Patrik Schick

Patrik Schick's best-remembered moment came from distance: at Euro 2020 he beat Scotland's goalkeeper with a strike from inside his own half, a goal later named the tournament's best. He scored five goals in four matches that summer, sharing the Silver Boot with Cristiano Ronaldo as the Czech Republic reached the quarter-finals. Four years on, at Euro 2024, he went past Georgia's defence for a goal that made him the Czech Republic's all-time leading scorer at European Championships.

Schick came through Sparta Prague's academy, having joined at the age of eleven, and made his first-team debut for the club in 2014. A loan at Bohemians 1905 followed before Sampdoria signed him from Sparta. His time at Sampdoria lasted barely a year before Roma took him on, in a deal built around a loan with an obligation to buy.

His spell in Rome produced a loan year at RB Leipzig, where ten goals in 22 appearances led to Bayer Leverkusen signing him permanently in 2020. He has worn the number 14 shirt for the club since. For Czech football, he holds the individual honours of Talent of the Year and Footballer of the Year, and at international level he has continued to add to a scoring record now approaching thirty goals, built largely on the strength of tournament football rather than routine qualifiers.