Euro 2020: Switzerland stun France, Spain defeat Croatia – Newstrends
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Euro 2020: Switzerland stun France, Spain defeat Croatia

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3 years ago

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Switzerland had never won a knockout tie at the European Championship and had never won a shoot-out, but they triumphed 5-4 on penalties against the World Cup holders after a remarkable 3-3 draw in Bucharest on Monday.

Kylian Mbappe missed the crucial penalty as the world champions France were sent packing from Euro 2020 in a shoot-out against Switzerland, who go through to a quarterfinal tie against Spain after an unforgettable day of drama which featured a total of 14 goals in two games.

France, who came into the tournament as favourites to add the continental crown to the World Cup they won in Russia three years ago, had earlier come from 1-0 down to lead 3-1 and looked to be cruising through, only to concede two late goals.

The game in the Romanian capital followed a 5-3 extra-time win for Spain over Croatia in Copenhagen, and the 2008 and 2012 European champions will face the Swiss in the last eight in Saint Petersburg on Friday.

Switzerland went ahead early on when Haris Seferovic headed in a cross, but they looked set to rue the moment early in the second half when Ricardo Rodriguez’s penalty was saved by Hugo Lloris.

By the hour mark the game — watched by a crowd of around 25,000 after coronavirus restrictions in Bucharest were eased — had been turned on its head by Karim Benzema, who controlled Mbappe’s pass to fire in the equaliser and then nodded in Antoine Griezmann’s centre.

Paul Pogba’s stunning curling strike into the top corner seemed to have put Les Bleus out of sight at 3-1 with quarter of an hour left, but Seferovic pulled one back and substitute Mario Gavranovic netted a last-minute equaliser to force extra time.

With no further goals, the tie went to penalties and all nine kicks were converted before Mbappe saw his effort saved by Yann Sommer.

“It is painful,” said France captain Lloris.

“We are the world champions, so to go out in the last 16 is not a good result.

“We were the first ones to expect better. We will need time to get over this disappointment.”

Switzerland, who only qualified for the last 16 as one of the best third-placed sides, had not won a knockout tie at a major tournament since the 1938 World Cup.

“It was an incredible evening. I am so proud of the team,” said goalkeeper Sommer.

Somehow the drama in Bucharest topped that in Copenhagen earlier, when Alvaro Morata netted an all-important goal as Spain prevailed in extra time against the 2018 World Cup runners-up, but only after they also let slip a 3-1 lead.

Luka Modric’s Croatia came back to force the extra half-hour but that was when Morata, the Atletico Madrid striker who has been panned for his performances by critics and subjected to abuse from fans, controlled a cross and volleyed home in the 100th minute.

Mikel Oyarzabal then secured Spain’s victory in what was the highest-scoring game at a European Championship since the opening match of the very first tournament in 1960, when Yugoslavia defeated hosts France 5-4.

Croatia had been gifted a first-half lead when Spain goalkeeper Unai Simon allowed Pedri’s back-pass to slip under his foot and in.

But Luis Enrique’s side had been the better team prior to that and they levelled through Pablo Sarabia before appearing to run away with the tie in the second half.

Manchester City winger Ferran Torres crossed for Cesar Azpilicueta to head in his first goal for his country and Torres then made it 3-1.

However, Croatia substitute Mislav Orsic pulled one back with five minutes left, the referee indicating that the ball had just crossed the line, and then fellow substitute Mario Pasalic headed in a stoppage-time equaliser.

Croatia, who came through three ties that were not settled before extra time on their run to the World Cup final in Russia, could not recover after falling 5-3 down.

“We were given a second chance in the game, which is not something that often happens,” admitted Luis Enrique.

The final last-16 ties will be played on Tuesday, with the blockbuster showdown between England and Germany at Wembley preceding Sweden’s clash with Ukraine in Glasgow.

If England beat Joachim Loew’s team, it will be only their second knockout stage win at a European Championship.

“It is a fantastic game to be involved in and a real opportunity for us to progress to a quarter-final,” said England manager Gareth Southgate on Monday.

“It is a big opponent with excellent pedigree and great experience.”

– Super Sport.

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UCL: Füllkrug gives Dortmund 1-0 first-leg win over PSG

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14 hours ago

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May 2, 2024

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UCL: Füllkrug gives Dortmund 1-0 first-leg win over PSG

Jadon Sancho put in a performance of a lifetime as Borussia Dortmund’s Niclas Füllkrug fired in a first-half goal to seal a 1-0 victory over visitors Paris St Germain in a compelling Champions League semi-final first leg on Wednesday.

Nico Schlotterbeck floated a pass into Füllkrug’s path and the Germany forward controlled the ball with a perfect first touch before drilling a low shot past keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma in the 36th minute.

PSG, fresh from being crowned Ligue 1 champions and desperate to win their first-ever Champions League trophy, found it hard going against a disciplined German defence, especially in the first half with forward Kylian Mbappe largely neutralised.

With the return leg in Paris next Tuesday, the winner of the tie will face either Bayern Munich or Real Madrid, who drew 2-2 in their first leg in Germany, in the final at Wembley on June 1.

“It was a well-deserved win, a good team performance,” said Dortmund coach Edin Terzic. “We could have scored more goals, but so could they.”

“That’s why the result is OK from my point of view. We ran a lot, but that’s necessary in a game like this.”

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“You have to earn your way to Wembley. All we need now is a draw in the second leg, but we also want to win next week.”

The win also confirmed Germany will get a fifth qualifying spot for next season’s Champions League, with Dortmund being the main beneficiaries at the moment, sitting in fifth place in the Bundesliga with three games left to play.

Dortmund went close just before halftime with Marcel Sabitzer but Donnaruma blocked his shot. The French side improved after the break and went agonisingly close to an equaliser in the 52nd minute with Mbappe curling a shot onto the far post and then Achraf Hakimi also hitting the woodwork on the rebound.

Four minutes later Fabian Ruiz saw his stooping header sail wide after being left completely unmarked in the box before Dortmund keeper Gregor Kobel kept out Ousmane Dembele’s close range effort in the 71st.

Dortmund, winners in 1997 and looking to reach their first final since 2013, soaked up the pressure as PSG’s Vitinha narrowly missed the target 10 minutes later.

The German team defeated Spanish opposition, Atletico Madrid 5-4 on aggregate to reach the semis and would hope to do so to get pass PSG in Paris.

UCL: Füllkrug gives Dortmund 1-0 first-leg win over PSG

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UCL: Vinicius scores double as Real Madrid hold Bayern Munich in semi-final showdown

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2 days ago

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May 1, 2024

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UCL: Vinicius scores double as Real Madrid hold Bayern Munich in semi-final showdown

In Tuesday’s Champions League semi-final first leg, Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior scored double, including an 83rd-minute equalizing penalty, to secure a 2-2 draw at Bayern Munich.

Vinicius gave Real the lead after 24 minutes, but Bayern took control of the game in four second-half minutes, with Leroy Sane scoring and Harry Kane converting a penalty.

Kim Min-jae practices judo. shoved Rodrygo in the box with eight minutes remaining, and Vinicius stepped up, drowning out a chorus of shouts and whistles to blast home.

The draw puts Madrid in the driving seat ahead of next week’s return leg at the Santiago Bernabeu. Bayern, who dominated large parts of the match, will still have hopes of making it to Wembley’s final in June.

Before the match, the Bayern fans unveiled a giant banner depicting Franz Beckenbauer which spanned all the way from the grass to the rafters. It was a fitting tribute on a night featuring the most-played fixture in European Cup history.

Famed for their composure on the biggest of stages in this competition, the 14-time winners struggled early, Bayern dominating possession and field position while spurred on by a ferocious home crowd.

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Sane had a chance after just 40 seconds and another minutes later, while Kane chipped a shot from halfway just over the bar as the leggy visitors struggled to cope.

Madrid’s continued success in this competition, including in their quarter-final win over Manchester City, has been built on absorbing pressure before striking.

The visitors repeated the trick for the opener, breaking Bayern’s dominance in ruthlessly simple fashion while showing the hosts how easy scoring goals can be.

Toni Kroos collected the ball from a corner and drilled a defence-splitting pass along the ground which found Vinicius galloping in acres of space on the penalty arc.

Without a Bayern player in range, Vinicius calmly slotted the opener past a helpless Manuel Neuer, changing the complexion of the match completely.

Bayern, who have six European Cups of their own, were not awed and continued to push but could not break through; their best chance of the remainder of the half came through a free kick, with Kane finding a huge gap in the wall but blasting wide.

With Real seemingly in cruise control, Bayern grabbed hold of the match early in the second-half, scoring twice in four minutes.

Eric Dier found Sane down the right flank. The Germany winger, who had missed several chances in the first half, dribbled into the box before unleashing an unstoppable rocket at the near post, his first goal for Bayern in any competition since October.

The hosts’ next attack came down the left, with the ever dangerous Jamal Musiala felled by Lucas Vazquez in the box. Referee Clement Turpin pointed straight to the spot and Kane had no hesitation either, sending Andriy Lunin the wrong way to take the lead.

With Bayern in control, Real went on the counter and it was Kim’s turn to give away a clumsy penalty, with Vinicius confidently slotting in the equaliser.

UCL: Vinicius scores double as Real Madrid hold Bayern Munich in semi-final showdown

(AFP)

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Finidi George appointed Super Eagles head coach

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3 days ago

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April 29, 2024

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Finidi George appointed Super Eagles head coach

The Nigeria Football Federation has appointed Finidi George as the new head coach of the Super Eagles.

Finidi’s appointment was announced on Monday as obtained via the official website of the NFF.

George had served as assistant to former coach Jose Peseiro for 20 months before assuming interim leadership of the senior national team in March this year.

The statement read in part, “The Board of Nigeria Football Federation on Monday approved the recommendation of its Technical and Development Committee to appoint former ace winger Finidi George as Head Coach of the Senior Men National Football Team, Super Eagles.”

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