Eleven underestimated players

Hannes Halldorsson (goalkeeper)

The goalkeeper, who showed great reflexes at the Euro 2016, helping Iceland reach the quarterfinals of the competition, has spent his entire career so far in teams, which I think are below his level. The 32-year-old goalkeeper has played for Fram, KR, Brann, Sandnes Ulf, NEC and Bodo / Glimt. This season he signed for the Danish team Randers. However, with his performance on the biggest stage in the European football, I think he deserves to be a part of a bigger team.

Chris Gunter (right fullback)

Gunter is now 27 years old and has spent 10 seasons in the Championship. He is now performing for Reading in the same division. In December 2007 the defender joined Tottenham, but only made 16 appearances in 2 seasons for Spurs. Since then, Chris Gunter has only played 1 more season in The Premier League. But, he has won 76 caps for the Welsh national team. Gunter took part in all the 6 matches for his nation at the Euro 2016. His age is ideal for a footballer – he is now experienced enough and, in my opinion deserves another chance to prove he is good enough for a team in a higher division.

Domagoj Vida (defender centre)

With his performance in defence, Domagoj Vida has impressed a lot of people. He established good partnership with Vedran Corluka in the Croatian national team and since his debut in 2010, Vida has won 42 caps for his nation. In 2010 the defender signed for Bayer Leverkusen, but only played in 1 league match for the German team. Then after 2 seasons at Dinamo Zagreb, the defender moved to Dynamo Kyiv. Surely, Vida has the needed qualities for a bigger team.

Michal Pazdan (defender centre / defensive midfielder)

Since the beginning of Pazdan’s career, he hasn’t left the Polish championship. The 29-year-old defender, who can also play as a defensive midfielder, has played for Hutnik Krakow, Gornik Zabrze, Jagiellonia and Legia Warsaw. He didn’t miss a single minute of Poland’s participation at The Euro 2016, performing perfectly in defence. He was one of the key reasons Poland to concede only 2 goals in 5 matches. So, Michal Pazdan has still what to show until the end of his career.

Robbie Brady (left fullback/winger)

The left fullback was a part of Manchester United’s academy, but he couldn’t fight for a place in the first team of The Red Devils and only appeared once with United’s shirt in a match from the Capital One Cup. In 2011, he was sent on loan to Hull City and after showing his great potential, technique and speed, Brady signed a permanent contract with The Tigers in 2013. However, Brady was sold to Norwich City in 2015. But, The Canaries relegated and the left fullback is now playing in The Championship. Robbie Brady is also famous for his involvement in the team’s attacks. He scored really important goals for his nation – equalized the score against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the playoffs for the Euro 2016. Then, at the tournament he scored the decisive goal against Italy to qualify his team for the Round of 16. Brady also found the net against France, but The Blues eventually won 2-1.

Balasz Dzsudzsak (left midfielder)

Balasz Dzsudzsak has scored 20 goals in 85 matches for Hungary, but the 29-year-old is now a player of Al Wahda of UAE. The Hungarian made a real furore at PSV, winning the Eredivisie in 2008 and scoring 55 goals in 4 seasons for the Dutch team. But, he made a real mistake, moving to the Russian club Anzhi in 2011. Then, he suffered a really serious injury and at the end of the season was sold to Dynamo Moscow. After 5 seasons at the team from Moscow, he had an unsuccessful spell at Bursaspor, before moving to the UAE team. However, Dzsudzsak showed a great performance at the Euro 2016, scoring twice against the champions Portugal. He is classy enough for a team, which plays in the Champions League.

Niall McGinn (midfielder/winger)

Is that what you want from your career? Niall McGinn is a good midfielder/winger, whose biggest success is winning the Scottish Cup with Celtic in 2011. Then, after a season long loan at Brentford, he signed for Aberdeen. McGinn has scored 3 goals in 44 appearances for the Northern Ireland national team. He managed to find the net at the Euro 2016, even though he only spent 38 minutes on the pitch for 3 matches. Just an advice for you Niall, don’t waste your time at average club like Aberdeen and look for a better team – sometimes a person must go out of his comfort zone in order to succeed!

Vladimir Weiss (attacking midfielder)

Vladimir Weiss is a third generation footballer. His grandfather and father (also named Vladimir) has also been international football players. Who has watched Vladimir Weiss Junior, knows that he is a very talented and technically-gifted player, who can decide the match by himself! As a youngster, Weiss was a part of Manchester City’s academy and made his debut for The Citizens on 24th May 2009 in the 1-0 victory against Bolton. Just several months later, the Slovakian scored a goal against Arsenal in a Capital Cup game. However, he only recorded 5 matches for Manchester City, because he was given on loan. After short spells at Bolton, Rangers, Espanyol, Pescara and Olympiakos, Weiss became a player of the Qatari Al-Gharafa. Weiss made his debut for Slovakia in 2009. He has recorded 3 matches at the World Cup 2010 and 4 matches and 1 goal at The Euro 2016. So, the creative midfielder must finally be seen by the biggest names in football!

Robert Snodgrass (midfielder)

Robert Snodgrass is a synonym of hardworking midfielder. The 29-year-old player has scored 6 goals in 20 matches for Scotland. He is now a Hull City player, but with his great performance Snodgrass has proven he deserves to be a part of a bigger club. He is also a very good free-kick taker. Moreover, he is a left-footed player and can also be used as a left fullback and forward! Nowadays, the most important thing for a player is he to be able to play in several positions on the pitch – Robert Snodgrass is able to do that!

Eder (striker)

The goal-scorer of the Euro 2016 final – Eder has a really unsuccessful club career. He is a powerful forward and has a good heading abilities. After the best match of his career (the final against France) Eder was sold from Swansea City to Lille. If you wonder why Eder has only scored 4 goals in 32 matches for the Portuguese national team – the reason is he has only started 10 of these games. The forward is now 28 years old, so he still has what to show!

Will Grigg (striker)

Until recently Will Grigg was an English League 1 player, but his team Wigan has won a promotion and now Grigg plays in The Championship. However, the Northern Ireland player has a really good potential, but if he doesn’t go to a bigger club he is going to waste it in the lower tiers of the English football system. He should have been given a chance to play in the Euro 2016, but the forward watched all the games from the bench. However, Grigg has scored 1 goal in 8 games for Norn Iron and will surely increase these numbers in the near future.