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27th Jun 2016

Euro 2016’s Overrated XI – as chosen by the internet’s football experts

Simon Lloyd

Ignore the pundits on the telly, the internet is bursting with football experts.

Fortunately for us, we need look no further than Twitter to see if a player is actually any good or not.

And with Euro 16 in full swing, we’ve already been able to establish that some of the continent’s most exciting names are actually distinctly average or just plain shit.

With millions posting their opinions on the players on show to their Twitter accounts, we’ve compiled a special XI of the tournament’s most ‘overrated’ players.

Without reading any more than the tweets below, you can rest safe in the knowledge that this lot wouldn’t make it anywhere near your five-a-side team.

David De Gea

Between the sticks for our overrated XI is the man that’s won Manchester United’s player of the year award for the last three years on the trot. Having finally replaced Iker Casillas, he set a record in keeping clean sheets in his first five appearances for his country. But having been beaten at his near post by a deflected Ivan Perisic shot, he’s now shit.

https://twitter.com/BnfHam/status/745414448895131648

https://twitter.com/_Willianaire/status/745359963518803973

Sergio Ramos

There’s more than just one Spaniard in our overrated XI, the first of which is Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos who, having won three La Liga titles, two Champions Leagues, two European championships and a World Cup, clearly doesn’t have the foggiest idea about defending.

https://twitter.com/ahmedshoman15/status/745360745555169281?lang=en-gb

https://twitter.com/mhmoud_95/status/745354029312552961?lang=en-gb

David Alaba

Next up in our back line (and yes, we know he can also play in midfield) is Bayern Munich’s David Alaba. A regular with the German champions, Alaba wasn’t enough to inspire his Austrian team to a place in the last 16. Therefore he’s also terrible.

https://twitter.com/EliaBro/status/744250942149791745?lang=en-gb

Gerard Pique

Yet another Spaniard in our defence, Barcelona’s Gerard Pique is also shit, apparently. 29 winners medals since beginning his club career with Manchester United, it’s a miracle the lad gets any kind of first team football.

Granit Xhaka

Perhaps not the most household name in our lineup but seeing as Arsenal have stumped up a sizeable fee for him a few weeks back, we thought it’s be worth having a look at him. And sure enough, one terrible penalty was enough to show that the Swiss midfielder is a complete waste of money and a complete failure as a footballer despite multiple man-of-the-match showings at Euro 2016.

Gareth Bale

Three Euro 2016 goals to his name already but the most expensive player in the world is a huge disappointment. Imagine how much better Wales would do without him?

https://twitter.com/Matthandley123/status/746763456796319744?lang=en-gb

Paul Pogba

The man being tipped to replace Bale as the planet’s most expensive player has also been called the ‘o’ word throughout the tournament, with even Gary Lineker questioning whether he was worthy of all the hype.

https://twitter.com/DUPPlED/status/747364645418188800

https://twitter.com/introvat_/status/747063731188727812

Ivan Rakitic

Croatia are out, and that’s almost certainly down to the let down that is Ivan Rakitic. After all, he’s a ‘hit and hope merchant’.

https://twitter.com/garyong93/status/746806179632844801?lang=en-gb

https://twitter.com/Jrmadrid_/status/741871458687815680?lang=en-gb

Robert Lewandowski

The record-breaking Bayern Munich goal machine has yet to register for Poland this summer, and is probably still coming to terms with almost being kicked into orbit during the game against Switzerland at the weekend. But forget that he’s been one of the finest strikers in world football over the last couple of years – zero goals at the Euros proves that he’s not that good.

https://twitter.com/Barcaaaaa1899/status/746719982281695232

https://twitter.com/dan_pigott/status/746720414458580992

Cristiano Ronaldo

Most deserving of the ‘overrated’ tag is Cristiano Ronaldo. I mean come on, what has this guy done in his career to deserve such a reputation?

https://twitter.com/Jak_B3ck3tt/status/745652790836531200

https://twitter.com/Bkaufmann14/status/744270452252508160

You said it, Brett.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Not a surprise here. Zlatan didn’t become the first player in tournament history to score in his fourth consecutive Euros and failed to shine in a Swedish side that were on the plane home after the group stages.

With his contract expiring with Paris Saint-Germain in the coming days, it’s hard to see him finding a club. At 34-years of age, Zlatan is destined for the nursing home.

https://twitter.com/MattCPFC/status/745721560468692992?lang=en-gb

So there you have it, the XI most overrated players at Euro 16 – according to the always-reliable opinions of people on Twitter.