Best player... Andres Iniesta There were several contenders for this title, and after their display in the final most of them were Spanish. But Iniesta was the creator and midfield maestro that made Spain tick. Los Rojas ‘Tiki Taka’ style of play was emulated by the Uefa Euro 2012 Player of the Tournament. The playmaker’s one assist and no goals do not do justice to the 28-year-old's overall contribution to Vincente del Bosque's side. Andrea Pirlo came close, but his lack of impact in the final meant he was just edged by Iniesta.
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Best goals... Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s scissor kick was executed so sweetly as he struck it into the bottom left corner of the goal and deserves to be awarded the goal of the tournament, especially since it was against the French. Mario Balotelli’s second goal versus Germany needs to be mentioned. Riccardo Montolivo split the defence with a lovely aerial through ball and “Super Mario” turned to set himself up and emphatically thumped the ball into the top right corner. The striker stopped and ripped his shirt off revealing his muscular physique. This statuesque pose will be one of the lasting images of the tournament. Jakub Blaszczykowski’s thunderous strike after a magnificent first touch sent the home fans into raptures and helped Poland earn a point against Russia.
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Best pass... Xavi’s pass to Jordi Alba for the second goal in the final absolutely shredded the defence and Alba used his pace to run on through to goal.
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Best saves... Croatian stopper Stipe Pletikosa made a wonderful double save from Antonio Cassano in their match against Italy. Meanwhile Iker Casillas' stop from Ivan Rakitic in Spain's match with Croatia was essential in La Rojas' run to the title.
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Biggest flop... Arjen Robben and the Dutch national side. Right from the word ‘Go’ the men in Orange failed to emulate their success in the 2010 World Cup. Some key players such as Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie seriously failed to perform on the big stage, after both having brilliant seasons for their club. Things never looked up after the Netherlands slumped to a 1-0 defeat in their opening game against Denmark.
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Surprise of the Euros... England topping their group. In the build up to this tournament the Three Lions had remarkably little pressure from the bloodthirsty English press, who this time round expected nothing. This perhaps helped them to secure wins against Sweden and the Ukraine and a draw against our great rivals the French. Unfortunately usual form returned in the quarter-finals.
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Biggest injustice... Giorgos Karagounis being awarded a second yellow for diving, when he was clearly fouled in the area. The captain missed Greece’s quarter-final clash with Germany, which severely limited their hopes if they weren’t low enough already.
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Best fans... While Ireland’s performance on the pitch was quite literally pointless, they’re fans won themselves friends wherever they went. Cheering their team on no matter how bad the display, the Irish fans’ tournament was summed up when they all stayed behind after a miserable defeat at the hands of Spain and serenaded their team with ‘Fields of Athenry.’ ...and the worst The Russians. Although this tournament was not marred by hooliganism and fan violence the Russians stood out above all others as the most confrontational of the bunch. Their inexcusable behaviour was exemplified during the celebration of ‘ Russia Day in Warsaw. It resulted in 183 arrests; one would say not the usual outcome of a celebration. The Russian fans also decided to dress up in England outfits to berate the Ukrainians before their second group game.
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Biggest gaffe... BBC Panorama's report into the dangers facing fans travelling to the finals, including Sol Campbell’s now infamous comments that fans could die, proved to be the biggest gaffe of the tournament. There were very few problems throughout the whole tournament, with most travelling fans reporting that, apart from the overpriced hotels, they were very well received by their hosts. Although there were a few incidents of racism at the tournament, much of this actually came from travelling fans and not from the home nations. Far from revealing the hostile natures of Ukrainian and Polish football, the BBC only succeeded in offending the two host nations with accusations that, as the tournament went on, proved to be completely unfounded.
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Cheeky moment... Andrea Pirlo’s penalty was full of such class and cheek that it seemed to turn all of the momentum gained by England in the shootout, following Montolivo’s miss, on its head and crush the confidence of those in the English line-up waiting to take their spot-kicks.
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Best underwear related moments... Never have a pair of boxer shorts created such a storm. When Nicklas Bendtner scored and showed off the top of his Paddy Power boxer shorts the world chuckled while Fifa sought disciplinary action. However, the real storm came when it was disclosed that Bendtner was fined more than the Croatian FA had been for its fans’ racism. After Italy’s win over Germany Antonio Cassano kept to the custom of taking off his shirt and throwing it to the crowd. This was then followed by his shorts, leaving him in just his pants; a sight familiar to those who know the Cassano of old.
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Best barnet... 1. Mario Balotelli 2. Mario Gomez 3. Scott Parker
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…and the worst... 1. Wayne Rooney 2. Raul Miereles 3. Petr Jiracek
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Best high definition moment... Andy Carroll’s headed goal. This one moment of simplicity stood out above all others for its glorious HD magnificence. Steven Gerrard’s perfect cross into the box was met by a towering header from Carroll and powered into the bottom corner. It was an impressive sight in normal time. In slow motion high-definition, we were able to see that moment for its true glory: the height that Carroll reached, the concentration in his eyes, the sinews straining in his neck, the textbook technique, his gritted teeth, his whole body contorting in one powerful motion with one clear purpose. Epic.
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Most euphoric moment... Andrei Shevchenko’s double sealing Ukraine the win over Sweden. When Ukrainian hero Shevchenko scored his second goal against Sweden, the euphoria of a nation was perfectly exemplified by the face of a young celebrating fan whose image went around the world.
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Euro 2012 is now over, but the tournament will live long in the memory for some fabulous performances and thrilling matches.
Here, we take you through the best players, great goals and brilliant matches, as well as looking at some of the lower moments.
Click here or click 'VIEW GALLERY' to launch our guide.
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