The worst of Euro 2024

Euro 2024 will soon be at an end when either England or Spain lift the trophy in Berlin and it has been a fantastic tournament so far, and not just because I’m English and my team is one win away from being champions. There have been some brilliant moments in this tournament, but there have also been some not so good. Here are some of the worst moments from this summer’s European Championship.

Scotland’s opening match

Now there is really only one place to start and it's right at the very beginning. The Allianz Arena the scene for the tournament’s opening match between host nation Germany and Scotland. If you are a German native then ignore this, it was probably the highlight of the tournament. However for the Scottish it was a nightmare start to a tournament that saw them bow out in the group stage, last in Group A.

Florian Wirtz gave the hosts a 1-0 lead after just 10 minutes with Jamal Musiala adding a second. Just shy of half-time, Ryan Porteus was sent off for a dangerous challenge and Kai Havertz converted the subsequent penalty with Germany then taking a 3-0 lead into the break.

You would have thought surely it cannot get any worse for the Scots? Niclas Fullkrug and Emre Can had other ideas, adding Germany’s fourth and fifth goals in their substitute appearances. Scotland got some slight consolation, if you can call it that, from an Anthony Rudiger own goal just before Germany’s fifth but ultimately it made no difference to an embarrassing 5-1 romping to begin their tournament.

Germany's 5-1 victory against Scotland is the 𝐁𝐈𝐆𝐆𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐖𝐈𝐍 in an opening match of a Euros tournament. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/hkRsLhsGTW

— Football Insider (@footyinsider247) June 14, 2024

Merih Demiral suspension

This takes a place in this list for two reasons, firstly the suspension was due to an alleged far-right symbol displayed during his goal celebrations against Austria. Secondly Demiral was coming off a two goal performance and was Turkey’s biggest defensive presence. The suspension meant he missed the difficult matchup against Netherlands in the quarter-finals and with Turkey having to find a way to play without him, they came up short and were knocked out in a 2-1 loss.

Certainly a moment to forget for Demiral.

Turkey defender Merih Demiral has been handed a two-game suspension by UEFA after he celebrated a goal at Euro 2024 by displaying a hand sign associated with an ultra-nationalist group in his team's round-of-16 win over Austria on Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/Rh2LIbywn4

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) July 5, 2024

Portugal’s penalties Portugal had a tournament to forget when it came to penalties with two in particular that stick out. Cristiano Ronaldo’s miss against Slovenia and Joao Felix’s miss against France.

To set the scene: it’s the 105th minute of extra time, two sides trapped in an 0-0 deadlock and a penalty is awarded to Portugal. Up steps Cristiano Ronaldo, one of the greatest players of all time, to take the penalty. You would expect him to put it in the net and give Portugal that all important goal, right? Wrong. Firing it towards the bottom corner, Jan Oblak got down to make a superb save and denied the superstar from a shining moment in the knockout stages, reducing him to tears in the process. Portugal did go on to win the penalty shootout 3-0 but nevertheless it was a rare moment of disappointment for Ronaldo, who has put away so many penalties before.

Cristiano Ronaldo, crying after missing the penalty. pic.twitter.com/MQmDqBaGBo

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 1, 2024

Felix’s miss came in the quarter-final penalty shootout against France. It would have kept Portugal comfortably in it at 3-3 but instead it was a poor attempt that was not even on target and coming off the post. Portugal went on to lose 5-3 and you can certainly look to Felix’s woeful miss as a reason why.

Kylian Mbappe

Now I could say France as a whole, which feels weird given that they made the semi-finals even if that was without a goal from open play until they took on Spain. Mbappe however takes the spotlight on this, and he said it perfectly himself.

Mbappe was poor throughout the entire tournament, picking up just one goal and one assist, you would definitely expect a lot more from the player who so often has been prolific for club and country and had just completed a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid before the tournament. France as a whole did not look the force they had been in recent tournaments, and Mbappe was one of the worst of that.

Mbappé is refreshing.

No excuses. No nonsense. Self-critical.

He flat out called his performances at the Euros bad. He made 0 excuses about his nose.

It’s great to see players who are honest. Mbappé’s hunger to be better is what makes him so special. pic.twitter.com/fRbqnoPH4v

— EiF (@EiFSoccer) July 9, 2024

Belgium’s ‘golden’ generation

This felt like the last hurrah for Belgium’s golden generation going into the tournament. With Eden Hazard already retired this was a better time than any for Belgium’s core of Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and Jan Vertonghen to finally make a run. Supported by young talent like Jeremy Doku and Amadou Onana, on paper Belgium had the side to compete but they were very disappointed.

They failed to dominate what looked like a favourable group entering the tournament before limply exiting in the round-of-16 against France to their own doing, a Vertonghen own goal being all the French needed to win it.

It was a disappointing end to a lacklustre tournament and likely spells the end for Belgium’s golden generation that failed to make a significant mark in international football.

Kevin De Bruyne expressed his frustration when asked about Belgium's "golden generation" that hasn't won any titles 😬

🗣️ "𝙎𝙩𝙪𝙥𝙞𝙙"

pic.twitter.com/DHtjWRQAwn

— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) July 1, 2024

Defending champions Italy

Italy were another team you would have thought would perform much better than they did. After winning Euro 2020, beating England at Wembley, the defending champions did not put up much of a fight for their title.

They won their opening match against Albania 2-1 before a 1-0 loss and a 1-1 draw to Spain and Croatia respectively. They then struggled to cause Switzerland any trouble at all and exited the tournament with a 2-0 loss in the round-of-16. Another disappointed end for a team that hopes were much higher for.

😋🇨🇭Switzerland squad enjoying some Döner Kebab after beating Italy! 🇹🇷#EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/jV633B9Vrw

— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) June 30, 2024