Belgian national soccer players, Divock Origi, left and Marouane Fellaini. Photo / AP
Belgian national soccer players, Divock Origi, left and Marouane Fellaini. Photo / AP
The best footballing talent Europe has to offer will descend on France for Euro 2016. The Daily Mail previews Group E:
BELGIUM
MANAGER Marc Wilmots, 47, Belgian SQUAD Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea), Jean-Francois Gillet (Mechelen), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool). Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham), Jason Denayer (Galatasaray), Bjorn Engels (Club Bruges), Nicolas Lombaerts (Zenit), Jordan Lukaku (Oostende), Thomas Meunier (Club Bruges), Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham). Midfielders: Moussa Dembele (Tottenham), Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United), Radja Nainggolan (Roma), Axel Witsel (Zenit St Petersburg). Forwards: Michy Batshuayi (Marseille), Christian Benteke (Liverpool), Yannick Carrasco (Atletico Madrid), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Eden Hazard (Chelsea), Romelu Lukaku (Everton), Dries Mertens (Napoli), Divock Origi (Liverpool).
FIXTURES v Italy, Stade de Lyon, Lyon v Republic of Ireland, Stade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux v Sweden, 8pm, Stade de Nice, Nice
WHAT TO EXPECT? Belgium tend to play a 4-2-3-1 with Kevin De Bruyne as the creative force in the hole. Expect Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld to play as full-backs, despite their form for Tottenham.
CHANCES OF GLORY? The Red Devils were tipped for great things at the 2014 World Cup but struggled to get going. Involvement in the competitions latter stages would be an achievement.
THREE STARS TO WATCH Michy Batshuayi - The Marseille striker has been targeted by the likes of Tottenham and West Ham and could prove his value to them on the international stage. Kevin De Bruyne - De Bruyne showed last season that he is an incredibly talented attacking player. Expect him to continue his form into Euro 2016. Divock Origi - A return to form for Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp suggests that Origi could have a telling impact this summer, as he did in Brazil.
KIT RATING 6/10 - This black chested shirt with red covering the rest of the body works but is not particularly interesting. The away kit, with a Belgian flag across the middle, is superb.
NATIONAL ANTHEM RATING 7/10 - The anthem sounds a bit like a 1950s Elvis song, which makes it quite interesting.
PUB AMMO Belgium follow the classic example of the Nevilles and the De Boers by including two brothers in their squad - Jordan and Romelu Lukaku.
ITALY
MANAGER Antonio Conte, 46, Italian SQUAD Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Federico Marchetti (Lazio), Salvatore Sirigu (Paris Saint-Germain) Defenders: Andrea Barzagli (Juventus), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Angelo Ogbonna (West Ham), Matteo Darmian (Manchester United), Mattia De Sciglio (Milan) Midfielders: Daniele De Rossi (Roma), Alessandro Florenzi (Roma), Emanuele Giaccherini (Bologna), Thiago Motta (Paris Saint-Germain), Marco Parolo (Lazio), Stefano Sturaro (Juventus), Antonio Candreva (Lazio) Forwards: Eder (Inter), Ciro Immobile (Torino), Lorenzo Insigne (Napoli), Graziano Pelle (Southampton), Simone Zaza (Juventus), Federico Bernardeschi (Fiorentina), Stephan El Shaarawy (Roma).
FIXTURES v Belgium, Stade de Lyon, Lyon v Sweden, Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse v Republic of Ireland, Stade Pierre Mauroy, Lille
WHAT TO EXPECT? Conte likes to play with a 3-5-2 formation, with a solid defence based around the strength in central defence, but can use a 4-2-4, a 4-3-3 or a 3-4-2-1 and has in the past.
CHANCES OF GLORY? This is not a classic Italian team by any stretch of the imagination, but they tend to do well no matter the circumstances at most competitions. Graziano Pelle as the primary striker is a bit of a weak point.
THREE STARS TO WATCH Simone Zaza - Zaza has been in good form for Juventus this season and could prove a bit of a wildcard in the squad. Lorenzo Insigne - The small but ultra-talented Insigne has been excellent domestically for Napoli, helping the side to second, and can change a game in an instant. Stephan El Shaarawy - El Shaarawy's career threatened to be fading away while at AC Milan, but a move to Roma has rejuvenated him, and he could be a useful player either out-wide or behind Pelle.
KIT RATING - 7/10 A simple dark blue effort from Puma that fundamentally works and looks like an Italy shirt.
NATIONAL ANTHEM RATING 10/10 - Brash and loud from the first note, this is one of the sounds of any international tournament.
PUB AMMO Gianluigi Buffon made his debut for Italy against Russia on October 29 1997, two days before England striker Marcus Rashford was born.
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
MANAGER Martin O'Neill, 64, Northern Irish SQUAD Goalkeepers: Shay Given (Stoke), Darren Randolph (West Ham), Keiren Westwood (Sheffield Wednesday). Defenders: Seamus Coleman (Everton), Cyrus Christie (Derby), Ciaran Clark (Aston Villa), Richard Keogh (Derby), John O'Shea (Sunderland), Shane Duffy (Blackburn), Stephen Ward (Burnley). Midfielders: Aiden McGeady (Sheffield Wednesday), James McClean (West Brom), Glenn Whelan (Stoke), James McCarthy (Everton), Jeff Hendrick (Derby), David Meyler (Hull), Stephen Quinn (Reading), Wes Hoolahan (Norwich), Robbie Brady (Norwich), Jonathan Walters (Stoke). Forwards: Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy), Shane Long (Southampton), Daryl Murphy (Ipswich).
FIXTURES v Sweden, Stade de France, Paris v Belgium, Stade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux v Republic of Ireland, Stade Pierre Mauroy, Lille
WHAT TO EXPECT? Limitations in the squad and his inherent pragmatism mean that Martin O'Neill is going to have a defensive outlook towards Euro 2016. Expect a 4-5-1 with a single striker ploughing a lone furrow.
CHANCES OF GLORY? In any other group Ireland might have hoped for a relatively smooth progression to the knockout stages. Among Italy, Belgium and Sweden, a third place finish above the cut-off might be all they can hope for.
THREE STARS TO WATCH Seamus Coleman - Coleman did not have the best of seasons for Everton but can provide an attacking threat from full-back. Wes Hoolahan - When Hoolahan plays and plays well, so do Ireland. A luxury player that is almost required for any success. Shane Long - Long had an exceptional season for Southampton, and with Robbie Keane's injury this could be his time to shine.
KIT RATING 4/10 Overly complicated by Umbro, with several different things going on with the shirt. The orange on the collar is a nice touch.
NATIONAL ANTHEM RATING 6/10 - Works perfectly well, but will not sit among Euro 2016's classic national anthems.
PUB AMMO Aiden McGeady likes to read. His favourite poet is WB Yeats but he has never quite finished the gigantic Ulysses.
SWEDEN
MANAGER Erik Hamren, 58, Swedish
SQUAD Goalkeepers: Andreas Isaksson (Kasimpasa), Robin Olsen (Copenhagen), Patrik Carlgren (AIK). Defenders: Ludwig Augustinsson (Copenhagen), Erik Johansson (Copenhagen), Pontus Jansson (Torino), Victor Lindelof (Benfica) Andreas Granqvist (Krasnodar), Mikael Lustig (Celtic), Martin Olsson (Norwich). Midfielders: Jimmy Durmaz (Olympiakos), Albin Ekdal (Hamburg), Oscar Hiljemark (Palermo), Sebastian Larsson (Sunderland), Pontus Wernbloom (CSKA Moscow), Erkan Zengin (Trabzonspor), Oscar Lewicki (Malmo), Emil Forsberg (Leipzig), Kim Kallstrom (Grasshoppers). Forwards: Marcus Berg (Panathinaikos), John Guidetti (Celta Vigo), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Paris), Emir Kujovic (Norrkoping).
FIXTURES v Republic of Ireland, Stade de France, Paris v Italy, Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse v Belgium, Stade de Nice, Nice
WHAT TO EXPECT? Sweden tend to play a 4-4-2, but the entire system is designed to get the best out of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, which is understandable given his relative quality.
CHANCES OF GLORY? The striker would probably be loath to admit this, but Sweden would do exceptionally well to progress ahead of Belgium and Italy. They may just be the weakest side in the group.
THREE STARS TO WATCH Zlatan Ibrahimovic - The obvious choice. Ibrahimovic is one of the world's best players and with a bit of luck, could inspire Sweden to some success. Emil Forsberg - The winger won promotion with Red Bull Leipzig and has been catching the eye of a handful of Premier League clubs ahead of the summer. Oscar Lewicki - Lewicki only started infrequently during qualification but he tended to turn games whenever introduced from the bench.
KIT RATING 9/10 The bright yellow works very well with the light blue collar and unorthodox stripes down the sides.
NATIONAL ANTHEM RATING 5/10 An ode to Sweden's natural beauty, it is a decent listen while not sticking in the mind.
PUB AMMO Zlatan Ibrahimovic had a bicycle stolen from him as a child, so took to stealing other bikes dotted around his hometown of Malmo. Once when playing for the club, he took the assistant manager's cycle by mistake.
