The Euro 2024 group stage was a tense affair. Free-flowing football was in short-supply, with tense tactical battles far more frequent than end-to-end thrillers, but there was still no shortage of drama - and own goals!
After 36 gruelling matches and seemingly never-ending permutations, eight teams have been sent packing, including 2018 World Cup finalists Croatia, while the Netherlands, Georgia, Slovakia and Slovenia have qualified for the knockout stage as the four best third-placed teams. There are plenty of fans who miss the greater jeopardy of the old 16-team format, but there was still a real competitive edge to every game, and the tournament has been lit up by a number of high-quality individual performances.
That's in spite of the fact that many of the pre-tournament favourites have struggled to find their rhythm, including England and France. Spain and Germany are the only big-guns purring at the moment, while the likes of Austria and Georgia have emerged as dark horses.
The question is, which players have stood out the most so far? GOAL has compiled the best of them for our Team of the Group Stage, which includes a goalkeeper who has picked up from where he left off at Euro 2020...