What better way to predict an international football tournament than hold a fantasy football auction?
Just over a month ago, 11 Englishmen, three Welshmen, two Spaniards and a Somali walked into a pub with a £100m budget and a first eleven on their shopping lists.
English players, as they do on these occasions, attract exorbitant value. The heady mix of alcohol, football and hope proves too much.
Germans, Spaniards, Italians and French were the order of the day.
Icelandic and Welsh players (with the exception of one) were barely given a thought.
So how did that all pan out?
Bargain basement XI
Points: 287
Total cost: £22m
Poland, Wales and Portugal were the dark horses, making up more than half of the side. How on earth did anyone sign a first-choice Italian defender for point five?
At the time, £5m on Ramsey was seen as a Gunner’s folly.
Goalkeeper
Lloris, 28, £2m, Two Goals One Cup
Defenders
Glik, 34, £5m, Up Yours Delors
Geurreiro, 32, £0.5m, FYR Leeds
Barzagli, 29, £0.5m, Dulwich Red Sox
Schar, 26, £2m, Barco FC
Ashley Williams, 25, £5m, Sporting Lesbian
Midfielders
Blaszczykowski, 25, £0.5m, DR Young Boys
Nainggolan, 22, £0.5m, Wandsworth Window Lickers
Ramsey, 28, £5m, Le Horn d’Afrique
Renato Sanches, 19, £0.5m, Dulwich Red Sox
Strikers
Sigthorsson, 19, £0.5m, Sporting Lesbian
Pampered headphones XI
Points: 101
Total cost: £219m
Hardly a surprise to find four Englishmen here. A combined £59m for Kane and Rooney!
It was a disappointing four weeks for most-expensive signing Thomas Muller. Ozil’s form of the second half of the domestic season followed him into the tournament. Gotze’s World Cup winning performance didn’t.
Goalkeeper
Hart, 12, £9m, Napoleon Dynarod
Defenders
Stones, 0, £9m, Le Horn d’Afrique
Darmian, 7, £11m, FYR Leeds
Ramos, 13, £16m, FYR Leeds
Midfielders
Ozil, 14, £25m, Blame Canada
Gotze, 7, £16m, Asturias FC
Mertens, 6, £12m, Sporting Lesbian
David Silva, 10, £22m, Dulwich Red Sox
Strikers
Rooney, 12, £29m, DR Young Boys
Kane, 7, £30m, Cowley Caliphate
Muller, 13, £40m, Sporting Lesbian
