Manchester United at Euro 2012: The Red Devils fail to excel

02-Jul-2012 2:35:00 PM

It was only Nani who made it to the semi-finals of the Euro 2012 from among the Red Devils contingent while the others failed to impress...

DEFENDERS

Patrice Evra | FRANCE

Goal.com Average Rating: (2.50)

Appearances:	1
Tackles:	1
Clearances:	3
Blocks:	0

France's former captain and first-choice left back has finally seen his poor club form, carried over to his national team, begin to cost him. He was slightly shaky at the back and it was his foul from which Gerrard's free-kick saw Lescott scoring. Ever since then, he was dropped for the much more lively Clichy. And after France were eliminated in the quarter-finals, Evra's short Euro adventure ended before it could properly begin.

Phil Jones | ENGLAND

Goal.com Average Rating: NA

Appearances:	NA
Tackles:	NA
Clearances:	NA
Blocks:	NA

Everyone knew that the 20 year old was going in as an understudy to the far more experienced defenders, and we don't see Hodgson tinkering with his back line bar through an injury. While in friendlies he was deployed as a defensive midfielder, Hodgson did not take a chance and chose Henderson to replace Parker in the quarterfinal against Italy, even though some might have said that Phil Jones would have done a far better job at it. Nonetheless England went out, and Jones played no part at all.

MIDFIELDERS

Ashley Young | ENGLAND

Goal.com Average Rating: (2.63)

Appearances:	4
Average Passes Per Game:	25.5
Passing Accuracy:	74.5%
Accurate Crosses:	1/13

One of the players earmarked as a sure starter for England, Roy Hodgson played safe as far as his left wing was concerned. With the slippery and fast Ashley Young, England's left looked much more threatening on paper. Used as a (relatively) advanced playmaker to slip the ball to Welbeck in the first game against France, he was marked out of the game by Alou Diarra. He never really hit top form and in the quarterfinal encounter against Italy, he failed to make a mark as he was almost invisible during the match. He even missed a crucial penalty in the shootout.

Nani | PORTUGAL

Goal.com Average Rating: (3.17)

Appearances:	5
Assists:	2
Total passes:	142
Passing Accuracy:	74.6%

Nani has been outstanding for Portugal. In tandem with Cristiano Ronaldo they demolished the Netherlands in the last match of the group stages to guarantee the progress of Portugal past the group stages. A constant threat on the right, he has also drifted in centrally and his movement has troubled the defenders throughout. Couple that with pin point delivery and Nani has also raked in 2 assists in the tournament. In the quarterfinal against Czech Republic, Nani was a constant threat on the right. Against Spain, he failed to shine and was constantly doubled by the Spanish defenders. Although he successfully converted his own penalty in the shootout, Portugal were knocked out.

FORWARDS

Danny Welbeck | ENGLAND

Goal.com Average Rating: (2.38)

Appearances:	4
Goals:	1
Total shots on target:	2
Total shots off target:	2

Don't be fooled by the lack of shots or shots on target. Playing mostly off the striker or as a second striker, his movement, pace, energy and passing in the box is what England want him to provide. However, against the Italians in the quarterfinal he was bogged down for most of the time, and his link up with Wayne Rooney could not bear fruit. Andy Carroll replaced him later on, and so he did not partake in the penalty shootout.

Wayne Rooney | ENGLAND

Goal.com Average Rating: (2.25)

Appearances:	2
Goals:	1
Total shots on target:	4
Total shots off target:	2

Wayne Rooney sure had the worst possible start to the tournament even before it had begun, getting himself a two match ban for a red card in the final qualifying game against Montenegro. But he quite definitely made up for it with his much-awaited return against Ukraine, scoring the game's only goal to power England to the top of the Group. However against Italy, although Rooney put in a tireless shift, playing just behind Welbeck and then Carroll, he could not turn the tides for England, who were mainly looking to defend against the rampaging Italians.

How do you stay up to date with football when on the move? With http://m.goal.com – your best source for mobile coverage of the beautiful game.

Inside Goal.Com

Why Ancelotti is the right man to deliver La Decima
In the aftermath of the announcement of Mourinho's imminent departure from Real Madrid, Brendon Netto discusses why Ancelotti could be an able replacement.
Milan would be foolish to let go of Allegri
The Rossoneri coach's future has been mired in doubt despite the club finishing within the Champions League spots after a dismal start to the season...
Arsenal should build on CL qualification
Arsenal were ecstatic last night after securing fourth place once again. Brendon Netto discusses why it's time Arsenal build on this platform and finally move forward..
Transfer Talk: Read all the gossips
The Goal.com Rumour Mill is your 24/7 source for all the latest rumblings in the global transfer market.
Who is the greatest CL striker ever?
Enter our competition now and you will be in with a chance of winning one of four replica football shirts. Simply pick your favourite and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Goal.com

Manchester United at Euro 2012: The Red Devils fail to excel

Goal.com English - India

Goal.Com Editions

More