 "Euro 2024 quarter-finals: Who are the favourites, players to watch and talking points")
Euro 2024’s quarter-finals begin on Friday with a blockbuster clash between hosts Germany and Spain as the tournament enters its crucial final week.
The winner of Germany vs Spain will face either Portugal or France, both former European champions and teams packed with players from the continent’s biggest clubs, in the semi-finals.
Meanwhile England face Switzerland after having scraped past Slovakia — ranked 45th in the world — in the last-16 and find themselves in the last eight having played way below expectations in each of their four matches.
Their opponents would be one of Netherlands or Turkey, the latter also needing a last gasp intervention to progress in regular 90 minutes versus Austria.
We take a look at what to watch out for as the tournament enters the last-eight stage.
Is this it for Toni Kroos?
Toni Kroos against Switzerland:
— DW Sports (@dw_sports) June 23, 2024
✅Most touches: 127
✅Most passes completed: 98
✅Most chances created: 4
✅Most crosses: 9
✅Most possession won: 8
Just another day at the office 🍷#SUIGER #EURo2024 pic.twitter.com/aP9UQbKwFb
As hosts Germany clash with Spain in a battle of the tournament’s two best performing sides, it feels that this could and should have been the final. Alas, an unbalanced knockout bracket has put together four serious title candidates – Spain, Germany, Portugal and France – on one side.
A player with an unblemished record of success, six-time Champions League winner Toni Kroos believes the will to win comes “only through experience”.
The midfielder has been sensational in what will be his final tournament before retiring from football completely.
“You can have a winning mentality or belief, you can live it, but it’s hard to convey it in conversations.”
Kroos will battle against Spain, the country he has lived in for the past decade.
He said his knowledge of the Spanish players from his time at Real Madrid was no clear advantage, saying “they’re all pretty well known.
“I don’t think we’re expecting any big surprises.”
Ahead of the clash, Joselu, who shared the dressing room with Kroos at Real Madrid this past season, quipped, “we’re hoping to retire Toni on Friday.”
**Ronaldo vs Mbappe**France and Portugal renew their Euros rivalry in which almost all of the focus will be on the two captains, Kylian Mbappe and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The last-eight encounter in Hamburg brings together two of the most-fancied nations coming into Euro 2024, but two teams who have not completely convinced so far.
France have reached a sixth quarter-final in the last seven major tournaments despite not one of their players scoring a goal in open play.
Les Bleus have netted three times in four games, with one an Mbappe penalty and the other two coming from own goals.
Mbappe, who suffered a broken nose in the opener, has been playing with a mask while also missing one game to recover. He has not been at his sharpest and the spot-kick he converted against Poland is the only goal he has scored in seven appearances at the Euros.
Meanwhile, Portugal needed a shoot-out to beat Slovenia following a goalless 120 minutes.
Goalkeeper Diogo Costa was the hero by saving all three of Slovenia’s efforts, but the game will also be remembered for Ronaldo’s tears after he had a penalty saved in extra time.
The 39-year-old is chasing the record of becoming the oldest ever goal-scorer at the tournament. But he’s drawn blank and missed a flurry of chances for his side.
The upcoming clash could well be Ronaldo’s last attempt at making that record with the striker clarying that this is going to be his last continental tournament.
Big names flop
The Euros is a showcase of some of the best footballers on the planet but none of the biggest stars have shone so far.
Ronaldo looks like he’s gone one tournament too far while Mbappe has just one penalty goal to show for himself.
England pair Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane, respectively La Liga player of the year and the Bundesliga top scorer, have played way below expectations despite scoring all four of England’s goals.
Young guns, old icons
Records have fallen at Euro 2024 at both ends of the age spectrum. Spain’s Lamine Yamal, 16, became the youngest player to feature at a European Championship. Should he find the net, he will become the youngest scorer in the tournament’s history.
By contrast, Croatia’s Luka Modric set a new record for the oldest at 38 by netting against Italy and Portugal duo Ronaldo, 39, and Pepe, 41, could yet surpass the Real Madrid midfield maestro.
Pepe is now the oldest-ever Euros player and Portugal are among 12 of the 24 teams whose record for oldest Euros player record was set at this tournament.
Own goals aplenty
While the stars fail to fire, there have been nine own goals scored at the Euros and the record of 11 set at the last championships could be broken.
Before Euro 2020, only 11 own goals had been struck in the tournament’s history. UEFA’s looser application of what constitutes an own goal has played its part but there have been some spectacular gaffes in Germany.
Context: Akaydin with an own goal and yellow card in 76 minutes before being subbed off with an injury https://t.co/QYIEIe4jdj https://t.co/GBtZ9OwSgA
— Context footy (@ContextFooty_) June 23, 2024
The most comical came in Turkey’s 3-0 thumping by Portugal, when Samet Akaydin unwittingly doubled the deficit by playing a sloppy back pass which ended with Zeki Celik and goalkeeper Altay Bayindir bundling into the net in a desperate, but unsuccessful, attempt to keep the ball out.
The majority, though, have come from dangerous crosses, like Riccardo Calafiori handing Spain a 1-0 win over Italy.
Spain’s Robin Le Normand, Czech defender Robin Hranac and Austria’s Maximilian Woeber all found their own net in similar fashion as attempted clearances to low crosses have gone wrong.
Turkey the remaining underdog
France, Belgium, England and Portugal — FIFA’s four highest ranked sides before the tournament — have not been at their best and looked cavalier at times. Instead, underdogs have made themselves count.
Georgia, the lowest-ranked team, reached the Round of 16, and grabbed the limelight in their 2-0 win over Euro 2016 winners Portugal.
Romania, who had won just one of their 16 games at the championships heading into Euro 2024, topped a group featuring Belgium, Ukraine and Slovakia, before going down to the Netherlands.
Austria also played sensation football to top their group ahead of France and Netherlands. The Ralf Rangnick side were beaten by Turkey in the previous round.
That leaves only Turkey as the tournament’s dark horses, booking a spot in the quarterfinals with a 2-1 win.
They would be keen on repeating the semi-final run, or more, from the 2008 Euros.
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