bowed out with his head held high but to little acclaim.
Jorginho
Part of the Euro 2020-winning Italy squad, Jorginho is always a calming presence in the middle of the field. He tends to do all his work without showing off and can, therefore, go a little under the radar. But it was his team’s performance, rather than his own, that disappointed in Germany.
Italy made it through the group stage but his manager saw him as a weak link against Spain in the second game and that led to his ultimate bench-warming role for the round of 16 game against Switzerland. The fact that Italy was incredibly poor in that game probably shows just how integral he actually is to his national side.
Bukayo Saka
Even when England were stinking the tournament out in the early group games, Bukayo Saka was a rare ray of light. He consistently looked dangerous down the right-hand side and was another player let down by Gareth Southgate’s tactics that forced him further back on the pitch.
Saka continued to be one of the first names on the team sheet, however, and scored a peach of a goal out of nowhere to keep England in the game against Switzerland. His cool penalty – and beaming smile – then helped his team reach the semifinals and he also played a major part in the England goal in the final. Unfortunately, his full redemption after 2020 was just not to be
William Saliba
Before France was knocked out of the competition by a rampant Spain side in the quarterfinals, most fans and pundits had Les Bleus down as the best defensive unit in Germany – and a lot of that is down to Arsenal’s William Saliba. He was typically immense at the back and deservedly won a place in the team of the tournament
Saliba exceeded French expectations while confirming the thoughts of every Arsenal fan watching. He won just about every ball going and always looked to help his team get forward. Unfortunately for him, his teammates never seemed as intent on making goalscoring opportunities and eventually that caught up with them. He was still the best Gooner at the Euros though.
