Euro 2020 Player of the Tournament odds and prediction: who will land the award?

The European Championship player of the tournament award was officially introduced at Euro 96 and has been won by some of the continent's most legendary footballers – and former Leicester midfielder Theo Zagorakis.

Few could argue with Zagorakis's selection after he captained Greece to their underdog triumph at Euro 2004, while Germany's Matthias Sammer (1996), France's Zinedine Zidane (2000) and Spain greats Xavi (2008) and Andres Iniesta (2012) also played for the winning nation.

Uefa's unofficial players of the tournament at the 1984, 1988 and 1992 finals, Michel Platini, Marco van Basten and Peter Schmeichel, all represented the champions as well.

However, that trend was snapped at Euro 2016 as Golden Boot winner Antoine Griezmann was named player of the tournament by Uefa's technical observers despite hosts France's extra-time defeat to Portugal in the final.

Kylian Mbappe
France 9-1

Four goals at the 2018 World Cup, including one in the final, sealed the Best Young Player award for Mbappe at the age of 19 and the Paris St-Germain star lit up this season's Champions League knockout stages.

A hat-trick against Barcelona at Camp Nou was followed by a brace in a 3-2 away win over holders Bayern Munich and there is no doubting his relish for the big occasion.

France coach Didier Deschamps must find a way to accommodate Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann in the starting 11 but the PSG ace poses a huge threat whether in a central role or cutting in from the left flank.

Kevin De Bruyne
Belgium 9-1

De Bruyne's excellence for Manchester City is taken for granted by Premier League watchers and he would love to deliver a first major tournament title for highly-rated Belgium.

Creative or attacking midfielders have a good record in this heat, albeit from a tiny sample size, and De Bruyne could rack up the assists teeing up the in-form Romelu Lukaku.

He has been relatively lightly raced during the Citizens' busy 2020-21 campaign so there should be plenty left in the tank for this summer's national service.

Harry Kane
England 14-1

The England captain has plenty in his favour as the Three Lions, with the benefit of home advantage, are expected to go deep into the tournament.

Kane is favourite for the Golden Boot, which he won at the 2018 World Cup, and he has showcased his all-round game for Tottenham this season, claiming 13 assists as well as 21 goals in his first 31 Premier League appearances.

His international scoring rate is just as impressive with 34 goals in 53 caps, although his only goal in the World Cup knockout stages was a penalty against Colombia.

Antoine Griezmann
France 20-1

Griezmann must be running out of space on his mantelpiece after winning the Golden Boot and Player of the Tournament at Euro 2016 and picking up Fifa's Bronze Ball, behind Luka Modric and Eden Hazard, as France lifted the 2018 World Cup.

The Barcelona forward has had a difficult first season under Ronald Koeman but he retains the support of Les Bleus coach Deschamps, who declared in March that "it would be indecent to question his presence in the national team".

While that may well be the case, Deschamps' decision to name Karim Benzema in his squad could well hurt Griezmann's claims.

Bruno Fernandes
Portugal 20-1

Fernandes has been sensational since arriving at Manchester United and his rise is reflected by the fact that he is the same price for Player of the Tournament as his legendary Portugal teammate Cristiano Ronaldo.

Bruno's high-class penalties and free kicks have been a feature of his time at Old Trafford but Ronaldo's presence may limit his opportunities at Euro 2020 and his underwhelming performances in high-profile Premier League games are another cause for concern.

Cristiano Ronaldo
Portugal 20-1

Portugal shocked France to win the final of Euro 2016 despite seeing star man Ronaldo forced off with an injury in the 25th minute having scored three goals at the tournament.

At the age of 36, and with a century of goals at international level, he has had another prolific Serie A season for Juventus although he failed to score in either leg of their Champions League defeat to Porto.

Ronaldo started the 2018 World Cup with a memorable hat-trick against Spain but, three years on, he could be eclipsed by Europe's younger stars.

Paul Pogba
France 25-1

Pogba has unfinished business at the Euros, having been heavily criticised for his part in France's 2016 final defeat to Portugal when L'Equipe gave him a 4/10 rating for his performance.

He was, of course, an influential figure in Les Bleus' 2018 World Cup win, scoring a sweetly-struck goal in the final against Croatia, and he looked in fine form for Manchester United before an untimely injury in February. At the age of 28 and playing for the world champions he should be set for another impressive tournament.

Romelu Lukaku
Belgium 20-1

Lukaku has had to work hard to win over the sceptics during his career but his world-class status is no longer in doubt after his goals fired Inter to the Serie A title.

The striker will arrive at the finals brimming with confidence and he knows he can expect great service from his Belgium teammates, having scored 42 times in his last 38 international appearances including four goals at the 2018 World Cup.

Joshua Kimmich
Germany 25-1

Kimmich was named Champions League defender of the season in 2019-20 and was the right-back in Uefa's Euro 2016 team of the tournament but the versatile Bayern Munich man is also a brilliant holding midfielder.

That unglamorous role means he may struggle to land individual honours, especially as Germany have been out of sorts recently, losing 6-0 to Spain in the Nations League before a shock World Cup qualifying defeat to North Macedonia.

Raheem Sterling
England 40-1

Sterling looks one of the most likely English winners of the individual award behind skipper Kane but his odds look a little stale given his patchy form for Manchester City.

The forward has slipped down the pecking order in 2021 with Phil Foden and Riyad Mahrez preferred to him in crucial Champions League matches and he is no longer a guaranteed starter for England.

Gareth Southgate has a glut of talented young attackers at his disposal and Sterling has scored only 15 goals in 50 appearances for club and country this season, compared with 35 in 57 and 31 in 58 in his last two campaigns.

Player of the tournament prediction

The Uefa panel hailed Antoine Griezmann's "quality finishing" as a major factor in his selection as Euro 2016's player of the tournament and another lethal forward looks a tempting bet this summer.

Romelu Lukaku has been superb in Inter's Scudetto-winning campaign and averages better than a goal per game for Belgium over the past four years.

He could make a flying start to the finals in group games against Russia, Finland and Denmark and is a big price at 25-1 to land the individual award.

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