With the qualifying groups for Euro 2024 now complete, Telegraph Sport ranks the 21 teams that secured a place in the final from worst to best. Three more countries will be added through the play-offs.
21) Romania
They finished unbeaten and top of their qualifying group, ahead of highly ranked Switzerland, although they also only drew against Kosovo, Belarus and Israel during the campaign. Former Reading striker George Pușcaș will lead their attack while they have 21-year-old Radu Drăgușin at the back, who was a youth team player at Juventus before moving permanently to Genoa this season after a successful loan spell.
20) Czech Republic
What can we expect from them after coach Jaroslav Šilhavý announced live on television this week that he is stepping down? He was still on the field at the time and said that the pressure on him had been too much. They had just won against Moldova to secure a place in the final.
19) Albania
They are the lowest ranked team to qualify for the tournament and are ranked 59th on the FIFA list. Recent draws against Moldova and the Faroe Islands will hardly inspire confidence in Germany to progress from the group, but Chelsea striker Armando Broja is also looking to make a name for himself on the international stage. Bring a Premier League feel to the management with Sylvinho, assisted by Pablo Zabaleta.
18) Slovakia
Only Portugal beat them in qualifying, while Iceland and Bosnia were their tough opponents and Luxembourg recorded shock victories. Their strength will come in the form of Paris Saint-Germain centre-back Milan Skriniar, who was on the radar of Premier League teams when he previously played for Inter Milan, and partner David Hancko from Feyenoord, while in midfield Stanislav Lobotka from have Napoli.
17) Slovenia
Earlier this week, Kazakhstan were pushed all the way and Benjamin Verbic's late goal was needed to secure victory and a second place in their group behind Denmark on head-to-head records. They haven't been to the tournament since 2000 and their last major tournament was the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, so reaching the final is a huge achievement for the team led by Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak. Benjamin Sesko is their potential star.
The story continues
16) Turkey
To finish top of their group ahead of Croatia shows what they are about after a hugely disappointing Euro 2020 when they were tipped as dark horses but ultimately lost all three group games. Former Italy striker Vincenzo Montella has been head coach since September and will be encouraged by the friendly win over Germany, which followed the victory over Croatia.
Finished second behind Hungary in their group. Aleksandar Mitrović and Sergej Milinković-Savić are now in Saudi Arabia, but will want to show their class on the top stage, while an attack with Dusan Vlahovic and Dusan Tadic will cause problems for most defenses.
14) Hungary
They qualified from Group G without losing a match, albeit from a group from which they would qualify. Victories against England home and away last year, including the 4-0 victory at Molineux, set the benchmark for his team, which is captained by Dominik Szoboszlai, the Liverpool midfielder who has looked back home in the Premier League after his summer move from RB Leipzig. .
13) Switzerland
After reaching the knockout stages of the World Cup, they will no longer be there to make up the numbers next year with their team full of experience but also quality. Granit Xhaka has joined Bayer Leverkusen and is playing a key role in their unexpected Bundesliga title run. Xherdan Shaqiri and Denis Zakaria add to their quality, while Fabian Schar and Manuel Akanji are well known to those who watch Premier League football.
12) Austria
Finished just a point behind Belgium in qualifying and although David Alaba is their only Galactico, there is quality in the backbone of their team, with their captain playing behind a midfield featuring Konrad Laimer (Bayern Munich), Christoph Baumgartner (RB Leipzig) and Marcel Sabitzer (Borussia Dortmund). 34-year-old Marco Arnautovic is still in the starting line-up and will participate in the tournament after a season on loan to Inter Milan.
11) Denmark
Their place in next year's final was secured before the shock defeat to Northern Ireland during the current international break. The Danes have sufficient Premier League experience in their ranks with Kasper Schmeichel, Joachim Andersen, Andreas Christensen, Christian Eriksen and Pierre-Emile Hojberg. They also have Rasmus Hojlund, who has saved his best Manchester United performances for Europe.
10) Scotland
Wins have been hard to come by of late, but the hard work was done earlier in qualifying by beating Spain and Norway and doing the double in Cyprus. It shows that they can fit in with any team if it clicks for them. They will hope that Scott McTominay is dangerous in his advanced role and that John McGinn and Billy Gilmour give them control in midfield.
9) Croatia
Luka Modric may be 38, but no country will enjoy playing against him. Marcelo Brozović is also the wrong side of 30 and plays in Saudi Arabia, but it would be dangerous to write Croatia off in any match, even if they were beaten by Wales and Turkey in October. They can also boast Joško Gvardiol, who has seen one of the most promising defenders in Europe at home with Manchester City.
Question marks for a real striker, as Wout Weghorst scored the winner against Ireland this weekend to secure a place in the final. He showed that he loved the big event at the World Cup. Ronald Koeman has exciting players in Xavi Simons and Cody Gakpo. Virgil van Dijk has had his captaincy style questioned by the Dutch football team in Marco van Basten.
7) Germany
They have not been involved in qualifying as they host the tournament, but worrying friendly defeats have led to the dismissal of Hansi Flick and the appointment of Julian Nagelsmann, although the defeat to Turkey last weekend hardly raised expectations. The new coach has at least two exciting talents with twenty-year-olds Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala. Beating France, albeit in a friendly, showed that they are still capable of big wins.
The holders showed in their two qualifying defeats to England that they are capable of moments of brilliance, but also beatable. Luciano Spalletti's impact may take some time after losing Roberto Mancini to Saudi Arabia's wealth and they have the Serie A betting scandal hanging over them, depriving them of Sandro Tonali.
5) Spain
They are subdued compared to previous competitions, with Luis de la Fuente in charge after taking charge of the Spanish youth teams. They are among the top, but the victory against Georgia came at a price: Gavi suffered a serious knee injury. They are Nations League holders, but the defeat to Scotland showed that they can also collapse during matches. Appears transition phase after the departure of Luis Enrique.
4) Belgium
There are still players left from the Golden Generation, even though Eden Hazard has retired from football. Jan Vertonghen, at 36 and back in his home country with Anderlecht, is still in the squad and their attack is still led by Romelu Lukaku. Injuries to Kevin De Bruyne (hamstring) and Thibaut Courtois (anterior cruciate ligament) are worrying, although we should not forget that Belgium was number 1 in the world until March 2022. Jeremy Doku is their most exciting young talent.
3) Portugal
Their attack will all be through Cristiano Ronaldo, who isn't talking about retirement yet but is certainly in Last Dance territory with the league he won in 2016. Roberto Martinez has a wealth of talent in all other areas: Ruben Dias, Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes - and they are just the ones based in Manchester. Joao Palhinha is a potential star of the tournament who remains under the radar.
2) England
Gareth Southgate has his sights set on the number 1 ranked team in the world and the feeling in his squad is that only winning Euro 2024 will be considered success. This is the result of reaching the final in 2021 and having a stable team and squad, plus the small matter of Harry Kane scoring goals and Jude Bellingham emerging as Europe's best young talent.
1) France
It takes ruthlessness to beat any opponent 14-0, which is what they did against Gibraltar. After coming so close to winning the World Cup, they were unstoppable in qualifying, with the friendly defeat to Germany the only blemish. With Kylian Mbappe they can win every match, they also have a Galactico engine room with Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouaméni.
