The group stage of the German Euro 2024and already immersed in what will be the direct elimination event, the most attractive of any competition, it is time to review the ten moments that marked the first instance of the continental tournament.
Kylian Mbappé’s fracture and his mask
The star forward of France he hit himself with the shoulder Kevin Danso, Austrian defender, and suffered a cut to the septum that left him bloody. Later, it was discovered that it was a fracture. He underwent surgery that same night, and when it seemed that the chance of missing the rest of the Euro Cup was real, he reappeared with a mask with the colors of his country to finish becoming a blue superhero.
Lamine Yamal, the youngest player in the Euro Cup
At only 16 years and 338 days old, he took to the field to Spain in the duel against Croatia and it became the youngest player to participate in a Euro Cup match. The Barcelona star surpassed the previous record set by the Polish Kacper Kozłowski, who was 17 years and 246 days old at the time of entering the playing field.
Italy achieves qualification and leaves Luka Modric heartbroken
The moment Modric left the field, the entire stadium stood up to applaud him. At 38 years old and with an etiquette career, the Croatian midfielder aroused year after year sighs among fans around the world. The Real Madrid midfielder was a mixed bag of emotions in the clash against the Azzurra: he missed a penalty in the 54th minute, scored his team’s goal a minute later, and when it seemed that his team would win the victory, he saw from the bench like Mattia Zaccagni gave him the ticket to Italy with a beautiful shot in injury time.
“I won’t retire yet,” Modric said at a press conference after the game. There will, then, be a Last Dance to enjoy his wonderful talent for the last time.
Scare in Hungary with Barnabás Varga, redemption with an agonizing goal at the end and emotional celebration
Barnabás Varga silenced the Stuttgart Arena after a violent clash with Scotland goalkeeper Angus Gunn. He had to be taken off on a stretcher because he was not reacting, but fortunately it was later reported that he was stable and conscious, although the multiple facial skull fractures that he suffered were worrying. His teammates took the situation on their shoulders and fought for him: Kevin Csoboth scored the goal in injury time to celebrate, then, a victory that is worth double.
Georgia made history by beating Portugal and reaching the second round
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, ‘Kvaradona’ as he is known in Naples, scored the first two minutes in against Portugal. Then, at 57, Georges Mikautadze widened the difference with a penalty. The truth is that Georgia made history, not only by beating Portugal, but by getting into the top 16 of the competition. Now, they will face Spain in the round of 16.
Kvaratskhelia, the Georgian star, changed his shirt at the end of the match with Cristiano Ronaldo, his childhood idol. It will be an indelible memory for all the fans who came to be part of this beautiful Cinderella story in progress.
Last goal against, which put “Autogol” at the top of the scoring table
Seven goals against in Euro 2024! It just can’t be! Yes, of course it can be. Let’s see the breakdown: the German Antonio Rüdiger (in the 5-1 defeat against Scotland), the Austrian Maximilian Wöber (in the 0-1 loss with France), the Czech Robin Hranác (in the 2-1 defeat against Portugal), the Albanian Klaus Gjasula (in the 2-2 draw against Croatia), the Swiss Fabian Schär (in the 1-1 draw against Scotland), the Italian Riccardo Calafiori (in the 0-1 defeat against Spain) and the Turkish Samet Akayadin (in the defeat against Portugal by 3-0).
Gjasula was villain and hero for Albania against Croatia; Bajrami scored the fastest goal in history against Italy
The selection of excessive emotions: first, against Croatia, Klaus Gjasula scored a goal against that gave the Croatians a 2-1 advantage, and when it seemed that the match was a victory for the Balkan National Team, Gjasula himself made the conquest in favor From crying to laughing in a few minutes.
Previously, in the match against Italy, Nedim Bajrami opened the scoring at 23 seconds, this being the fastest goal in the history of the tournament. The previous record was set by Dmitri Kirichenko in Russia’s victory against Greece at minute 1:07 of the match, in the 2004 edition.
Austria’s blow that allowed it to remove France from the top of its group
Two wins and one loss against the world runners-up. That was the fantastic record of the Austrian team that, with the victory against the Netherlands on June 25, took the top spot in Group D. Who would have thought? Nobody, or very few.
Austria first with six points, France second with five, the Netherlands third with four and Poland, the undisputed bottom team, last with one.
Xherdan Shaqiri scored a great goal for Switzerland against Scotland and made history for the Euro Cup
The Turkish Shaqiri produced a work of art in the draw against Scotland: his team was losing 1-0, he anticipated goalkeeper Angus Gunn and hit a shot into the corner.
The conquest was not just another one for his country: it will go down in history as he is the first Swiss footballer to score in at least three consecutive European Championships.
Arda Güler’s spectacular goal
Galley football and baton for the Real Madrid star. The Turkish Arda Güler scored a great shot to give his country the victory against Georgia at the dawn of the Euro Cup. A lethal shot, from the doors of the area, with a left foot that caused a scream in unison in the Signal Iduna Park.
The 19-year-old talent is, without a doubt, one of the great promises of world football.
