Now that the dust is finally settling on the European Championship, it’s fair to say that although it won’t be a tournament that will ever be hailed as a ‘classic’, it nevertheless gave us a handful of standout moments. The fairytale rides of both Wales and Iceland easily surge to the top of that list; Portugal’s unlikely road to the summit was also a notable footballing story, but as ever, the European Championship always provides a chance for some brand new or underappreciated talent to grab the spotlight, sliding in next to some certainly more established stars.

This year’s tournament was no different.

From world-class attackers to young colts in midfield and all the way back to the gloved up shot-stoppers, these were the standout players of Euro 2016:

Emre Mor (Turkey): A relative unknown at the start of the tournament, the youngster made his first-ever international start for Turkey at this year’s tournament and was arguably Turkey’s brightest beacon in an otherwise disappointing showing for Fatih Terim’s side. The 18-year-old, who signed for Borussia Dortmund before the tournament started, possesses an extraordinary creative mind and operating in midfield or closer to an attacking spearhead, can wreak havoc with his searing pace and flair on the ball. While the national side flew home with their ego bruised, in Mor they seemed to have unearthed Turkey’s next big thing.

Renato Sanches (Portugal): Another young gun who locked in his big money transfer before the start of the tournament, this ex-Benfica midfield operator proved to be well worth the hype. Bayern Munich fans can be excused for being salivatingly excited about their multi-million euro signing, as Sanches was an integral part of Portugal’s run to the top of the Euro tree. Bursting with strength and energy, the 18-year- old has rightfully been compared to Edgar Davids, the Netherlands legend whose tenacity and ability to stamp his influence on any game made him one of the best midfielders of his generation. Sanches seems to be reading from the same play book and from what we saw during the tournament, could be one of the signings of the season.

Leandro Bonucci (Italy): As part of a citadel-like Italian defence, marshalled by Gigi Buffon, Bonucci was absolutely immense for Antonio Conte’s side, combining his defensive qualities with some unlikely goal-scoring heroics. With an established and almost telepathic link between himself and Juventus teammates Andrea Barzagli and Giorgio Chiellini (and Buffon of course), Bonucci was at the heart of everything that made Italy tick and will surely be the national side’s backline maestro in two years time, when the World Cup takes place in Russia.

Gareth Bale (Wales): One of the tournament’s true world class players, Bale was nothing sort of sensational as he guided Wales to unlikely heights in this year’s tournament. Lethal from set pieces and creatively active, he was always available, running at terrified defenders, shooting from distance and opening up space for his teammates to surge through. While surely not the only standout performer of a terrific Welsh side (both Aaron Ramsey and Joe Allen deserve praise among others), it was Bale that Chris Coleman looked to, to lead from the front. That he did, magnificently. It remains a mystery as to why he didn’t make it into the official team of the tournament line-up, but after putting in the performances he did in France, it really doesn’t matter that much.

Grzegorz Krychowiak (Poland): When Unai Emery took up the coaching job at PSG, you didn’t have to think long as to who he would have his sights on, when he raided Sevilla, his old club. His first order of business was to sign Krychowiak, and the Pole certainly showed the PSG fans what they could expect from him, with some fine displays in France. By far the standout player of a solid Poland side, Krychowiak is quickly building his name as one of the finest midfielders in Europe. A strange mixture of defensive midfielder, central defender and box-to-box runner, Krychowiak is equally comfortable in any of these roles and he often showed this in France, seamlessly switching between breaking up attacks, shielding his defenders from opposition raids and dragging his team forward in search of goals. A shrewd buy by Emery.

Aron Gunnarsson (Iceland): A Euro list of standout performers certainly wouldn’t be complete without a player from Iceland’s national side, a team that punched way above its weight at this year’s tournament. You’d struggle to find a player who underperformed for the Icelanders, but standing just ahead of everyone else was fully-bearded team captain Gunnarsson. An old school midfielder, in the Roy Keane mould, Gunnarsson was bristling with grab-you-by-the-scruff-of-the-neck heroics, a hard-tackling and bullying presence that covered his lack of skill with brute power and sheer force of will. Few would have expected the Cardiff City regular to successfully go toe-to-toe with some of the best players Europe has to offer, but that he did and rightfully received a hero’s welcome upon his return to Iceland, as did the rest of this Viking-clapping, fan-winning Icelandic team.

Antoine Griezmann (France): A lot was expected from the Atletico Madrid sharpshooter and after a relatively slow start, he benefited from being shifted away from a more winger-like role and positioned just off target-man Olivier Giroud. The Atletico man ended the tournament with both the top scorer (six goals) and best player awards, but that will surely not make up for his final heartbreak. Nevertheless, Griezmann was at times utterly electric for the national side, scoring some absolutely stunning goals and proving himself as one of the deadliest marksmen in all of Europe.

Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal): We couldn’t possibly leave Ronaldo out of this list. Never fully fit, but surprisingly more willing to work for his teammates than ever before, this year’s European Championship was a defining chapter in his career. It is no secret that Ronaldo is still in search of the right formula that will allow him to successfully handle the remaining years of his active footballing life, and while a shift to a more stationary number 9 role seems to be doing the trick, it was his turn as an inspirational leader and father figure that was most impressive in France. That is not to say that his goal-scoring role on the pitch was a small one. He was there when needed, scoring crucially to drag Portugal through to the knock-out games, and his towering header that sunk Wales is without a doubt one of the standout moments of the tournament. But what we will most remember is the tear-soaked injury that ended his final prematurely and his presence on the touchline, shouting and gesturing to his teammates, doing his best to push them forward. We’re not entirely convinced of his coaching credentials just yet, but it was an interesting addition to the Ronaldo tale.

Michael McGovern (Northern Ireland): Though there is much to be said about shot-stoppers like Gianluigi Buffon and Portugal’s Rui Patricio, it was Michael McGovern who managed to create the tournament’s most enthralling goalkeeping tale. Playing in goal for a team that was seen by many as cannon fodder in a group that also contained Germany, Poland and Ukraine, McGovern was in inspirational form, allowing his team to squeeze into the knock out stages. His appearance against world champions Germany was make-me-into-a-Hollywood-film fantastic, with the 32-year-old managing to only concede a solitary goal, after being machine-gunned with 26 shots. Did we mention that he’s currently unemployed?