WELL, THIS WAS AN UPSET FOR PORTUGAL LAST NIGHT! GEORGIA’S KHVICHA KVARATSKHELIA SCORED A STUNNER AT ONLY 2 MINS. INTO THE GAME, AND HIS TEAM-MATE GEORGES MIKAUTADZE SCORED ANOTHER FROM A PENALTY AT 57 MINS! WITH A LOT OF ACTION INBETWEENTIMES WITH A FURTHER 22 SHOTS FROM PORTUGAL, WITH 5 ON TARGET (INCLUDING A COUPLE OF GOOD ATTEMPTS FROM RONALDO, BLOCKED BY THE GEORGIAN DEFENSIVE LEGS, AND THE EXTREMELY LITHE EFFORTS OF THE GEORGIAN GOALY MAMARDASHVILI), BUT NOTHING REACHED THE BACK OF THE NET! GEORGIA ALSO HAD A FURTHER 7 SHOTS, WITH 3 ON TARGET. AND ALTHOUGH PORTUGAL HAD 73% POSSESSION, WITH GEORGIA 28%, THE EXTRAORDINARY SPIRIT OF THE GEORGIAN SQUAD SHONE THROUGH, AND THE GAME CULMINATED IN A 2 – 0 WIN TO GEORGIA, WHO MADE HISTORY BY REACHING THEIR FIRST MAJOR TOURNAMENT KNOCKOUT, MUCH TO THE DELIGHT OF THEIR EXHUBERANT FANS!
EUROS 2024: GEORGIA VS PORTUGAL – 26/06/2024
IT WAS A FEISTY AFFAIR OVER AT THE CZECHIA VS TURKEY MATCH LAST NIGHT, WITH BOTH SIDES PUTTING ON A VERY SPIRITED PERFORMANCE IN THEIR PURSUIT OF VICTORY! THERE WERE A TOTAL OF 16 YELLOW CARDS GIVEN THROUGHOUT THE MATCH! IT WAS TURKEY’S HAKAN CALHANOGLU WHO SCORED THE FIRST GOAL AT 51 MINS., WITH CZECHIA’S TOMAS SOUCEK SCORING SHORTLY AFTERWARDS AT 66 MINS. AND WITH TURKEY’S CENK TOSUN SCORING AN UNEXPECTED BELTER IN EXTRA TIME AT 90 +4 MINS., THE GAME CULMINATED IN A 2 – 1 WIN TO TURKEY! AFTER THE FINAL WHISTLE WAS BLOWN THERE WAS MORE ARGEY-BARGEY WHICH RESULTED IN A RED CARD FOR TOMAS CHORY AT 90 +8 MINS. (IT WAS ANTONIN BARAK WHO HAD EARLIER BEEN SENT OFF.) THESE GENTLEMEN ARE NOTHING IF NOT PASSIONATE ABOUT THEIR FOOTBALL!
EUROS 2024: CZECHIA VS TURKEY – 26/06/2024
IT WAS SLOVAKIA’S ONDREJ DUDA WHO SCORED FIRST LAST NIGHT AT 24 MINS., IN THE MATCH BETWEEN SLOVAKIA VS ROMANIA, FOLLOWED BY A GOAL FROM THE ROMANIAN PLAYER RAZVAN MARIN AT 37 MINS. WITH A CLINICAL SHOT FROM A PENALTY. THERE WERE A FURTHER 13 SHOTS, WITH 4 ON TARGET FOR SLOVAKIA, AND 9 SHOTS, WITH 5 ON TARGET FOR ROMANIA, SO THOROUGHLY ENTERTAINING! THE GAME CULMINATED IN A 1 – 1 DRAW, WITH ROMANIA FINISHING AT THE TOP OF GROUP E AS BOTH TEAMS REACH THE LAST 16 OF THE EUROS 2024.
EUROS 2024: SLOVAKIA VS ROMANIA – 26/06/2024
IT MUST BE TRICKY GOING INTO A GAME THINKING YOUR CHANCES OF PROGRESSION ARE DEPENDENT UPON WHAT HAPPENS IN ANOTHER MATCH ELSEWHERE. BUT THAT IS MORE OR LESS WHAT HAPPENED TO UKRAINE LAST NIGHT. BELGIUM REACHED THE KNOCKOUT STAGES OF THE EUROS, BUT UKRAINE NEEDED ANOTHER GOAL TO SECURE THEIR POSITION, KNOWING THEIR FATE ALSO DEPENDED UPON THE OUTCOME OF THE SLOVENIA VS ROMANIA MATCH. BUT AS THE UKRAINE VS BELGIUM MATCH ENDED IN A DRAW, AND SLOVENIA VS ROMANIA ALSO, UKRAINE CANNOT GO THROUGH TO THE NEXT ROUND. ALL, IN ALL THOUGH, THE MATCH ITSELF WAS PRETTY ENTERTAINING! LUKAKU FIRED OFF A STUPENDOUS SHOT IN THE FIRST FEW MINUTES, BUT UKRAINIAN GOALY TRUBIN SAW IT COMING, AND THE BALL ENDED UP ENTANGLED IN HIS LEGS AFTER A SORT OF “SCISSOR SAVE.”  BELGIUM’S KEVIN DE BRUYNE SHOWED SOME MOMENTS OF INSPIRATION ALSO, AS DID UKRAINE’S YAREMCHUK, AS THERE WERE 13 MORE SHOTS FOR UKRAINE, WITH 4 SHOTS ON TARGET, AND A FURTHER 12 SHOTS FOR BELGIUM WITH 4 ON TARGET, SO IT WAS EDGE-OF-YOUR-SEAT STUFF AT TIMES! THEREFORE, FULL CREDIT SHOULD BE GIVEN TO THE EXPERTISE OF THE UKRAINIAN GOALKEEPER, TRUBIN, AND THE BELGIAN GOALKEEPER CASTEELS, WHO REALLY SHOWED THEIR AGILITY IN THIS MATCH!
EUROS 2024: UKRAINE VS BELGIUM – 26/06/2024
STAY TUNED FOR AN UPDATE ON NEXT ROUND’S SCHEDULE…!
