Euro 2024: Which Three Teams have Surprised the Most in Group Stages?

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After a scintillating group stages, the juggernaut of the Euro 2024 is moving towards its business stages as the knockouts start on Saturday (June 29).

From the initial 24 teams, eight nations have bitten the dust and are eliminated, while the final 16 have propelled towards the Round of 16.

The exciting group stage fixtures saw known stars dazzle while a few of the starlets rose to the occasion as well. Some of the giants of European football have had little sweat in booking a berth for the knockouts, and contrastingly a few of the minnows have triumphed the odds to stamp their mark.

As the teams get ready for the knockouts, here are the Three teams which have surprised in the Group Stages, for Good and Bad reasons.

England

It has been a strange campaign for England so far. Although they finished on top of their group, it feels like Gareth Southgate's men have already crashed out. With just 2 goals in 270 minutes of play, the star-studded England team has hugely disappointed their supporters.

Although they have looked defensively solid, the creative play from the Three Lions is poor in this Euros. The top names such as Bukayo Saka, Harry Kane have been largely underwhelming and that is reflected in their performances.

Despite having the 3rd highest percentage of possession (58.6 %) in the group stages, England has an Expected Goals (xG) tally of just 2.2, which is ranked 22nd, lower than the teams like Albania (2.4), Ukraine (3.1) and Poland (4.2) - who are already eliminated from the Euros.

Hence the Three Lions will have to fix their issues otherwise they won't go too far in this competition.

Georgia

Georgia is the fairytale of the Euro 2024. The lowest-ranked team among the participants didn't just stun Portugal in their group, but also qualified for the knockouts in their first-ever major tournament. Despite the popular notions, Georgia has been a treat to watch.

Their attacking play with the likes of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Georges Mikautadze have been superb, while goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili has impressed as well. They have played free-flowing and attractive football, and the way they dominated Portugal in the last match under immense pressure speak volumes of that unit.

Spain

Although Spain was tipped to perform very well in the Euros, the way La Roja has flown in the group stages is something to watch and admire. The Spaniards are the only team with a 100 per cent win record in the group stages and are also the only team yet to concede a goal in the Euros.

The defensive and offensive balance in the team with their excellent midfield make them one of the frontrunners for the Euros this year. Also, the blend of young and experienced in the group is sublime.

Although Spain was traditionally known for their possessions football, Euro 2024 has shown a different side of the team, which knows how to hit teams with lightning build-up play and aggressive attack.