Euro 2016 draw: Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal gifted an easy Group F

Though Cristiano Ronaldo is not necessarily human and might play into his 40s, it’s possible that this is his last chance to win Euro 2016 as the focal point of Portugal’s attack. And lucky for him, he’s been handed a very good chance to win his group and secure a good position for the Round of 16. Austria and Iceland have some great star players, but aren’t quite on Portugal’s level. Hungary, meanwhile, will do excellently to snag a draw from any of their three games.

Meet the teams:

Portugal have an impressive record at the European Championships, having made it to the knockout stages on each of the six times they’ve qualified. However, unlike in 2004 when they finished as runners-up to Greece on home soil, their current crop of players is rather lacking on star quality. If they’re to have any success in this tournament, they’ll be relying on big performances from their one big exception: Cristiano Ronaldo.

That isn’t to say that they’re a team without talent, and the noticeably youthful squad called up for the last round of international fixtures has suggested that they’ve got a bright future. But in the meantime, they’re still relying on the creaking Bruno Alves and Pepe in defence, and in attack the distinctly average Hugo Almeida is their closest thing to a proven goalscorer.

It’s just as well that coach Fernando Santos acquired plenty of experience at playing über-functional football (to put it politely) in his four years in charge of the Greek national team, because this Portugal team aren’t yet ready to match the big boys at their own game. It’s likely they’ll have to sit back and hope Ronaldo works his magic up top. Another knockout stage exit is the least they’ll be expecting, but probably the best they can hope for.

Key player: Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo will be 31 by the time the Euros come around, meaning he should be firmly on the decline. Of course, no one has yet ascertained whether Ronaldo as actually human, never mind whether his physical form dips at the rate of the rest of us mere mortals, but if conventional wisdom is anything to go by, this will be the last major tournament he’ll play at anything close to his prime. And boy will Portugal be expecting him to deliver. He’s not only their best player, but will almost certainly be the greatest player at the entire tournament. If he’s on song, we could see Santos’ men pull off an upset and win the tournament.

If there’s one side that captured the European imagination at large during qualifying, it’s Iceland. They’ll make their major tournament debut in France next summer, on the back of a campaign in which they did an unlikely double over the Netherlands and recorded wins over both Turkey and the Czech Republic.

It’s not just the fact that such a small nation qualified that was impressive, but the manner in which they achieved it. Seemingly unperturbed by the greater stature of their opponents, Iceland finished qualifying having scored an impressive 17 goals in their 10 games. They played fearlessly, and were richly rewarded. They’ll be desperate to pull off another upset or two in France next summer, with veteran coach Lars Lagerbäck having announced that he will depart after the tournament.

Though exiting the group stages will be extremely difficult for Iceland, it’s certainly not impossible. And, given that they’ll be the second team of almost everyone in France next summer, they’ll surely be able to count on big support from the crowd.

Key player: Gylfi Sigurðsson

Swansea City attacking midfielder Gylfi Sigurðsson played a massive role in Iceland’s qualification. His six goals put him ahead of the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Eden Hazard in the scoring charts, and he was involved in the creation of several more. Technically excellent and endearingly industrious, he’s right at the heart of this Iceland team. If they’re going to have any success, Sigurðsson will have to be on form.

It’s exciting times to be an Austria supporter, with Marcel Koller’s side reaching only their third major tournament in the last two decades. They made their debut appearance at the European Championships in Austria and Switzerland back in 2008, though failed to win a single game en route to a disappointing group stage elimination. They’ll be hoping to fare better this time around.

They’ve certainly got a good enough team to be competitive, with Bayern Munich utility man David Alaba the beating heart of a very solid team. But while he undoubtedly brings star quality, it’s otherwise a rather workmanlike unit. Stoke winger Marko Arnautović is certainly capable of producing moments of brilliance, albeit few and far between.

Then again, it’s worth remembering Austria sailed through qualifying unbeaten, despite being drawn against tricky opponents like Russia, Sweden and Montenegro. Sure, they’re unlikely to achieve anything more than an early group stage exit, but if opponents take their eye off the ball, Austria certainly seem capable of punishing them.

Key player: David Alaba

Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola doesn’t seem to have quite worked out David Alaba’s best position, but, in the playground tradition of always playing your best player in midfield, Austria boss Koller is dead set on playing him smack bang in the centre of the pitch. It’s a simple idea, but a logical one: Alaba’s undoubtedly the most technically gifted player on the Austria team, meaning it would make little sense by marginalising him out wide. Instead he’s going to be tasked with pulling the strings from deep.

When it was announced that the Euro 2016 field would expand to 24, a lot of people groaned, bemoaning the number of low-quality teams that would make the finals. In the end, there wasn’t a lot of that, but Hungary is the clear exception. That’s not to be disrespectful -- they outplayed Norway in a playoff to get here -- but they are the weakest team to make the finals. They had the lowest goal differential of any qualifying team, and that’s coming out of the weakest group in qualifying. An Andorran, a Georgian, an Azerbaijani and three Cypriots scored more in qualifying than any Hungarian. They have enough talent to snag a result against anyone, but the teams that drew them will be pleased to have done so.

Key player: Balazs Dzsudzsak

Hungary’s captain is by far their most accomplished attacking player, and their ability to score goals at the Euros might be dependent on him making some outstanding individual plays out on the wing. He hasn’t been a superstar since leaving PSV Eindhoven in 2011, but he’s still the man most likely to make something happen for Hungary.