EURO 2020 inside track: Hungary

Group A fixtures

15/06: Hungary vs Portugal (Budapest)
19/06: Hungary vs France (Budapest)
23/06: Germany vs Hungary (Munich)

Team profile

Coach: Marco Rossi
Captain: Ádám Szalai
Nickname: Magyarok (Magyars)
How they qualified: play-offs (3-1 vs Bulgaria, 2-1 vs Iceland)
EURO best: third place (1964)

Where they could play their knockout games

Round of 16: Bucharest, London, Seville or Budapest
Quarter-final: Saint Petersburg, Munich, Rome or Baku
Semi-final: London
Final: London

Final 26-man squad

Goalkeepers: Ádám Bogdán (Ferencváros), Dénes Dibusz (Ferencváros), Péter Gulácsi (Leipzig)

Defenders: Bendegúz Bolla (Fehérvár), Endre Botka (Ferencváros), Attila Fiola (Fehérvár), Ákos Kecskés (Lugano), Ádám Lang (Omonia Nicosia), Gergő Lovrencsics (Ferencváros), Loïc Négo (Fehérvár), Willi Orbán (Leipzig), Attila Szalai (Fenerbahçe)

Midfielders: Tamás Cseri (Mezőkövesd), Dániel Gazdag (Philadelphia Union), László Kleinheisler (Osijek), Ádám Nagy (Bristol City), András Schäfer (Dunajská Streda), Dávid Sigér (Ferencváros), Kevin Varga (Kasımpaşa), Roland Varga (MTK Budapest)

Forwards: János Hahn (Paks), Filip Holender (Partizan), Nemanja Nikolić (Fehérvár), Roland Sallai (Freiburg), Szabolcs Schön (FC Dallas), Ádám Szalai (Mainz)

UEFA.com Hungary team reporter: Andy Clark

This will be my maiden EURO as a UEFA reporter, though I have watched every tournament since 1984. My favourite has to be EURO 2016: having watched nine major tournaments in a row in Hungary since 1998 – without Hungarian participation – it was truly wonderful to experience the celebratory atmosphere. Favourite moment? Ádám Szalai scoring against Austria in that tournament and hearing – while covering the match on TV from home – resounding cheers ringing out around the neighbourhood.

How they play

Marco Rossi uses a 3-5-2. Width is provided by the wing-backs, while the defence is shielded by two midfielders who take it in turns to aid the attack. The main striker, Szalai, is supported by a second forward who, along with an attacking midfielder, roams between the opponents’ defensive lines.

Key player: Willi Orbán

Strong in the tackle, Leipzig centre-back Orbán is a no-nonsense defender who also offers a real threat at the other end of the pitch. His five international goals since committing to the Magyar cause in October 2018 make him his country’s second-top scorer during this period.

One to watch: Roland Sallai

A winger or second striker, Sallai comes into this EURO on the back of a fantastic Bundesliga breakthrough season with Freiburg, for whom he scored eight goals and supplied six assists. With three strikes in his last five international outings, too, he’s added real end product to his game. The perfect foil for Szalai.

Coach: Marco Rossi

Former Brescia and Sampdoria defender Rossi has been quietly rebuilding a team which surprised many in 2016 but then saw its spine – Király, Juhász and Gera – retire from international football. Rossi has successfully integrated numerous young players into what is now a strongly unified squad whose recent results have been impressive.

Can they win it?

With opponents France, Portugal and Germany representing three of Europe’s top eight-ranked sides, Hungary have been dealt an incredibly tough group. It would represent a monumental success should they progress to the last 16 but, backed by a home crowd and propelled by a sense of great togetherness, they’ll tentatively dare to dream.