Ahead of the Euro 2016 knockout stages, we look at five stars who have had quiet tournaments so far, whom their teams will counting on to find a return to form.
Kevin De Bruyne, Belgium
He hasn’t looked as ineffectual as, say, Muller, or as misused as Pogba, but he still hasn’t quite looked his best, has he? The Manchester City man is maybe his much-fancied side’s greatest talent – yes, even including Eden Hazard and Romelu Lukaku – but Belgium are not going to make good on their vast potential unless De Bruyne starts making good on his. Like Poland, Belgium are blessed with the pleasant side of the draw, and get a scrappy but severely less-talented Hungary to start, with Wales and Northern Ireland on the horizon offering a manageable path at least to the semi-finals. Unlike some of his under-pressure peers, De Bruyne’s team are good enough to navigate that without him hitting his stride just yet, but it would be nice to see some magic out of the kid before long.
Thomas Muller, Germany
Nobody with Germany, really, has looked quite at their top level. The world champions slogged through the opening stage as Group C winners, but it was an unconvincing march. All their stars, from Mario Gotze to Toni Kroos to Mesut Ozil, have looked to varying degrees unconvincing. But Muller, in particular, has been anonymous.
That must change against Slovakia. The Group B third-place finishers have generally played pretty open matches at this tournament so far, the kind a premier poacher like Muller has a nose for. More than the rest of Germany’s star-filled squad, he is the man they need to get on the scoresheet and really get going.
Paul Pogba, France
Didier Deschamps chose to tinker with a highly talented France side during the group stage to largely underwhelming results. He doesn’t seem able to decide how he wants to employ Pogba, his most talented player, but it shouldn’t be that difficult. Get him front and centre as a No 10 and let him work his magic, as he does at Juventus. It’s not the easiest way to position around the rest of the French squad, but why handicap your greatest threat?
Harry Kane, England
He goes through these hot-and-cold spells for Spurs at times, too, and sometimes all it takes is a wrong-footed strike at the right time to get him in the goal and back and firing. In the half of the draw that includes France, Italy, Germany and Spain (seriously, it’s borderline preposterous), his ability to make something out of nothing (as opposed to his occasional bouts of turning somethings into nothing) will be indispensable.
Robert Lewandowski, Poland
Similarly, his goals acumen is one of the chief reasons Poland were considered dark horses for this tournament at all and perhaps the only thing that makes the team a threat to spring a shock on anyone at any time. That they have looked fairly impressive without the striker providing anything is a testament to the work they have put in so far. Poland are on the nice side of the draw, and get a relatively simple opening task in Switzerland, but whether this opportunity in front of them amounts to anything is more likely now than ever to come down to whether Lewandowski takes his opportunities.
