Switzerland 2-0 Italy
The first Knockout Game of UEFA Euro 2024 saw Switzerland play Italy off the park and out of the Tournament! In the 37th minute, it was Switzerland who took the lead as Remo Freuler’s effort took a slight deflection and found it’s way into the back of the net! Gianluigi Donnarumma then pulled out a great save to tip Fabian Reider’s free-kick effort onto the post before Ruben Vargas doubled The Swiss’ lead just 30 seconds into the Second Half with a lovely finish! Fabian Schar then managed to hit his own post when trying to head the ball clear before Gianluca Scamacca also hit the post as Italy came close again! Overall, what a great win this was for Switzerland, and they’ll be well up for it in the Quarters! As for Italy, they were so poor in this game, and it’s back to the drawing board for them!
Germany 2-0 Denmark
Despite their being crazy weather conditions, nothing was quite able to stop Germany from advancing in front of their home crowd. Nico Schlotterbeck thought he’d put Germany in front early on, but his goal was ruled out for a foul off the ball before the game had to be halted due to pretty crazy and dangerous weather conditions! When the game got back underway, Kai Havertz had a great chance which he headed straight at Kasper Schmeichel before Manuel Neuer made a key save to deny Rasmus Hojlund. Just 3 minutes into the Second Half and Joachim Andersen looked to have put Denmark in front, but his goal was cruelly ruled out for a rather ridiculous offside! Anyway, just a few minutes later and Germany were awarded a penalty after the ball struck the arm of Andersen before Kai Havertz stepped up and scored to make it 1-0 after 53! Rasmus Hojlund then had another good chance which he hit straight at Neuer before Havertz had another great chance which he put just wide! However, it didn’t ultimately matter as the hosts had their second in their 68th minute through their star man Jamal Musiala! Overall, it’s a good win for Germany, but they will face a much bigger test later on today! As for Denmark, they will feel slightly hard done by here, but they ultimately weren’t good enough to get the right result!
England 2-1 Slovakia (AET)
A late, late, late goal from Jude Bellingham was enough to eventually catapult England to a spot in the Quarter-Finals at the expense of a heartbroken Slovakia. In the 25th minute, it was Slovakia who took the lead as Ivan Schranz finished well after a great pass by David Strelec. 5 minutes into the Second Half and England thought they’d equalised through Phil Foden, but his goal was rightly ruled out for offside. England then just got about got away with one after a terrible mix-up on the halfway line before Harry Kane had a golden chance which he somehow headed wide! Declan Rice then came close as he hit the post before, in the 95th minute, England had their equaliser as Jude Bellingham scored an unbelievable overhead kick! And then, just a minute into Extra Time and England had the lead as Harry Kane headed home from close range! Overall, England just about got away with one here, but that’s all they can do as they advance to the next stage! As for Slovakia, this will really hurt them because they deserved to get through!
Spain 4-1 Georgia
Spain kept up their status as Tournament Favourites with a thumping victory over Georgia. Despite dominating the first 18 minutes of the game, it was Georgia who managed to find themselves in front after Robin Le Normand put the ball into the back of his own net! In the 39th minute, Spain were level as Rodri finished well before they took the lead just 6 minutes into the Second Half through Fabian Ruiz. The ball in from Lamine Yamal is amazing! In the 75th minute, The Spaniards had a third as Nico Williams scored a superb solo goal before Dani Olmo made it 4-1 to wrap up another impressive outing! Overall, Spain are looking really good right now, and they’re probably still the favourites to win this whole thing! As for Georgia, even though they lost this game 4-1, they can be delighted with the Tournament that they’ve had!
France 1-0 Belgium
A fortunate own goal proved to be the difference as France knocked Belgium out of the Euros! Mike Maignan made an interesting save to keep Kevin De Bruyne’s free-kick effort out before Marcus Thuram had a great opportunity which he headed just wide! In the Second Half, Thuram had another good chance which he failed to hit the target with before Kylian Mbappe made a great solo run only to blast his effort over the bar! Kevin De Bruyne then beautifully played in Yannick Carrasco, but his effort was blocked superbly by Theo Hernandez before De Bruyne forced Maignan to make an important save. And then, in the 85th minute, a miss-hit shot by Randal Kolo Muani managed to take a deflection off of Jan Vertonghen and find the back of the net to give France a rather fortunate lead! In the end, it’s a victory for France, but they have to improve if they want to win tonight! As for Belgium, they were unlucky here, but they didn’t exactly deserve to win either after the manager’s questionable tactics!
Portugal 0-0 Slovenia (Portugal Win on Penalties)
A game with dramatic moments eventually resulted in Portugal getting over the line against a resilient Slovenian side! Cristiano Ronaldo came close with a free-kick effort in the First Half before Joao Palhinha clipped the outside of the post! In the Second Half, Benjamin Sesko had a good chance which he could only drag wide before Ronaldo had another chance which he struck straight at Jan Oblak. In Extra Time, Portugal were awarded a penalty after Diogo Jota was brought down, but rather amazingly, Cristiano Ronaldo saw his effort saved by Jan Oblak which resulted in Cristiano starting to cry! A mistake from Pepe then allowed Benjamin Sesko in on goal to win it for Slovenia, but his effort was saved by Diogo Costa! And then, in the Penalty Shootout, Costa managed to save all 3 penalties against him whilst Ronaldo, Fernandes, and Jota all scored to send Portugal through to the Last 8! In the end, this was a real close call for Portugal, but they’re through, and they’ll go again later tonight! As for Slovenia, this will hurt them because they’ve managed to go out of the Tournament without losing a single game!
Romania 0-3 Netherlands
This was clearly a step too far for Romania as the Netherlands showed their quality! After 20 minutes, the Netherlands had the lead as Cody Gakpo fired the ball in after some questionable Goalkeeping by Florin Nita. Stefan de Vrij then had a great chance which he headed into the side netting before Xavi Simons had a great chance which he just couldn’t get out of his feet! In the Second Half, a brilliant bit of Romanian defending kept the game at just 1-0 before Virgil van Dijk hit the post! The Netherlands then finally had their second through Cody Gakpo, but that was only until it was ruled out for offside! Joey Veerman then came within a whisker of making it 2-0 before Donyell Malen scored to finally double Netherland’s lead! And then, in the 93rd minute, Malen capped off a brilliant solo run to score again and make it 3-0 to the Dutch! In the end, Romania were simply outclassed in this game, but they can still be pleased with the Tournament they had! As for the Netherlands, this is way more like it from them, and they’ll fancy themselves to make it to the Final 4!
Austria 1-2 Turkey
Turkey took advantage of a disappointing Austria to book their ticket to the Last 8! After less than a minute, Turkey had the lead as a mix-up at the back resulted in Merih Demiral giving Turkey the lead! Austria then had a couple of really good chances which they somehow failed to score from before Demiral had a really good chance which he headed just over the bar! In the Second Half, Mert Gunok made a good save to keep out Marko Arnautovic before Turkey’s lead doubled in the 59th minute as Merih Demiral scored again! Just 7 minutes later though and Austria had one back through Michael Gregoritsch before Patrick Pentz made a good save to stop Baris Alper Yilmaz from finishing the game off. And then, right at the end of the game, Christoph Baumgartner thought he’d equalised for Austria, but he saw his effort saved miraculously by Mert Gunok! In the end, this is a really hard loss to take for Austria, and it will take some time for them to get over it. As for Turkey, what a win for them as they advance to the Quarter-Final Stage!
Quarter-Final Preview:
Spain VS Germany
The biggest game in the Quarter-Finals of UEFA Euro 2024 takes place first as Tournament Favourites Spain take on the Hosts Germany! Spain have won every game so far on their way to this stage and have an aggregate score of 9-1 to boot! As for Germany, they’ve won 3 of their 4 games so far (they drew the other one) and their aggregate score currently stands at 10-2! Overall, this is a really exciting game and you can make arguments as to why both teams can win. Spain are the better side, but Germany have the home support behind them. Either way, I can’t wait to watch!
My Prediction: 3-2
Portugal VS France
Another two heavyweights collide later tonight as Portugal take on France in a rematch of the 2016 European Championship Final! Portugal have picked up 2 wins, 1 draw, and 1 defeat so far in this tournament and they enter this game with an aggregate score of 5-3! As for France, they’ve managed 2 wins and 2 draws up to this point, and they’ve done it with an aggregate score of 3-1. Overall, there’s an argument to be made that neither of these teams have been convincing so far, but if there’s ever a good time to change that, it’s now!
My Prediction: 0-1
England VS Switzerland
On paper, England VS Switzerland is a fascinating tie! England have 2 wins and 2 draws so far in this Tournament and they’ve done it with an aggregate score of 4-2! As for Switzerland, they have also had 2 wins and 2 draws out of their 4 games, but their aggregate score is a little more convincing at 7-4! Overall, England are the favourites for this game given their “stature”, but on current form, Switzerland are by far the more dangerous side so this should be an interesting one at the very least!
My Prediction: 2-1
Netherlands VS Turkey
Netherlands VS Turkey is definitely the “Wild Card” game in this Round! The Netherlands have won 2, drawn 1, and lost 1 game so far in UEFA Euro 2024 and their aggregate score stands at 7-4! As for Turkey, they’ve won 3 out of their 4 games so far (lost against Portugal) and they have an aggregate score of 7-6! Overall, the Netherlands are rightly favourites in this one, but they will have to be at their best because Turkey are seemingly a very difficult side to beat when they’re organised.
Comments