WHO’LL BE THE KING OF FRANCE?
Sportsmail casts its eye over six members of football royalty who could claim the throne
WHEN Cristiano Ronaldo’s play-off hat-trick secured Portugal’s place at the 2014 World Cup, it drew a bitter response from Sweden superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
‘A World Cup without me is nothing to watch, so it is not worthwhile to wait for the World Cup,’ said the defeated Swede, who had scored twice in his side’s 3-2 second leg loss (a 4-2 defeat on aggregate).
Having since blasted his one-man team to this summer’s Euros with 11 goals in qualifying, the colourful Ibrahimovic and fellow global megastar Ronaldo are merely two of the many reasons why France 2016 promises to be such an unmissable feast of football.
Scotland may not have made it to the party but the late SFA chief executive David Taylor’s successful lobbying of UEFA to enlarge the tournament from 16 to 24 has ensured as many of the continent’s stars will come together from Wales, Poland, Portugal, France, Germany and Sweden for what promises to be a magical four weeks.
Here, Sportsmail picks out six gifted players on show who will be vying to be crowned the King of France.
ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC
Age: 34. Country: Sweden.
With a taste for the spectacular throughout his career, Ibrahimovic has a tendency to deliver magic moments at the Euros. From his outrageous back-flick goal against Italy in Portugal in 2004 to his volleyed strike against France in 2012 that was later voted goal of the tournament.
His 62 goals in 111 internationals comfortably outstrips Henrik Larsson’s 37 in 106 caps, while his 11 goals in qualifying was bettered only by Robert Lewandowski’s 13 for Poland.
Ibrahimovic has scored 11 of Sweden’s last 15 goals and with their hero in the side, the Swedes can ‘Dare to Zlatan’ and do a Greece 2004 by going all the way in what looks likely to be his international swansong. Should the Manchester United-bound forward pull it off, the Swedish government, who issued a Zlatan postage stamp in 2014, would have to find a new way to honour their nation’s favourite son.
CRISTIANO RONALDO
Age: 31. Country: Portugal.
The Real Madrid forward is three goals shy of Michel Platini’s record of nine goals scored in European Championship finals. He is also just three appearances short of surpassing Luis Figo (127) as Portugal’s most-capped player of all time.
A title winner in England with Manchester United and in Spain with Real Madrid, Ronaldo also has three Champions League winners’ medals to his name.
But time is running out for him to propel Portugal to international honours now he is the wrong side of 30.
Ronaldo will surely play in the next World Cup in Russia but this summer in France, still at the peak of his powers, could be his best chance to finally better the runners-up gong he won on home soil at Euro 2004. He heads to France having scored an impressive 51 goals in 50 games for club and country in all competitions last season.
GARETH BALE
Age: 26. Country: Wales
Football history is riddled with world-class players like George Best, Ryan Giggs and Ian Rush who all were denied the chance to play in a major finals. But lightning-quick Real Madrid attacker Gareth Bale will go where even those legends could not tread after leading Wales into their first championships in 58 years.
The world’s most expensive footballer showed off his prowess in qualification by scoring seven of his country’s 11 goals, including vital match-winning strikes against Andorra, Belgium and Cyprus.
Thanks to Bale, Wales soared to a record eighth in the FIFA rankings list last year, ahead of Euro 2016 Group B rivals England and one behind Brazil.
As Wales prepare to grace their first tournament since the World Cup in Sweden in 1958, Bale heads for France in confident mood. Last month he starred in his second Champions League win as Real Madrid beat city rivals Atletico Madrid on penalties at the San Siro in Milan.
PAUL POGBA
Age: 23. Country: France.
The poster boy for the hosts and the tournament itself finds himself walking in the footsteps of legends like Michel Platini and Zinedine Zidane.
In a quirk of fate, Platini, the hero of France’s Euro ’84 win on home soil, and France World Cup ’98 legend and Euro 2000 winner Zidane also both starred for Italian giants Juventus.
But the confident Pogba is singularly undaunted by being asked to shoulder the burden of a nation on his young shoulders. At the age of just 19, he proudly declared his intention was to become ‘the best player in the world’.
A Serie A winner in each of the past four seasons after leaving Manchester United in controversial fashion as a free agent, his performances since have suggested he may well succeed in his quest. Graceful, athletic, quick and skilful, the displays of the 6ft 3ins French powerhouse will go a long way to determining whether the trophy remains in Paris after the Final.
ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI
Age: 27. Country: Poland.
Lewandowski is the most feared and prolific striker in Europe. His 13 goals, including two at Hampden as Scotland’s dreams of reaching Euro 2016 were bludgeoned, saw him finish top scorer in qualification ahead of Ibrahimovic and Thomas Muller of Germany.
At club level, he enjoyed a superb season for Bayern Munich, becoming the first player to score 30 goals in a single Bundesliga season since 1977.
After coming off the bench to score five goals in nine minutes against Wolfsburg, he entered the Guinness Book of Records for the most goals scored by a substitute in the Bundesliga (five); the fastest Bundesliga hat-trick (three minutes and 22 seconds); the fastest four goals in a Bundesliga match (five minutes and 42 seconds) and the fastest five goals in a Bundesliga match (eight minutes and 59 seconds).
At 27, he is in his prime and is part of a far stronger Poland squad than the one that exited at the group stages after finishing bottom of Group A when co-hosting the tournament in 2012.
THOMAS MULLER
Age: 26. Country: Germany.
Muller did not manage to score at Euro 2012 as Germany reached the semi-finals. But he has since emerged as a proven big-game player at major tournaments. After winning the Golden Boot at World Cup 2010 in South Africa with five goals, Muller grabbed another five in Brazil as Germany were crowned world champions two years ago.
He was his nation’s top scorer in qualifying with nine goals as Germany topped Scotland’s Group D. His importance to Joachim Loew’s side is underlined by the fact his country’s next top scorers were Andre Schurrle, Mario Gotze and Max Kruse with three each.
A ruthless finisher, a terrific header of the ball and full of intelligent movement, the Bayern Munich attacker’s form in France will be key if Germany are to be crowned kings of the continent to add to their World Cup.