Portugal midfielder William Carvalho has been named as the best player of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship. 

The UEFA Technical Observers, present at every match, chose William as the U21 EURO's outstanding performer, including him as one of five Portuguese in their best XI from the tournament.  William, an authoritative central midfielder who plays his club football for Sporting CP, was ever-present for Rui Jorge's team throughout their finals campaign. 

The 23-year-old's most impressive display came in the 5-0 semi-final defeat of Germany.  William was hugely dominant over his direct opponent Emre Can, another player who had hitherto stood out, helping his side to inflict a record U21 defeat on their opponents.  He also played throughout the final against Sweden although he missed his spot kick in the penalty shoot-out which brought down the curtain on the tournament. 

William, who already has 13 senior caps to his name, attempted (394) and completed (349) more passes than anyone else in the Czech Republic. 

William's tournament in numbers

480 minutes played (joint tournament high)

394 passes attempted (tournament high)

349 passes completed (tournament high)

12 fouls suffered (joint tournament high)

4 attempts blocked

3 fouls committed

1 attempt off target

0 attempts on target