Euro 2012: 1st Team

It took a long time, but we're back...Here is my list of the players that make up the all tournament team

GK: Iker Casillas - Spain
- He made everything look easy. He reads the game so well that he positions himself in the right place so that his job appears easy.

D: Federico Balzaretti - Italy
- I had no clue who this guy was entering the tournament, but he made a fantastic impression on me.  Great overlapping runs, gets back on defense, etc.

D: Jordi Alba - Spain
- Welcome to the show...It's easy to see why Barcelona just paid a ton of money to acquire him. Incredible tournament run culminating in fantastic performances in the semi-final and final.

D: Mats Hummels - Germany
- I thought Philip Lahm would be the German defender to make this list when the tournament began, but it was Hummels that kept a shaky German defense from crumbling sooner than the semi-final.

D: John Terry - England
- I criticized his selection to the England team, but he vindicated Roy Hodgson's selection. A stellar tournament for Terry. His best performance in an England jersey

M: Xavi - Spain
- Pure class...still

M: Andres Iniesta - Spain
- Does anything really need to be said?

M: Andrea Pirlo - Italy
- He was arguably the best player in the tournament. He still has it at age 33. Phenomenal distribution throughout

M: Mesut Ozil - Germany
- Great tournament until the semi-final. I will never understand why Joachim Low put Ozil out wide. They were on a two year winning streak, why change a winning formula.

F: Cristiano Ronaldo - Portugal
- He finally put his stamp on a major international tournament. Unfortunately, he's going to be remembered for not taking a penalty kick in the shootout against Spain.

F: Mario Balotelli - Italy
- Spectacular glimpses of what a special player he is...What a semi-final game against Germany...


Players I wanted to see more of:
1) Wesley Sneijder - Netherlands
- The only bright spot on a horrid showing from the Dutch

2) Alan Dzagoev - Russia
- Clearly a star in the making. Hopefully, he comes west soon

3) Yevhen Konoplyanka - Ukraine
- Incredible. A ton of potential

4) Robert Lewandowski - Poland
- He scored the first goal of the tournament and nearly scored several more