a complete defeat to first-time contestant Georgia
The 2024 UEFA European Championship (Euro 2024), which opened in Germany on the 14th, is experiencing a series of upsets. Croatia, which finished third in the Qatar World Cup two years ago, was eliminated, the Netherlands was caught by Austria, and even Portugal, with Cristiano Ronaldo at the forefront, was completely defeated by Georgia, the first country to participate in Europe’s eastern edge.
Georgia, where side striker Hvicha Kvaratzhelia, who played in Italy’s Serie A Napoli with Kim Min-jae, beat Portugal and took the last train to the Euro 2024 round of 16.
Georgia, ranked 74th in the FIFA rankings, defeated Portugal 2-0 in the final third Group F match on the last day of the Euro 2024 group stage at Gelzenkirchen Auf Schalke Arena in Germany on the 27th, thanks to consecutive goals by Kvaratshelia in the 2nd minute of the first half and Georges Mikautaje in the 12th minute of the second half.
Georgia lost to Turkiye 1-3 and tied with the Czech Republic 1-1 to post one draw and one loss, which was highly likely to result in its elimination from the group league. However, the team crushed the big fish by two goals on the day, recording one win, one draw and one loss (four points), and ranking third in Group F. As expected by the 토토사이트 community, the team even secured a berth to the round of 16 teams, which is given to the top four out of the six teams ranking third in each group, to demonstrate its potential to advance to the tournament.
Joao Felix and Ronaldo came out as two-top players.
Although Portugal fell victim to an unexpected incident, it had already secured the top spot in Group F before using Georgia as its partner. Portugal, which had two wins and one loss (six points), had six points apiece with Turkiye, which beat the Czech Republic at the same time, but was ranked first in Group F according to the winner-win rule applied to UEFA competitions. Turkiye clinched the second place in Group F by beating the Czech Republic 2-1 with a dramatic goal scored in extra time in the second half.
Portugal, led by head coach Roberto Martinez, operated a 3-5-2 formation ahead of the game.
Gonzalo Inacio, Danilu Pereira, and António Silva were in the back three while Diogo Costa was guarding the goal. Pedro Netu, João Palinha, Conceição, João Neves and Diogo Dalot were among the five midfielders. João Félix and Ronaldo came out as two-top players.
Georgia, led by French legend Willie Sanol, also built a 3-5-2 formation. Giorgi Gbelessiani, Guram Casia, and Luca Rocosibili were on the defensive line, led by gatekeeper Giorgi Mamar Darcybili. Okar Kakavadze, Giorgi Chakbetaje, Giorgi Kochorasibili, Ohtani Kitter Sibili, and Rasha Devali were five midfielders. Mikautadze and Kvaratzhelia were in the two-top.
It unfolded in an unexpected way
The game unfolded unexpectedly in the second minute of the first half when Georgia intercepted an opponent’s mistake and connected it to a goal
Portugal tried to target the enemy by slowly building up, but a mistake came out of the defensive line, and Mikautaze dribbled it and gave it to Kvaratzhelia, who was penetrating into the left side of the penalty area. Kvaratzhelia, who has been reborn as the best superstar in Georgia soccer history, recently kicked it with a left-footed diagonal shot to score.
Since then, Portugal has launched counterattack by focusing on Ronaldo who scored 130 goals in 201 A matches. Ronaldo hit a free kick chance with his right foot in the 16th minute of the first half, but the goalkeeper was surprised and hit it, making it impossible to score a goal. He flew at 130 kilometers per hour but only rotated once, effectively making it a non-rotation shot.
After a lull, Georgia scored one more goal in the 12th minute of the second half, and the game began to tilt to a complete victory atmosphere. Georgia defender Rocosibili tripped over Antonio Silva’s foot when he was digging into the left side of the penalty area. The referee declared Georgia’s penalty kick after VAR, which was scored by Mikayutadze, the first goaltender, to make it 2-0.
I changed my direction to save my strength for the round of 16 tournament.
Portuguese gatekeeper Costa followed the ball’s trajectory, but Mikautaze’s shot was faster.
Since then, Portugal has changed its direction to save its strength for the round of 16 tournaments rather than turn the game around with all its might.
In the 21st minute of the second half, 39-year-old Ronaldo left the ground as Gonzalo Ramos was substituted, and António Silva replaced Nelsong Semedo at the same time. Ronaldo attracted attention as he expressed discontent when being substituted. In the 30th minute of the second half, two midfielders playing for Wolverhampton including Pedro Netu and João Neves headed to the bench. Diogo Jota and Tameus Núñez joined the match.
Portugal will play with Slovenia in Eastern Europe at 4 a.m. on July 2 for a ticket to the quarterfinals. If it wins the match, it will play against the winner of the France-Belgium quarterfinals, which is like a final match.
by 메이저놀이터