Five players to watch in Group B feat. Spurs and Arsenal stars

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Jack Wilshere – England

As the man whose selection arguably caused more controversy than any of Hodgson’s others, injury-prone Jack Wilshere could become a key component of England’s charge to become European Champions.

Judging by Roy Hodgson’s line-up against Portugal in England’s final warm-up game, it may be unlikely that Wilshere starts ahead of Eric Dier and Wayne Rooney, but his performance when he came off of the bench was thoroughly impressive, injecting pace and drive into England’s offensive play.

The frustrating thing with Wilshere is that; when on top of his game, he can be world class and he’s shown this many a time at Arsenal. The fact is though, that he is always an injury risk when on the football pitch – but in a tournament where there is a short turnaround between matches, there is nothing to suggest why he isn’t a risk worth taking.

One of Wilshere’s best games in an England shirt came in qualifying against Slovenia, turning the game around with two goals of real quality and preserving England’s 100% record. If he can come to the Euros an replicate this form he could make a really positive impact.

Wilshere will play his part across the few weeks in France, even more so the further England progress, and if he can shake off any injury doubts then he could certainly help England become a force to be reckoned with.

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Marek Hamsik – Slovakia

One of the more recognisable names on their team-sheet, Napoli’s star man Marek Hamsik is arguably the main reason as to why Slovakia managed to reach the Euros.

Slovakia were impressive in their qualifying efforts, finishing above Ukraine to secure second place and beating Spain whilst doing so, with attacking midfielder Hamsik ended the campaign as top goal-scorer for his country with five goals.

This, combined with a recent dismantling of Germany in a warm-up friendly in Augsburg last week, shows that Slovakia may be the surprise package of the tournament if they can hit these heights again.

The calibre of Hamsik however, leaves him shouldering a lot of responsibility for the upcoming Euros, and you can’t help but feel that if he has a bad game then Slovakia themselves will replicate this. With only three group games to make a mark in, this could become critical for the national side.

Slovakia’s problem is that they like playing the role of underdog; as shown in their victories against European Champions Spain and World Champions Germany, but they struggle when forced to play on the front-foot. A recent 0-0 draw at home to Northern Ireland didn’t suggest that England have too much to worry about.

This struggle to break teams down could be key when faced with Wales and Russia, as all three are in with a genuine chance of grabbing the 2^nd and 3^rd spots in the group to progress to the next stage.

Yet, if Hamsik turns up on form and plays with the freedom that Slovakia’s system allows him, Slovakia could go further than expected in the tournament.

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Harry Kane – England

Wayne Rooney aside, it has been a very long time since England have had such a strong figure leading the line going into a major tournament.

Tottenham’s Harry Kane; winner of the Premier League’s Golden Boot award after scoring 25 goals across the season, has given all England fans that little bit of hope and excitement up-front that has been missing for a while, supplying a cutting edge that could break down the best of teams in the tournament.

It almost seems inevitable that if England are to progress far in the Euros, Kane will be scoring goals, and with games against Wales, Slovakia and Russia to come, Kane should be licking his lips at the prospect of playing against some of the weaker defences in the competition.

With Tottenham team-mate Dele Alli set to start in midfield and with Roy Hodgson seemingly advocating a new attacking intent, Kane should not be short on chances, and he’ll be hoping to continue his prolific form this season and aim for the tournament’s Golden Boot to add to the one he already has.

Featured Image: All rights reserved by Charlie Cunningham