Defenders:
The central defence will be paired by Mikel San Jose (Spain) and John Stones (England). The Athletic Bilbao centre-back, San Jose, had an impressive season with his club and played himself into contention for the national team. Known for his tough tackling and aerial strength, the presence of the experienced duo of Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique kept him on the bench the entire tournament.
On the other hand, John Stones has been impressive at the back for Everton. Like San Jose, the presence of the experienced Gary Cahill and aggressive Chris Smalling kept him on the sidelines throughout the tournament.
At right back is Spain’s Hector Bellerin. The Arsenal right-back was called up to replace injured Dani Carvajal. Despite impressive performances in the warm-up matches, the speedster failed to make the playing XI given the lack of experience at the international stage.
The left back spot is taken by Lucas Digne (France). The Paris Saint-Germain left-back spent the 2015-16 season on loan at Roma, where he made a total of 39 appearances and also had 3 goals to his name. Didier Deschamps preferred the experienced Evra over Digne and Euro 2016 must have been an excellent learning experience for the young defender.
