THT takes a look into Group F of the UEFA Euro 2024 as Turkey, Georgia, Portugal, and the Czech Republic take centre stage in Germany.
The UEFA Euro 2024 promises fireworks across all groups, and Group F is no different, as there is plenty to look forward to here. All eyes will be on Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal, while debutants Georgia are eager to make a big mark on the continental stage.
Meanwhile, Turkiye will aim to progress into the knockout stages for the first time since reaching the semi-finals in 2008. Czechia will make an eighth consecutive appearance at the finals, as they last missed out on qualification back in 1992 when they were known as Czechoslovakia.
Either way, Group F is a tighter affair than it seems, as none of these sides can be underestimated for their talent and the quality they bring on the pitch. The Hard Tackle briefly analyses the strengths each of these sides have in them, whole predicting who among these will have the higher chance of progression.
Group F: Turkiye, Georgia, Portugal, Czechia
Matches
June 18: Turkiye vs Georgia; Portugal vs Czechia
June 22: Georgia vs Czechia; Turkiye vs Portugal
June 26: Georgia vs Portugal; Czechia vs Turkiye
Turkiye
Vincenzo Montella has a big task on his hands, and he has done the first part of it by ensuring Turkiye made it to the finals in Germany. Unlike some of the squads in the past, this Turkish side under the Italian packs a punch, as they have a team good enough to challenge the established elite as well as go deep into the competition.
Barring a few positions here and there, Turkiye have a formidable quality across different age groups, led by Serie A-winning midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu. The problem with their history has been faltering at the big stages since 2008 when they made it to the semifinals of the Euros.
The road is still tough for the Turkish side, although Montella will want a fast start to the tournament so as to avoid coming under acute pressure in the latter stages of the group games. Hence, Turkiye need all the players to shine and bring about cohesion that has not been seen in a long while, as they target progression from the group and become the dark horses.
Key Players: Hakan Calhanoglu and Arda Guler
This Turkish side has the right mix of experience and youth heading into UEFA Euro 2024, with Arda Guller the standout name in the latter section. The Real Madrid project has not played much club football in the past season but has shown a ray of sharpness that only a few players possess.
Calhanoglou, on the other hand, had an imperious season with Inter Milan, emphatically winning the Serie A. The Turkey skipper was also superb during the qualification campaign, as he was involved in 47 open play shot-ending sequences for his side, and by far being one of the most impactful players for the team in a creative aspect.
Notable Omissions: Caglar Soyuncu and Can Uzun
The former Leicester City defender may not have had a couple of good seasons at the club level. But he is considered solid for the national team alongside Merih Demiral. The fact that the latter has hardly played many minutes since his move to Saudi Arabia and the absence of another defender, Ozan Kabak, makes Soyuncu’s absence more relevant, as Turkey does have a deficiency in central defence.
Meanwhile, Nurnberg teenager Can Uzun was a surprise name to be cut off from the provisional 35-man squad, as his impressive season in Bundesliga.2 did not convince Montella of his quality. Scoring 19 goals in all competitions from an attacking midfielder position raises some questions about the manager’s choices. However, the Italian is flush with choices in that role, especially with Arda Guller now fit and available.
Georgia
Many neutrals will only know a little about this Georgia squad, as the European minnows are making a debut in the continental tournament. After their exploits in the qualification rounds, they are one of the two teams to qualify for UEFA Euro 2024 with a minus goal difference.
They did have a tough group to manoeuvre, although they somehow made it to the playoffs, where they beat Greece on penalties. Georgian are managed by former France international Willy Sagnol, who will become the first French manager to lead a foreign team in a European Championship.
While there are many key players in this Georgia side, only a few play at the highest level of European club football. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia remains the obvious name that everyone would know. Still, they also have the likes of goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili of Valencia and Georges Mikautadze of Metz in their squad alongside Basen star Gabriel Sigua.
Key Players: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Giorgi Mamardashvilli
The two notable stars on the Georgia side will carry the hopes of the European nation in Germany. The winger is not coming at the back of a good season with Napoli as he failed to recreate his exploits from the 2022/23 Serie A winning campaign, although he will want to be at his best at the Euros.
Mamardashvilli, on the other hand, has grown consistently with his game at Valencia in the last two years and now has begun attracting the attention of some big clubs. He must put in a commanding display, as the keeper will be called into action more times than he would want owing to Georgia’s weak defensive setup at UEFA Euro 2024.
Notable Omission: Jaba Kankava
While there are some rumours surrounding captain Guram Kashia’s participation at UEFA Euro 2024, veteran midfielder Jaba Kankava surely misses out on the trip to Germany. The defensive midfielder with over 100 caps for Georgia will be missed for his experience, although it might prove the right decision from Sagnol.
While the game might pass him by due to the speed at which the opposition will play, he might have managed to add only a little to this team. However, for his contributions to the team over the years, the 38-year-old should have gone with the team to Germany, as he thoroughly deserved to play in a major tournament for his nation, especially now that Georgia is making their Euro debut.
Portugal
Roberto Martinez brought about a new sense of optimism on this Portugal side after the strange reign of Fernando Santos prior to the Spaniard’s arrival. Since the veteran’s departure, Portugal have been rampant. They will enter a major tournament with much more optimism than before, as they enter this major finals at the back of a 100% record in qualifying, the only team to do so.
Meanwhile, Portugal are packed with talent in all positions and will once again have the formidable, in-form Cristiano Ronaldo lead the side from the front. They have strengthened in the aspect of having a fixed structure and good players in each position, as Martinez packs the right balance of youth and experience on this side.
The notable thing about Portugal is their star-studded attacking setup, with the likes of Diogo Jota, Pedro Neto, Rafael Leao and Bruno Fernandes all part of it. Even in midfield, they have the right balance, with the likes of Bernardo Silva, Ruben Neves, and Joao Palhinha, who are all likely to star for Martinez’s side.
Key Players: Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes
The former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus legend is expected to feature from the start and lead the Portuguese side at the Euros. It will also be an incredible sixth Euro for Ronaldo, as not many players are in a position to say they have achieved such a stat. However, Ronaldo does come into UEFA Euro 2024 in imperious form for Al-Nassr and will want to have a solid tournament in Germany.
Meanwhile, Bruno Fernandes will also come into this one with high confidence, having lifted the FA Cup to finish the season with Manchester United. For Portugal, Fernandes has been one of the chief creators and will hope to help the team out well with his creative output.
Notable Omissions: Toti and Matheus Nunes
While Roberto Martinez has taken a fantastic set of players to Germany, there are a few notable omissions to consider, especially with the quality they have in each position. Wolves defender Toti, who did have a decent season, misses out despite being a regular at club level, especially in a back-three that the national team manager likes to set up. However, there are far more superior players in defence.
However, Matheus Nunes, who appeared to be making a mark for the national team and steadily became a regular, suffered an unfortunate season with Manchester City, where Pep Guardiola did not favour him. Hence, in the context of selecting players regularly featuring at the club level, something the midfielder couldn’t.
Czech Republic
In the mid-2000s, the Czech Republic was considered a formidable force in Europe, but since then, their powers have waned, and now they are a side that could bring mixed results. By that, we mean they are unpredictable, although they will not be anywhere on the list of favourites of any neutrals.
Yet, the Czech Republic has qualified for their eighth European championship in a row and last missed out on a place in the finals when they were known as Czechoslovakia. There is a talented squad that will travel to Germany and will aim to reach the knockout stages this time around.
There are some notable players that manager Ivan Hasek can rely upon, although he would want his squad to show the unknown commodity in their performances and chase a knockout place. Yet, coming into this group, the Czech Republic is still a slight outsider to qualify with Turkey and Portugal in their group. However, things can rapidly change even with one tremendous performance in the three games.
Key Players: Tomas Soucek and Patrik Schick
Tomas Soucek will captain Czechia at UEFA Euro 2024 and will be one of the key players with tremendous experience coming into the tournament. While he had a modest season at West Ham, he does tend to perform better in national colours.
Then there is Bayer Leverkusen’s clutch striker Patrik Schick, who did have a fantastic season at the club level despite only being the notable second choice for Xabi Alonso. For his national side, manager Ivan Hasek will rely on the striker for his goals and pin the hopes of progression on his shoulders.
Notable Omissions: Jaroslav Zeleny and Vaclav Jurecka
Both those players are not considered massive absentees.But in the context of the squad in recent times, they might feel unfortunate to miss out on the plane to Germany. Jaroslav Zeleny plays left-back, and while he featured family during the team’s Nations League campaign, he was barely selected in games for the qualifiers.
Similarly, Vaclav Jurecka barely featured in the qualifying campaign, and Hasek has more favourable options in the centre-forward positions. Hence, the manager will not be too worried about not selecting Jurecka in his final squad.
Potential Underrated Difference Makers
Joao Palhinha
It’s no surprise that Bayern Munich are inching closer to signing Palhinha like they did last summer, and there is a big reason why they want the Fulham man. In this Portugal setup under Roberto Martinez, the midfielder plays the right role in the squad and has been able to protect the backline with poise, as his only task is to win the ball back and lead transitions.;
In this system for Portugal, he is a lone midfielder, sitting just ahead of the back-three and providing that all-important screening for the backline. He is an underrated commodity player for Portugal and could have an impactful Euro 2024 campaign for Martinez’s side in Germany.
Hakan Calhanoglu
The Turkish playmaker plays a different role for club and country. At Inter Milan, he is the deepest-lying midfielder, but with an eye for creativity, while for the national side, he is their chief creator. His impact on Turkiye during the qualification process for UEFA Euro 2024 was immense, and with good attackers present in front, he can have a magnificent effect.
Hence, Calhanoglu, despite being somewhat abject for Turkey in major tournament finals, can change that this time around and have a big impact on his side. He will be key to Turkey’s progression and to determining how well they can attack in the final third.
Likely to Qualify: Portugal, Turkiye
Portugal will likely bring their qualifying form into the mix at UEFA Euro 2024 and will look to kick-start in fine style when they take on Czechia in their opening game. Roberto Martinez will demand absolute domination of this group, and they might come into the games against the Czechs and Georgia as favourites, although they must find a way to beat Turkiye, which they might do.
Turkiye are the second favourite to grade in the knockout rounds, as they are the second-best side on paper. While they might be lacking a bit in their defensive setup, their attacking players could well make up the difference.
As for a third spot, there is a big chance for one of Georgia or Czechia to make the third spot an important one in this group. Much will depend on how tight the group games are, and considering there are other more prominent third-place predictions from different groups, the chances of a third-placed side making it to the knockout rounds may be slim in Group F.
