It’s almost impossible to pick a team of the tournament at this early stage. Almost... But we're going to give it a go: 

Goalkeeper: Joe Hart, England

The nation needed some goalkeeping respite after the collective trauma suffered at the hands (quite literally) of Rob Green in Rustenberg back in 2010, and by Joe we got it against France. Hart repelled a series of long-distance howitzers from the French, his fine display taking the number of world-class players in the England squad up to two.

Right-back: Mathieu Debuchy, France

There are plenty of ways to skin a cat but the same can’t usually be said of Ashley Cole, who’s still picking fragments of Cristiano Ronaldo out of his pocket from Euro 2004. Debuchy, however, put that theory to the sword with a series of swashbuckling runs from deep that left Cole floundering and gave France a huge wedge of attacking impetus.

Centre-back: Daniel Agger, Denmark

If Uefa gave out prizes for tattoos, and let’s face it that wouldn’t be the worst idea they’ve ever come up with, Agger would walk away with the Golden Pen every time. His ability to suffer pain was tested to the limit against Holland but a performance of expertly controlled aggression helped Denmark vanquish the Dutch for the first time in 45 years.

Centre-back: Daniele De Rossi, Italy

We’re used to a niggly, grizzly contribution from Italy’s pitbull at major tournaments so his reformation as a cultured playmaker was a pleasant surprise. Sitting deep in the heart of a three-man defence, De Rossi had the freedom to ping the ball about unerringly, upstaging both Andrea Pirlo and Xavi in the process.

Left-back: Simon Poulsen, Denmark

With the ball control of a Subutteo figure crossed with a Springer Spaniel, it was incredible to see Poulsen taunting Holland so often with a series of bumbling surges forward. But taunt them he did, for it was his fumbling run down the left which inadvertently created the opening for Denmark’s winning goal.

Midfielder: Wesley Sneijder, Holland

His outside-of-the-boot through ball against Denmark was so sumptuous you could have laid it on a bed of spring greens and served it at The Fat Duck for £75 a pop. The rest of Sneijder’s play in that game was equally mouth-watering, serving to restore his place at the top table of European playmakers.

Midfielder: Andres Iniesta, Spain

Watching Spain’s gnomic geniuses ferreting around a football pitch has become so common place people are in danger of forgetting how bloody difficult it really is. Iniesta was the torch-bearer for this style against Italy with his blink-and-you’ll-miss-it trickery and incredible link-up play.

Midfielder: Jakub Blaszczykowski , Poland

Sometimes things are just meant to happen. Blaszczykowski’s ferocious equaliser for Poland against Russia, in a game which stoked up centuries of antagonism between the two nations on Russia's national day, was one of those moments. A sweeter struck shot you will not see in this tournament.

Forward: Andriy Shevchenko, Ukraine

Before the tournament, Shevchenko was considered so far over the hill that he’d walked back down the other side, laid out a picnic rug and fallen into a long, deep sleep. Sheva’s big awakening came in the space of six minutes against Sweden which included two emphatic goals, the rousing of a nation and the tournament’s first, real I-don’t-believe-it moment.

Forward: Mario Mandzukic, Croatia

Put a Croatia shirt on Lurch from The Addams Family and Mandzukic is pretty much what you’d get. Like his comic book counterpart, Mario’s got a knack for opening doors and he certainly did that for Croatia against Ireland. His brilliantly taken early header in their 3-1 win could help to clear a path out of the overtly hazardous Group D.

Forward: Andrey Arshavin, Russia

The Arshavin Waddle is fast-becoming the enduring image of Euro 2012. It’s a stop-start, two-step motion which looks at once beautiful and ungainly and has so far totally befuddled the defenders of both the Czech Republic and Poland. Maintaining his mystic moves will be key to his and Russia’s progression in the tournament.

What do you think of Ed's choices? Share your own players of the tournament in the comments section below...

Ed Bearryman writes for Match of the Day Magazine