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All the talk pre-tournament at EURO 2024 is about the chances of England and France – seemingly putting Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ibrahima Konate on a collision course in the battle for international duty.

But the draw is such that the Three Lions and Les Bleus – should they win their respective groups as expected – will meet in the semi-finals… there’s simply no way they can meet in the final.

So all eyes will be on the top half of the draw… where a number of Reds are eyeing glory as underdogs and dark horses.

Luck of the Draw

The EURO 2024 betting odds make Portugal favourites to win Group F and the Netherlands likely to finish behind France as runners-up in Group D.

Those placing a football bet or two may therefore be interested in an each-way flutter on Diogo Jota’s Portugal, who at 15/2 look to be intriguing value indeed. The Netherlands, who will feature Virgil van Dijk and Cody Gakpo in their ranks, are considered an 16/1 chance.

A case can be made for either. Jota could form part of a mouth-watering attack alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Rafael Leao, with Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, and Joao Palhinha offering support from midfield. It’s a front six that’s a match for any in the tournament.

Defensive foundations will be supplied by the likes of Ruben Dias and Joao Cancelo, so head coach Roberto Martinez – who once guided Belgium to the World Cup semi-finals – has class in abundance at his disposal.

Of all the Liverpool players in action at EURO 2024, maybe it’s not TAA or Konate who have the best chance of getting their hands on the trophy – Jota and his Portuguese teammates could take some stopping.

Dutch Date with Destiny

The Netherlands find themselves in a trickier group alongside France, Austria and Poland, which – all things considered – they might just find themselves finishing second in.

Ronald Koeman hasn’t always impressed the Dutch media with his style of play, but a deep run at the 2022 World Cup has certainly bought him more time in the hot seat.

Van Dijk will anchor a defensive line that could feature Nathan Ake, normally a rival at club level with Manchester City, and the dashing right wing back Denzel Dumfries.

Gini Wijnaldum, a player the Anfield faithful knows so well of course, will be the jewel in midfield alongside the likes of Frenkie de Jong, while in attack Gakpo could play as a central striker – as many Reds fans would like him to at Liverpool – alongside Donyell Malen or Memphis Depay.

It’s a solid side and one that could pitch Van Dijk and Gakpo on a direct line of engagement with Jota in the knockout phase of the competition.

All told, Liverpool players feature in four of the seven most-backed teams to win EURO 2024, while there’s also a Reds presence for Scotland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic – as unlikely as any of those nations going all the way is, lest we forget Greece’s epic run to the trophy in 2004.

It seems incredibly likely that a Liverpool player will be involved in the winning EURO 2024 squad… but who, exactly, will it be?

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