EURO 2020 Fantasy Fixture Analysis – Matchday 6
The EURO 2020 knockout stages continued to deliver on Matchday 5 as the four quarter-finals were played out over a two-day period. The first country to secure their place in the semi-finals were Spain, courtesy of a dramatic penalty shootout victory following a 1-1 draw with Switzerland. Despite having a men sent off, it was a heroic effort from the Swiss to reach penalties after battling through extra time with just ten-men. Ultimately though, it was Luis Enrique’s side who prevailed. The world’s number one ranked side, Belgium were knocked out by Italy in a magnificent contest in Munich worthy of the final itself. It was an incredible all-round performance by the Azzurri who combined first half attacking flair with defensive steel in the second half to emerge as 2-1 winners with popular EURO fantasy asset Lorenzo Insigne (€8.6m) back among the goalscoring charts.
The following day saw Denmark continue their incredible run since losing their opening two group matches by beating Czech Republic 2-1 to seal their place in the last four. Forward Kasper Dolberg (€7.2m) found the net for the third time over the course his last two appearances, with Dortmund midfielder Thomas Delaney(€5.5m) also on the scoresheet for the Danes. Finally, England put in their most impressive performance from an attacking perspective to thrash Ukraine 4-0 in Rome. Captain Harry Kane (€11.6m) made it three goals in his last two games with a brace, whilst centre-back Harry Maguire (€5.6m) proved his aerial threat offensively, heading home from a free kick. Substitute Jordan Henderson (€6.0m) capped off a fine evening for the Three Lions by scoring his first ever England goal as Gareth Southgate’s men also secured a fifth consecutive EURO 2020 clean sheet, they are still yet to concede a goal in the tournament.
So, with the quarter-finals all wrapped up, we analyse both semi-finals from a EURO fantasy point of view, highlighting the important playing assets and potential avenues towards a substantial haul of points on Matchday 6.
MATCHDAY 6 FIXTURES
Tuesday 6th July
Italy v Spain (20:00)
Wednesday 7th July
England v Denmark (20:00)
THE ITALIAN JOB RETURNS TO WEMBLEY
If you were to ask neutral supporters which country has impressed most on the pitch since the start of EURO 2020, the answer of many would be Italy. Coming into the competition admired but not seen as one of the favourites, the Azzurri have been fantastic at the both ends of the pitch, scoring 11 goals and conceding just twice so far. Roberto Mancini’s side are hardworking, diligent and always find a way to win when they need to. Going forward, midfielder Lorenzo Insigne (€8.6m) is expected to be very highly owned coming off the back of his second eight-point haul of the tournament against Belgium, whilst plenty of EURO fantasy managers continue to keep the faith in Ciro Immobile (€10.2m). Since his two goals and one assist across the opening two matchdays, Immobile has failed to register an attacking return since, however he is the focal point of this Italian attack and could be set to profit on Matchday 6 against a defence who have conceded four goals already in the knockout stages.
Whilst popular left-back Leonardo Spinazzola has been ruled out of the tournament after rupturing his achilles tendon last Saturday, there are plenty of avenues into an Italian defence with three clean sheets to their name in the competition. Leonardo Bonucci (€5.7m) provides an attacking threat, having seen a header goal disallowed for offside vs Belgium, whilst full-back Emerson (€5.5m) could prove an excellent differential pick, with the Chelsea man likely to replace Spinazzola.
Their semi-final opponents on route to the grand prize will be Spain, the country who beat them back in the EURO 2012 final when they had the likes of Xavi and Iniesta among their ranks. While those players are no looking there, they do boast a plethora of exciting midfield options, particular from a EURO fantasy perspective. Ferran Torres (€8.2m) has two goals and an assist to his name over the course of the tournament, whilst Pablo Serabia (€6.9) boasts two goals and two assists. Serabia is a doubt for Matchday 6 due to injury, which could mean a return to the starting line-up for Dani Olmo (€7.2m), who managed to pick up two assists in his last start for Spain in the round of 16.
Defender Jordi Alba (€6.3m) and his attacking prowess always sees him as an attractive EURO fantasy prospect and the full-back recorded his second assist of the tournament against Switzerland. With Spanish head coach Luis Enrique prone to tinkering with his side and the starting line-ups set to be announced prior to the deadline, be sure to wait until the last minute to transfer in any players from Spain.
ONLY THE DANISH REMAIN AS ENGLAND TASTE THE FINAL!
Apart from the frustration of failing to beat bitter rivals Scotland, it has been a dream tournament for England. Five games, four wins without conceding a goal, the Three Lions are getting better with every match played. Naturally many of their starting players are commanding huge EURO fantasy attention and for good reason! The top four highest scoring players remaining in the competition are all English, with Raheem Sterling (€9.8m) and Luke Shaw (€6.2m) currently topping the charts with 33 points each. Midfielder Sterling has gained one attacking return in four of his five appearances so far with three goals and an assist to his name, whilst defender Shaw has not only been racking up clean sheet points, but is also coming up clutch at the other end of the pitch having picked up three assists during the knockout stage so far.
Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford (€5.8m) has managed 31 points thus far, thanks largely to his five clean sheets and nine registered saves, whilst both starting centre-backs John Stones (€5.8m) and Harry Maguire (€5.6m) also offer an attacking threat from set pieces, with the latter scoring on Matchday 5. The most owned England EURO fantasy asset however, is captain Harry Kane (€11.6m) with over half the EURO fantasy player base now boasting Gareth Southgate’s star forward within their squad. With Kane firmly back on the goalscoring trail, the 27-year-old has to be considered a ‘must own asset’ and England fans will look to him to spearhead their attacking charge against Denmark on Matchday 6.
The Danes have not made it this far in the European Championships since winning the competition back in 1992 and will be hoping to crash the party at the ground where they beat England 0-1 in the UEFA Nations League last October. If they are to keep another clean sheet here, then goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel (€5.1m) will need to be at his best and any EURO fantasy managers looking to bring in a keeper capable of a high number of save points should certainly consider the Danish stopper. At a current price of less than €5.0m, defender Joakim Maehle (€4.9m) has established himself as arguably the biggest bargain signing of the past few matchdays and the left-wing back will once again be a threat pushing forward down the flanks as he looks to add to his two goals and assist accumulated over his past three appearances.
In attack, Denmark will likely look towards the in-form Kasper Dolberg (€7.2m) as their best route towards breaching the England backline. The 23-year-old’s relatively cheap price and fairly low ownership makes him the ideal option to fill out the forward line of any EURO fantasy squad on Matchday 6, with choices among forwards now extremely limited following the elimination of players such as Romelu Lukaku and Patrick Schick in the quarter-finals.
