Junior-senior EURO double roll of honour: Rodri, Morata, Merino, Nacho, Ferran Torres join Chiellini, Iniesta, Henry

Five of the 15 Spain players involved in their UEFA EURO 2024 final victory against England have joined the 12 men who had previously taken the pitch on winning sides in a EURO final after having achieved similar success in either the U19 EURO (U18 before 2001/02) or U17 EURO (U16 before 2001/02), both tournaments having begun in the early 1980s.

Mikel Merino, Álvaro Morata, Nacho, Rodri and Ferran Torres are the latest to accomplish this feat – with Alejandro Grimaldo, an unused substitute in Berlin, himself a previous U19 EURO winner. Among that quintet, Ferran Torres became just the second man after compatriot and namesake Fernando Torres to have won both youth tournaments and then the senior title.

Ferran Torres scored both goals when Spain beat Portugal 2-0 in the 2019 U19 EURO final, while his U17 EURO title came in 2017 as part of a Spanish side that won on penalties in Croatia against an England team including future EURO final opponents Phil Foden and Marc Guéhi. Another with junior experience of an England-Spain final was Nacho, who helped La Roja to a 1-0 win in the 2007 U17 EURO in Belgium.

Morata claimed his U19 title in 2011, 13 years before captaining the seniors to EURO supremacy. In 2015, Rodri and Merino were both U19 champions.

Thierry Henry and David Trezeguet were the first to manage the double feat, both winning EURO 2000 with France four years after U18 success. Seven of Spain's 2008 and 2012 European champions had known U16 or U19 glory: Fernando Torres scored in both those senior finals to replicate what he did in the 2001 U16 and 2002 U19 deciders.

Then at EURO 2016, Ricardo Quaresma was on Portugal's winning team 16 years on from a U16 victory while João Moutinho was following up his 2003 U17 success. Vieirinha, who also played in Portugal's 2003 U17 final win, was in the EURO 2016 squad but did not take the field at Stade de France against the hosts.

Most recently, Giorgio Chiellini was in the Azzurri side that beat England at Wembley to triumph at UEFA EURO 2020. Back in 2003, he had played in Italy's success over Portugal in the European U19 Championship final.

Players in EURO final winning teams that had previously won UEFA youth national-team finals

ITALY 2020 (played in 2021)

Giorgio Chiellini U19 2003

PORTUGAL 2016

João Moutinho U17 2003
Ricardo Quaresma U16 2000

SPAIN 2012

Iker Casillas U16 1997
Andrés Iniesta U19 2002
Juan Mata U19 2006
Gerard Piqué U19 2006
Sergio Ramos U19 2004
David Silva U19 2004
Fernando Torres U16 2001, U19 2002

SPAIN 2008

Iker Casillas U16 1997
Andrés Iniesta U19 2002
Sergio Ramos U19 2004
David Silva U19 2004
Fernando Torres U16 2001, U19 2002

FRANCE 2000

Thierry Henry U18 1996
David Trezeguet U18 1996

SPAIN 2024
Mikel Merino U19 2015
Álvaro Morata U19 2011
Nacho U17 2007
Rodri U19 2015
Ferran Torres U17 2017, U19 2019

Under-21 EURO is not classified as a youth tournament by UEFA.