What if a squad of players from countries that didn’t qualify for Euro 24 entered into the competition?

Ahead of Euro 2020 (or 2021) we put together our Team 25. We made a squad of players from UEFA nations that didn’t qualify for the finals. That article still gets views today so now I’m doing the same for Euro 2024.

The rules are:

• Players have to be from a UEFA country that didn’t qualify for the finals
• Players can’t be retired from their national team
• Players who didn’t make national squads for teams that qualified don’t count
• The squad has to have a balance like a proper tournament squad

With regards to that last point it’s not necessarily the 26 best players, it’s 26 players who I think would make a good Euro 24 squad if there was a wildcard team.

If you’re reading this I’d love to hear your choices so get in touch.

Squad

Teams can choose up to 26 players for their Euro 2024 squad. In terms of position I’ve listed players where they usually play but there is some crossover between midfielders and either defence or forward positions.

Goalkeepers

Every squad has to have 3 goalkeepers, so we’re sticking with that number even if only 1 will see game time.

Lukas Hradecky (Finland)
Experienced number 1 who lead Leverkusen to a season of never-loosin domestically. Definitely will pronounce his surname wrong when I have to say it out loud.

Gavin Bazunu (Republic of Ireland)
Keeps the score down for Ireland when they concede a multitude of chances in every game.

Stole Dimitrievski (North Macedonia)
The 3rd choice goalkeeper role goes to a useful starting keeper from La Liga.

Defenders

Going for mostly for experience when it comes to the 9 defenders selected.

Stefan Savić (Montenegro)
First ever Montenegrin player to gain Champions League final experience.

Julian Ryerson (Norway)
Versatile full-back who has had a really good season with Dortmund.

Victor Lindelöf (Sweden)
Consistently starting for Sweden, tournament experience.

Sead Kolašinac (Bosnia & Herzegovina)
Physically strong player who can fill in at CB, LB, or DM.

Ben Davies (Wales)
Major tournament experience and still playing at a high level.

Séamus Coleman (Republic of Ireland)
The kind of leader every side needs regardless of whether they are starting or in the squad. Still playing at a high level but mainly included for his captaincy qualities.

Konstantinos Mavropanos (Greece)
Plenty of experience internationally, good in the air and physically strong.

Johnny Evans (Northern Ireland)
Experienced centre-back who acts as another leader in the squad. Capable of coming off the bench and doing a job.

Jake O’Brien (Republic of Ireland)
Experienced a meteoric rise to go from League of Ireland to playing (and scoring) in a French cup final. Yet to get a cap internationally and probably brought more so for experience.

Midfielders

Tried to get a balance between different roles. Some creatives, some there to break up play, some wide-men, and some utility squad members.

Martin Ødegaard (Norway)
Creative driving force for the team. Made his Norway debut at the age of just 15 and has become one of the best playmakers in the world. Strong leadership qualities that a team needs to go all the way in a major tournament.

Jens Cajuste (Sweden)
A young energetic player to play the Defensive midfielder role. Good at tackling and making breaks from deep.

Anastasios Bakasetas (Greece)
Leader in the Greece team who narrowly missed out on qualifying through a penalty shootout. Experienced playmaker who can chip in with assists.

Sander Berge (Norway)
Included him here for the same reason as last time, to make this Simpsons reference.

Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson (Iceland)
Reliable attacking midfielder who was once Charlton Athletic’s best player. Also played European football with Burnley making him a favourite.

Chiedozie Ogbene (Republic of Ireland)
Ireland’s best player at the moment. Great workrate and very pacey. Causes defences problems, can play on either side from wing-back to off a striker.

Fredrick Aursnes (Norway)
Included for his versatility, can play as a central midfielder or full-back on either side.

Giorgos Masouras (Greece)
The top scorer for Greece in the qualifiers, and a big part of Olympiacos finding their way to the Conference League finals.

Bakhtiyar Zaynutdinov (Kazakhstan)
Filling in the role of utility squad player from a more obscure UEFA country. By all accounts appears to be one of the biggest stars of Kazakhstan football.

Forwards

All about adding goals to the side, managed to resist the urge to go heavy on big men to lump it up to.

Erling Haaland (Norway)
Scores sometimes.

Alexander Isak (Sweden)
Keeps defences busy with his movement off the ball. Intelligent player who knows when and how to make a run.

Evan Ferguson (Republic of Ireland)
The young prodigy who looks to have all the potential in the world. May no get major international tournament experience anytime soon but if Ireland were to qualify he’d be a certainty to be there. Needs more minutes at club level but looks to be one of the next great strikers.

Edin Dzeko (Bosnia & Herzegovina)
Big man to stick up front, but in the squad for his veteran striker status. Had a goal incorrectly ruled out in the 2014 World Cup which could have seen them draw and progress from the group. They ultimate lost that game 1-0 to Nigeria and were eliminated by a point. There’s a chance here for him to avenge those demons..

Sammie Szmodics (Republic of Ireland)
Great attacking season in the championship, creative and chips in with goals.

Starting Line-Up

The formation is a 4-3-3/4-2-1-2-1

Lukas Hradecky starts in goal.

The back 4 sees Stefan Savić and Konstantinos Mavropanos as the centre-back pairing with as Julian Ryerson as right-back and Sead Kolašinac left-back.

A Nordic midfield see’s Jens Cajuste and Sander Berge play deeper while Martin Ødegaard captains the side as a number 10.

Erling Haaland is the central Striker with Chiedozie Ogbene off his right and Alexander Isak off his left.

Who would you choose as you squad of players from teams that didn’t qualify for Euro 2024? And which group do you think this team could qualify from?

Get in touch with your point of view in the comments and let us know the players you would pick.

Country Representation:
Republic of Ireland: 6
Norway: 5
Greece, Sweden: 3
Bosnia & Herzegovina: 2
Wales, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kazakhstan, Iceland, Finland, Northern Ireland: 1