Euro 2012: Picking a Pre-Tournament All-Star XI

It's time for a little pre-tournament speculation.

Euro 2012 kicks off in 30 days (!), and by the time it's done, stars will be made, formerly strong reputations will be tarnished, a champion will be crowned and an All-Star XI will be picked.

Here's one guy's pre-tournament choices for Euro 2012's best.

Who makes your pre-tournament All-Star XI? Let me know in the comments.

Excellent choices abound at the back, where several countries have great goalkeepers to rely on.

For now, I'll take Iker Casillas. The Spaniard's combination of club and international experience, big-game pedigree and overall skill set are hard to match.

Plus, we might get to see Sara Carbonero if Iker's hanging around.

Mike's choice: Iker Casillas (Spain)

Apologies to: Manuel Neuer (Germany), Wojciech Szczesny (Poland), Petr Cech (Czech Republic) and Joe Hart (England)

Several good options are available for two fullback slots.

On the left, it's really not much of a contest. England's Ashley Cole (pictured) makes the team, overlooking, of course, his general awfulness as a human being.

Across the pitch, I'll take Philipp Lahm of Germany.

Admittedly, Lahm was exposed by Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo in Bayern Munich's Champions League semifinal win, but that happens to just about everybody. On the other hand, Lahm is dangerous going forward and brings loads of experience to the squad as Germany's captain.

Mike's choices: Ashley Cole (England) and Philipp Lahm (Germany)

Apologies to: Patrice Evra (France), Gaël Clichy (France), Jose Bosingwa (Portugal) and Gregory van der Wiel (Netherlands)

This is when I wish Belgium had qualified. Vincent Kompany and Thomas Vermaelen (and maybe even Jan Vertonghen) would warrant at least a strong amount of consideration.

As it is, I'm giving my center back spots to Germany's Mats Hummels and Spain's Gerard Pique.

Hummels (pictured) helped lead Borussia Dortmund's stout backline in their successful Bundesliga title defense, and Pique is fast becoming an integral part of Barcelona's success.

Pique's teammate, Carles Puyol, is getting older and faces a race for fitness before Euro 2012 kicks off. Sergio Ramos of Real Madrid is another great choice, but his sometimes ill-advised forays forward made the difference for leaving him out.

Mike's choices: Mats Hummels (Germany) and Gerard Pique (Spain)

Apologies to: Carles Puyol (Spain), Sergio Ramos (Spain), Per Mertesacker (Germany), Daniel Agger (Denmark), Pepe (Portugal) and Giorgio Chiellini (Italy)

Forget whether or not this midfield would actually function in a game situation.

I decided to take who I think are the best four midfielders available, formations be damned. And I think I that's exactly what I got.

(Oh, and I listed Cristiano Ronaldo as a forward. Just go with it)

Mike's choices: Xavi (Spain), Andres Iniesta (Spain), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany) and Arjen Robben (Netherlands)

Apologies to: Mesut Ozil (Germany), Andrea Pirlo (Italy), Scott Parker (England), Franck Ribery (France), Xabi Alonso (Spain), Sergio Busquets (Spain), Thomas Muller (Germany), David Silva (Spain), Nani (Portugal), Juan Mata (Spain) and Luka Modric (Croatia)

This actually wasn't a hard decision at all.

Cristiano Ronaldo is easily one of the two best players in the world (the other is from Argentina and obviously won't be playing at Euro 2012).

And based on form this season, Robin van Persie is in the top five or 10.

So, there you go.

Mike's choices: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) and Robin van Persie (Netherlands)

Apologies to: Karim Benzema (France), Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (Netherlands), Wayne Rooney (England), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Sweden), Mario Gomez (Germany) and Nikica Jelavic (Croatia)

Here's my pre-tournament Euro 2012 All-Star XI:

Iker Casillas (Spain), Ashley Cole (England), Mats Hummels (Germany), Gerard Pique (Spain), Philipp Lahm (Germany), Xavi (Spain), Andres Iniesta (Spain), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany), Arjen Robben (Netherlands), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) and Robin van Persie (Netherlands).

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