Euro 2024, Group E guide: Belgium revitalised by young guns in hunt first major title

Manager: Serhiy Rebrov Captain: Andriy Yarmolenko (Dynamo Kyiv) One to watch: Artem Dovbyk (Girona) Squad: Goalkeepers : Georgiy Bushchan (Dynamo Kyiv), Anatoliy Trubin (Benfica), Andriy Lunin (Real Madrid). Defenders : Mykola Matviyenko, Yukhym Konoplya, Valeriy Bondar (all from Shakhtar Donetsk), Oleksandr Tymchyk (Dynamo Kyiv), Vitaliy Mykolenko (Everton), Illia Zabarnyi (Bournemouth), Oleksandr Svatok (SC Dnipro-1), Maksym Talovierov (LASK Linz), Bohdan Mykhailichenko (Polissya Zhytomyr). Midfielders : Andriy Yarmolenko, Mykola Shaparenko, Volodymyr Brazhko (all from Dynamo Kyiv), Taras Stepanenko, Oleksandr Zubkov, Georgiy Sudakov (all from Shakhtar Donetsk), Oleksandr Zinchenko (Arsenal), Viktor Tsygankov (Girona), Mykhailo Mudryk (Chelsea), Serhiy Sydorchuk (Westerlo), Ruslan Malinovskyi (Genoa). Forwards : Artem Dovbyk (Girona), Roman Yaremchuk (Valencia), Vladyslav Vanat (Dynamo Kyiv). Highest Euro finish: Quarter-finals, 2020. Fifa ranking: 22 Group E fixtures: June 17 Romania vs Ukraine (Munich, 5pm) June 21 Slovakia vs Ukraine (Dusseldorf, 5pm) June 26 Ukraine vs Belgium (Stuttgart, 8pm) Outscoring the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Jude Bellingham, Antoine Griezmann and Vinicius Junior in your first season playing in the Spanish top-flight is not to be sniffed at. So Ukraine spearhead Artem Dovbyk will be heading to Germany high on confidence after notching 24 goals for a Girona side that secured Champions League football for the first time in their history after finishing third in the table behind Spanish big hitters Real Madrid and Barcelona. A final day hat-trick in a 7-0 thrashing of Granada meant Dovbyk pipped Villarreal's Alexander Sorloth for the Pichichi – La Liga's top-scorer award – by one goal and set him up perfectly for the upcoming Euros. Ukraine qualified for the Euros with a 2-1 win thanks to a second-half comeback against Iceland in their play-off final in March after overcoming Bosnia and Herzegovina by the same scoreline in the last four when Dovbyk grabbed the winner two minutes from time. That victory proved an emotional moment for fans back home who had eagerly followed their team's qualifying campaign, which was exclusively held outside the war-ravaged country that has been fighting off a Russian invasion since February 2022. “I am very proud to be a Ukrainian, to be of the same blood as those who are now giving their lives for our freedom,” captain Oleksandr Zinchenko said after beating Iceland. “It is an amazing feeling. I am very happy because it is another dream come true. A big thank you to our fans, they helped us through these difficult times amazingly.” Manager: Francesco Calzona Captain: Milan Skriniar (Paris Saint-Germain) One to watch: Stanislav Lobotka (Napoli) Squad: Goalkeepers: Martin Dubravka (Newcastle), Marek Rodak (Fulham), Henrich Ravas (New England Revolution) Defenders: Peter Pekarík (Hertha Berlin), Norbert Gyomber (Salernitana), Denis Vavro (FC Copenhagen), Milan Skriniar (Paris Saint-Germain), Adam Obert (Cagliari), David Hancko (Feyenoord), Vernon De Marco (Hatta Club), Sebastian Kosa (Spartak Trnava) Midfielders: Matúš Bero (Bochum), Juraj Kucka (Slovan Bratislava), Tomas Rigo (Baník Ostrava), Patrik Hrosovsky (Genk), Stanislav Lobotka (Napoli), Ondrej Duda (Hellas Verona), Laszlo Benes (Hamburg) Strikers: Dávid Duriš (Ascoli), Tomas Suslov (Hellas Verona), Ivan Schranz (Slavia Prague), Robert Bozeník (Boavista), David Strelec (Slovan Bratislava), Lubomir Tupta (Slovan Liberec), Leo Sauer (Feyenoord), Lukas Haraslin (Sparta Prague) Highest Euro finish: Last 16, 2016. Fifa ranking: 48 Group E fixtures: June 17 Belgium vs Slovakia (Frankfurt, 8pm) June 21 Slovakia vs Ukraine (Dusseldorf, 5pm) June 26 Slovakia vs Romania (Frankfurt, 8pm) Much of Stanislav Lobotka's best work on the pitch goes largely unnoticed but the midfielder with a stunning passing range will be a key member of Slovakia’s side when they compete in Germany. Lobotka, 29, featured in all 38 games for Napoli as they swept to the 2022/23 Serie A title and while Victor Osimhen, Giovanni Di Lorenzo and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia drew many of the plaudits, the Slovak’s influence was just as strong. Earlier in his career he was compared to Croatia's Luka Modric and former Spain and Barcelona midfielder Xavi, and he topped the passing statistics in Napoli's title-winning campaign, with no player in the Italian league able to beat his 94.2 per cent success rate. He has also been a vital part of his national side since making his debut in 2016, having amassed 54 caps and scored four goals. A strong showing at the Euros will only enhance his reputation but is also vital for the fortunes of Slovakia. If he plays well, generally so do they. The reverse is also true though. They finished behind Portugal in qualifying – with manager Francesco Calzona having successfully combined international duties towards the end of campaign after taking over at Napoli – and reached a third consecutive Euro finals. “Putting together 25-30 players from at least 11 or 12 different championships with different roles and mentalities was the hardest part,” Calzona said of the successful qualification campaign. “Getting them to all think along the same lines, and in a short time, was really difficult.” Manager: Domenico Tedesco Captain: Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City) One to watch: Jeremy Doku (Manchester City) Squad: Goalkeepers: Koen Casteels (Wolfsburg), Thomas Kaminski (Luton), Matz Sels (Nottingham Forest). Defenders: Timothy Castagne (Fulham), Maxim De Cuyper (Club Brugge), Zeno Debast (Anderlecht), Wout Faes (Leicester), Thomas Meunier (Trabzonspor), Jan Vertonghen (Anderlecht), Arthur Theate (Rennes), Axel Witsel (Atletico Madrid). Midfielders: Yannick Carrasco (Al Shabab), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Orel Mangala (Lyon), Amadou Onana (Everton), Youri Tielemans (Aston Villa), Arthur Vermeeren (Atletico Madrid), Aster Vranckx (Wolfsburg) Forwards: Johan Bakayoko (PSV), Charles De Ketelaere (Atalanta), Jeremy Doku (Manchester City), Romelu Lukaku (Roma), Dodi Lukebakio (Sevilla), Lois Openda (RB Leipzig), Leandro Trossard (Arsenal). Highest Euro finish: Runners-up, 1980. Fifa ranking: Third Group E fixtures: June 17 Belgium vs Slovakia (Frankfurt, 8pm) June 22 Belgium vs Romania (Cologne, 11pm) June 26 Ukraine vs Belgium (Stuttgart, 8pm) For all its talent, Belgium's so-called golden generation of football players have never won a major title. With only a few members of that era still around, a new group of ambitious youngsters chaperoned by seasoned veterans will compete at the European Championship, looking to shed the country's underachiever reputation. After the Red Devils failed to progress to the knockout stage of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Belgium have quickly rebuilt a solid and entertaining team under coach Domenico Tedesco. The 38-year-old German-Italian remains unbeaten since he was appointed in February last year, with the team finishing top of their qualifying group. In a very short time, Tedesco has put together a team with an attack-minded style, putting his faith in promising, emerging talents on a mission to win Belgium's first major trophy. The new faces have the opportunity to leave their mark at the Euros. Jeremy Doku is the most prominent of them following his excellent debut season at Manchester City, which should earn him a place in Tedesco's starting line-up in Germany. Alongside Doku, PSV Eindhoven player Johan Bakayoko – who scored 12 goals and delivered nine assists in the Dutch league – is expected to wreak havoc on the right of Belgium's attack. Fortunately for Belgium, other seasoned stalwarts such as Jan Vertonghen, Romelu Lukaku and Kevin de Bruyne are still around to guide the youngsters. Manchester City playmaker De Bruyne has been enjoying the rebuild. “You can see that the young players give us new energy,” he said. “They come here now with the feeling that they will have opportunities and they fight for the national team. If all the players are in the right place, the quality comes through.” Manager: Edward Iordanescu Captain: Nicolae Stanciu (Damac) One to watch: Ianis Hagi (Alaves) Squad: Goalkeepers : Florin Nice (Gaziantep, Turkey), Horaciu Moldovan (Atletico, Spain), Stefan Tirnovanu (Steaua), Rezvan Sava (CPR Cluj). Defenders : Andrei Raciu (Rayo Vallecano, Spain), Radu Dreguşin (Tottenham, England), Bogdan Rakovitan (Raków, Poland), Adrian Rus (Paphos, Cyprus), Ionut Nedelcharu (Palermo, Italy), Andrei Burke (Al-Uhdud, Saudi Arabia), Vasile Mogos (CFR Cluj), Nicusor Bancu (Universitatea Craiova). Midfielders : Dejan Sorescu (Gaziantep, Turkey), Marius Marin (Pisa, Italy), Alexandru Cikeldeu (Konyaspor, Turkey), Rezvan Marin (Empoli, Italy), Nicolae Stanciu (Damac, Saudi Arabia), Dennis Mann, Valentin Micheile (both of Parma, Italy), Janis Hadji (Alaves, Spain), Adrian Schut, Darius Olaru, Florinel Coman (all of Steaua), Constantin Grameni (Constanta Lighthouse). Forwards : Denis Dreguş (Gaziantep, Turkey), George Puskas (Bari, Italy), Denis Alibek (Muayter, Qatar), Daniel Birlija (CPR Cluj). Highest Euro finish: Quarter-finals, 2000. Fifa ranking: 46 Group E fixtures: June 17 Romania vs Ukraine (Munich, 5pm) June 22 Belgium vs Romania (Cologne, 11pm) June 26 Romania vs Ukraine (Munich, 5pm) Romania showed their graft and potential when they topped their qualification group through an unbeaten campaign to reach the Euro 2024 finals in Germany but are not the finished article, according to coach Edward Iordanescu. Iordanescu’s side won six and drew four of their 10 qualifiers, finishing ahead of Switzerland as they earned a first visit to the finals since 2016 and sixth overall. They have never made it past the quarter-finals but with a hard-working team who understand their limitations, and in a Group E in Germany that includes Belgium, Slovakia and Ukraine, there is cautious optimism that they can be a surprise this year. Iordanescu, whose father Anghel had three spells in charge of Romania and took them to the 1994 World Cup quarter-finals, was appointed to lead the team in January 2022. It was a rocky start as he won only one of his first seven games in charge, but since November 2022 his sole loss has been a 3-2 friendly defeat by Colombia in March this year. Iordanescu confirmed he would stick with the core of the players who qualified the team for the finals. “We cannot make major changes in this group,” he said. “This team has already proved it has potential, but we are looking forward and have our foot on the accelerator. We are in the last 100 metres and I want our success story to continue in Germany.” Defender Radu Dragusin, 22, barely played at Tottenham Hotspur this season but is one of three Romanians to start each of their qualifiers along with midfielder and captain Nicolae Stanciu and defender Andrei Burca – both based in Saudi Arabia.

Euro 2024, Group E guide: Belgium revitalised by young guns in hunt first major title

New group of ambitious youngsters chaperoned by seasoned veterans will compete in Germany