Euro 2016 Semi-Final XI featuring Arsenal and Spurs stars

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Centre-Forward: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)

It can be easy to put Portugal’s progress at Euro 2016 down to luck, having seen themselves into Sunday’s final with a mere one win in normal time, in their semi-final victory over Wales. However, they are now starting to flex their muscles and show their credentials as European title contenders. You just begin to get the sense that it might just be their year, and the stage may well be set for Real Madrid ‘s Cristiano Ronaldo to lead Portugal to their first major international crown.

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He is now the first player to feature in three European Championship semi-finals (2004, 2012, 2016) and made more appearances at the Euros than any other player with 20. He set a leader’s example against Wales, having an early appeal for a penalty waved away before taking the game by the scruff of the neck with an instinctive thumping header from a corner to equal Michel Platini’s record of nine European Championship goals.

Ronaldo also registered an assist after his scuffed effort on goal was turned in by Nani. The omens are indeed all there for the Real Madrid superstar to lead his country to glory on one of the biggest stages after a maiden semi-final triumph away from home, but with a very strong France standing between Portugal and the prize, only time will tell if one of the world’s greatest players will finally win a major international tournament with his country and whether or not Portugal can end their major tournament hoodoo.

Centre-Forward: Antoine Griezmann (France)

Atlético Madrid’s Antoine Griezmann has had his nation’s hopes resting on his shoulders at Euro 2016, and on the big occasion, the 25-year-old stepped up to the plate in style once again. He has shrugged off the heavy burden of French expectation to become a decisive match winner and talismanic forward, and he never gave the Germans a minute’s piece in their semi-final in the vast arena and raucous cauldron of Marseille’s Stade Vélodrome.

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Griezmann was at the heart of all French creativity and caused problems throughout, stating his intent early on with a low shot that tested Neuer after a slick one-two with Blaise Matuidi. And was Griezmann who ultimately proved the difference. He put the disappointment of his Champions League Final penalty miss behind him by sweeping home a pressure spot-kick for France’s opening goal right on half-time, before calmly stabbing home into an empty net after Manuel Neuer flapped at Pogba’s cross in the second half.

Griezmann took his tally of Euro 2016 goals to six, the same total scored by Thierry Henry at a Euros throughout his career. He has already shown his impact as a game changing influence after chipping in with critical goals against Albania and the Republic of Ireland, and each enigmatic performance only takes him closer to a reckoning as one of the world’s greatest current forwards, particularly for his ability to shine as his team-mates in attack toil around him.

A key element for the French not only for his goals but for how he links play with his team-mates. He will continue to carry the hopes of his country and provide the inspiration on the pitch, as France aim to add another major title on home soil to their trophy cabinet. Portugal this time stand in their way, and French fans will be hoping that Griezmann and his teammates will be firing on all cylinders come Sunday’s showpiece final in Saint-Denis, as Euro 2016 draws to a dramatic conclusion and we finally discover who will be crowned European Champions.

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