Not For Glory Hunters: Who Are Considered The Main Outsiders Of Euro 2024?
Ivan Larsen 
Everyone can root for a strong team, but not everyone does this: many spectators like underdogs, provided that they do not recognize authorities and snap back. The European Championship is exactly the tournament where a team from which it was not expected at all can shine. Denmark and Greece will not let you lie: both won the title, although the former did not even qualify in 1992 (at the last moment they took the place of the collapsed Yugoslavia), and the latter looked like perhaps the main outsider during the 2004 draw.
The significant likelihood of a sensation means that betting on the triumph of an underdog is not such a bad idea. If you plan to do this, download the application at Melbet betting app. We propose to consider in which teams the bookmakers do not see any prospects, and we will tell you what the odds are for a wild sensation.
Looking ahead, we note that bookmakers do not see one main outsider at Euro 2024, estimating the chances of three teams equally low. We completely disagree with equating them, but first things first.
Georgia – 400
In our opinion, the main underdog of the competition is the Georgians. This team has never entered any major tournaments before, and did not even participate in a serious fight for tickets. Georgia failed the qualification, losing out to Spain, Scotland and Norway, although this is not a sensation. But the team grabbed its last chance in the form of the playoffs of the League of Nations, Division C. This loophole was created by UEFA specifically so that at least one football “dwarf” could still make it to the forum, and the Caucasians won a lucky ticket due to the fact that more experienced The Greeks did not put in enough effort to win the head-to-head match.
At the same time, in terms of cost, Georgia is far from the worst team – five cheaper teams made it to the tournament. However, of the team’s 156.5 million euros, 80 (half!) is provided by Napoli winger Kvaratskhelia, and another 35 would be given for Valencia goalkeeper Mamardashvili. Without them, the entire team is “worth” barely 40 million, and the stars cannot take the rap for everyone together. As a result, even the leadership of Caucasians in the group is given an impressive coefficient of 18.0.
Albania – 400
Albania looks more status-conscious. Firstly, this is not the first time that the Balkans have qualified for the Euro – they made their debut in 2016, and then they earned their first points, winning over the Romanians who did not expect a catch. Secondly, the Albanians earned their ticket not in virtually the only match with the Greeks, where the Georgians heroically fought off enemy attacks for 120 minutes, but as a full-fledged winner of their qualifying group. There were no greats there, but Poland and the Czech Republic looked like the favorites, while the Eagles left both of them behind.
The skepticism towards Albania seems to be due to the fact that they are the second cheapest team in the tournament – they “cost” only 123 million euros. There are no supertalents of the level of Kvaratskhelia and Mamardashvili, and the leaders are considered to be striker Broya from Fulham (28 million) and defensive midfielder Asllani from Inter (16 million). In our opinion, this can be considered the strength of the team – it is less dependent on the mood and state of individual performers. The Balkans would clearly be rated higher if it were not for the group of death with rivals Spain, Italy and Croatia.
Slovakia – 400
As part of Czechoslovakia, Slovak football players tried their luck at winning various medals, including gold ones, but even without the Czechs there is something to remember: the Falcons reached the playoffs at the World Cup and the Euro once. Now the most outstanding generation in the history of the national team is not playing, but for Slovakia this is the third continental tournament in a row – which means they are not so weak. In qualifying, this team did not disgrace itself – falling behind leading Portugal by eight points, it lost only twice (to the Portuguese, of course), and drew again, while the strong Icelanders and the unpleasant Bosnians were left far behind.
Slovak football players are valued at a total of 126.5 million euros – only slightly more expensive than Albanians. Two leaders stand out very much from the rest: centerback Ganzko from Feyenoord (35 million, but not the top championship) and defensive midfielder Lobotka from Napoli (30 million), the rest cost a maximum of 6 million. It’s difficult to win without bright attacking players, but the quartet has The Slovaks are far from the worst: you can play with Romania, and Ukraine, and with the right attitude – with Belgium.
Slovenia – 200
Despite the very small size of their country (the population of Slovenia is significantly smaller than that of the countries listed above), the Slovenian national team has already gone to the World Cup twice, and qualified for the Euro for the second time – another thing is that it never made it to the playoffs. However, the qualifying tournament showed that the Slovenes may be ready for new challenges: in the group with Finland and Kazakhstan, the guys scored the same number of points as the much more senior Danes.
The estimated cost of the Slovenian national team is 130 million euros. Traditionally for “small” teams, there are a few leaders and “everyone else.” At the same time, the main talents will perform on opposite ends of the field – we are talking about the RB Leipzig striker Sheshko (40 million) and the ageless Atletico goalkeeper Oblak (30 million). In the group, the Slovenians will definitely not be able to compete with England, but they are obliged to compete with Serbia, and with the Danes, we remind you that they scored the same number of points in the qualifying round.
Bonus For Numbers Lovers
Attentive readers may have noticed that among those listed above there is no cheapest team of the tournament. The Romanian team has such a dubious status, falling short of a modest 96 million euros. Even there there is a star in the person of Tottenham centerback Dragushin (25 million), but what is more important is that the coach managed to build a balanced team. In the selection, the Romanians sensationally left the Swiss behind, and in their quartet at the Euro they are not considered the main outsider – this role went to Slovakia. However, the title odds for the Tricolors are still temptingly high at 150.
