Explainers

DANI OLMO, Nico Williams, Fabian Ruiz and Rodri struck as Spain completed a turnaround after a shock early own goal.Spain had been piling on the pressure, but a quick Georgian counter saw Robin Le Normand turn into his own net for the match’s opener.La Roja, one of the pre-tournament favourites, had it all to do – but Man City star Rodri fired in a smart strike from the edge of the box to start the turn around and were then able to take control of the game.EURO 2024 FREE BETS AND OFFERSThat’s all from CologneFrom where Georgia will go home as heroes, and Spain will head to Stuttgart to take on the hosts.The 2008 and 2012 champions were rampant in the face of the Georgia’s energy, and retaliated from a shock goal down to strike four times.It means it’s four wins from four for La Roja at these Euros, and you get the feeling that Luis de la Fuente’s young stars are only just getting started.We have two more Round of 16 ties for you tomorrow starting with France’s clash against Belgium before Portugal take on Slovenia.See you then. Goodnight.Copy linkCopiedNo quarter given when giants clashAfter sweeping aside Georgia in the rain, Spain will now move on to Stuttgart to face hosts Germany in Euro 2024’s first quarter-final on Friday.The meeting will be the first between the nations since they met in the group stage at the 2022 World Cup while it will be the first at the Euros since the 2008 final when Fernando Torres scored the only goal of the game.The other known quarter-final will see England take on Switzerland on Saturday after the Three Lions late escape act against Slovakia earlier today.Spain v Germany (Friday, 5pm)England v Switzerland (Saturday, 5pm)Copy linkCopiedWilliams in great NicSpain superstar Nico Williams became the first player on record at the European Championship to score a goal, assist a goal, and complete 100% of his passes (46/46) in a single game.Copy linkCopiedMatch stats from Cologne StadiumSpain amassed 17 shots in the first half against Georgia in Cologne, the most on record by a team in the first half of a knockout stage game at the European Championship since records began in 1980.Indeed, their 35 shots overall were their most in a match at either the World Cup (since 1966) or a Euros (since 1980).Copy linkCopiedFull time – Spain 4-1 GeorgiaIt’s all over in Cologne – and, to be honest, that has been the case for a while.The Georgia players drop to their knees, but they should hold their heads high for what they have brought to this tournament.Spain, however, proved a test too far for Willy Sagnol’s brave Crusaders, and so it’s the stylish La Roja that strut their way into the quarter-finals.Copy linkCopiedSpain 4-1 Georgia90+2. Navas nearly conjures a fifth for Spain with a belting low cross across the Georgia penalty area.With just seconds remaining, there’s now a concern for the Spanish with Nico Williams down, having awkwardly extended his leg in an effort to meet that last cross.Copy linkCopiedSpain 4-1 Georgia90. The board goes up to signal three minutes of stoppage time just as – and you’ll never believe this – Spain go on the attack.Copy linkCopiedSpain 4-1 Georgia88. If you think Spain have settled on four, then you don’t know this La Roja team.Yamal has passed up more opportunities to become the youngest Euros scorer while Williams and Olmo also continue to pepper Mamardashvili’s goal.The Spain shot count is now into the thirties.Copy linkCopiedSpain 4-1 Georgia86. In the torrential rain, Georgia are struggling to stay afloat.Spain are swimming out of the Last 16 and towards a quarter-final with Germany.Copy linkCopiedSpain 4-1 Georgia84. Substitute Dani Olmo gets in on the act!The RB Leipzig ace goes dancing in the rain after collecting Mikel Oyarzabal’s pass outside the box.He sends two defenders the wrong way with a shuffle of the body after a delightful first touch, and then plants a left-footer into the bottom corner beyond the rooted Giorgi Mamardashvili.A wonderful goal.Copy linkCopiedDani boy!Copy linkCopiedSpain 3-1 Georgia79. The rain is lashing down in Cologne.Only lightning and Michael Oliver can save Georgia now.Copy linkCopiedSpain 3-1 Georgia77. Williams works wonders on the left again!This time he cues up Olmo, who plants his shot straight at Mamardashvili.It should have been four.Copy linkCopiedSpain 3-1 Georgia75. There’s no doubt about this one though!And this time it’s Spain’s turn to counter to devastating effect.Fabian Ruiz scoops up possession outside of his own penalty area, and sends a wonderful 50-yard pass into the path of Nico Williams.With Otar Kakabadze upfield, Williams has room to exploit, and does so at speed by bursting into the box beyond Giorgi Gvelesiani.Giving Giorgi Mamardashvili the eyes, the Bilbao forward slams into the roof of the net to seal Spain’s spot in the quarter-finals.Copy linkCopiedNice one, Nico!Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia73. Spain have a third! But it’s not going to count!Giorgi Gvelesiani is the most relieved man in Cologne as it was he who turned Lamine Yamal’s cross into his own net.However, the Spanish teenager had gone too quickly in receiving Dani Olmo’s return pass, and is rightly flagged offside.Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia – Davitashvili yellow card70. Now the other sub gets stuck into the action.Or stuck into Dani Olmo, I should say,The Bordeaux man is booked for thundering into the Spain substitute on halfway.Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia68. A half-chance presents itself for Giorgi Tsitaishvili on the left.The substitute could either go across Unai Simon or look for a teammate in the middle, but instead slices wildly wide of the near post.Perhaps the 23-year-old could have done with a few minutes to get up to speed before taking on that opportunity.Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia – Spain double substitution66. Luis de la Fuente responds in kind.The Spain head coach calls for Alex Grimaldo and Mikel Oyarzabal for the final quarter of this game with Marc Cucurella and Alvaro Morata making way.As Morata departs, he hands the captain’s armband on to Rodri.Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia – Georgia double substitution64. Giorgi Tsitaishvili and Zuriko Davitashvili are on to beef up the Georgia midfield.Willy Sagnol sends the pair on in place of Luka Lochoshvili and Giorgi Chakvetadze.Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia62. Oh no! Kochorashvili gives an opportunity to Yamal with a slack pass across his own goal.Oh no! The teenager looks certain to make it three, only to slam his shot into the advertising hoardings.Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia60. This Round of 16 tie hits the hour mark in Cologne.As it stands, Spain are heading for a quarter-final with hosts Germany.But you just never know with this never-say-die spirit from the Georgians…Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia58. Despite falling behind, the Georgian gameplan remains the same: dig in and wait for those moments to counter.The only issue now is that Spain no longer feel the need to commit men forward.Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia56. Fabian Ruiz had threatened a goal since the first minute, and now has his third in his last four games for Spain in all competitions.The midfielder had only netted once in his first 22 caps.Copy linkCopiedSpain 2-1 Georgia – Spain substitution53. Not content with another assist, Yamal wants a goal of his own as he pulls a fierce shot wide from the edge of the area.Meanwhile, Luis de la Fuente has made a change following that goal, bringing on Dani Olmo for Pedri.Copy linkCopied More

KAI HAVERTZ and Jamal Musiala scored as VAR controversy and a long lightning delay interrupted Germany’s last 16 clash win over Denmark.The game had been SUSPENDED for over 20 minutes as heavy rain lashed the pitch and lightning struck close to the stadium.An early Nico Schlotterbeck header was disallowed by English referee Michael Oliver, before Denmark also had a goal disallowed for offside moments before the penalty was awarded via snickometer.TV/stream: ITV1 / ITVXGermany team: Neuer, Rudiger, Schlotterbeck, Raum, Kimmich, Andrich, Kroos, Gundogan, Sane, Musiala, Havertz.Denmark team: Schmeichel, Andersen, Christensen, Vestergaard, Bah, Delaney, Hojbjerg, Maehle, Eriksen, Olsen, Hojlund.CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO WELCOME OFFERSFollow our live blog below…Full match report – Alex Smith What a spectacle we witnessed in that game, which saw Germany progress and Denmark dumped out of Euro 2024. You can read the full match report from our man in Dortmund, here: Copy linkCopiedWirtz, Lightning and MusialaNot quite Earth, Wind and Fire, but the elements played more than their fair share in tonight’s game. But that is what Denmark had to try and survive tonight, and tried they did. The Danes put up a valiant effort to try and fight back against the Germans after an early onslaught, when the game was suspended due to some awful weather conditions. Lightning stuck Dortmund and thunder crashed around the sky before it started to pour through the stadium roof, which leaked a la Old Trafford. Some took to dancing in the rain, including these two fans who made the most of the occasion. These two fans made the most of the rain in DortmundCredit: EPALightning struck Germany and the players had to evacuate the pitchCopy linkCopiedMagic MusialaJamal Musiala looked like he played the game at a different pace to the rest of the players out there at points tonight. The German maestro, who was raised on the streets of London and played academy football for Chelsea, was simply unplayable. He was at times a master puppeteer, who had the likes of Bah and Andersen on strings, as he weaved his way through the Danish defence with something of a cross stitch. Bayern’s boy has been Germany’s man at this tournament so far, and he currently sits joint top of the goal scoring charts with three goals, taking no penalties in the process. It’s easy to see why he was so highly rated across Europe before this game, but if you were not familiar with the name Jamal Musiala before Euro 2024, you will be after it. Germany’s Jamal Musiala was our man of the matchCredit: APCopy linkCopiedMatch stats This is how the match stats look at full-time. It was a game that quite literally had everything. Three disallowed goals, a thunderstorm interruption, and two goals that counted, both in the favour of the hosts. The match stats as Germany beat Denmark by two goals to nilCopy linkCopiedFULL-TIME: Germany 2-0 DenmarkIt’s all over here in Dortmund, and the tournament hosts will be advancing to the quarter-finals to play the winner of Spain vs Georgia tomorrow. Congratulations Germany! Commiserations Denmark…Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark90+4. Kai Havertz has another chance to shoot across goal, but he misses once more. Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark90+3. Confirmed, goal disallowed. Copy linkCopiedGOAL DISALLOWED! Germany 2-0 Denmark90+1. Florian Wirtz thinks he has made it three, but instead he makes it three disallowed goals in the game. However, it will be checked…Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark90. There will be five minutes of added time at the end of the game here. Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark88. A nice try from Benjamin Henrichs who lashes a shot from distance, but it flies wayyyyyyy over the bar. Worth a try, I guess. Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark85. The game has become somewhat chaotic now after the changes, Denmark are going hell for leather to try and get a goal to get back in the game, but that Germany defence is standing strong. Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark80. Changes galore here in Dortmund. Jonas Wind, Jacob Bruun Larsen and Mikkel Damsgaard are on for Denmark, replacing Rasmus Hojlund, Andreas Christensen and Christian Eriksen. For Germany, Bundesliga Player of the Season Florian Wirtz is coming on for Jamal Musiala, and Benjamin Henrichs is on in place of David Raum. Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark78. Another corner for Eriksen and Denmark, which is halted as Vestergaard shoves Joshua Kimmich to the floor. Kai Havertz clears the corner well – like an old-fashioned centre-forward in that sense, which I like. Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark76. Denmark have a corner after a lapse in concentration by Schlotterbeck. It is whipped in by Eriksen, but cleared well by Germany. Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark73. Germany have got a grip on the game again here, with Toni Kroos comfortable in bossing the game, Musiala picks it up and looks dangerous once more, but this time is stopped in his tracks by Andersen. Copy linkCopiedGermany 2-0 Denmark70. Toni Kroos slips a ball into Havertz who makes another dangerous run, but he is offside once more. You have to feel a bit for the Danes here…Copy linkCopiedGOALLLLLL! Germany 2-0 Denmark67. JAMAL MUSIALA MAKES IT TWO!He goes level at the top of the Euros goal scoring charts!A great ball is played over the top, and he takes a gorgeous first touch before slotting it into the bottom right corner with his right foot. Poetry in motion, Jamal Musiala. Copy linkCopiedGermany 1-0 Denmark65. Kai Havertz and Ilkay Gundogan are replaced by Niclas Fullkrug and Emre Can. Fullkrug has four tournament goals in six appearances, all from the BENCH. Noted. Copy linkCopiedGermany 1-0 Denmark62. Jamal Musiala the puppeteer here in Dortmund, as he moves with the ball on strings on the left-hand side. Kai Havertz runs through on goal and plays the ball into Leroy Sane, but the former is called as offside. Copy linkCopiedGermany 1-0 Denmark58. HUGE MISS FROM HAVERTZ!An absolute sublime touch from the Germany forward sees him through on goal as he waves Auf Wiedersehn to the Danish defence.He just does not have the finish to match as he tries to dink the keeper and puts it wide of the post. Oh Kai…Copy linkCopiedGermany 1-0 Denmark56. Germany finally have lift-off, and they have outscored but not necessarily outplayed the Danes here. Denmark come forward straight away, but Bah is booked after a clash of heads with Robert Andrich. Copy linkCopiedGOALLLLLL! Germany 1-0 Denmark53. KAI HAVERTZ SMASHES HOME THE PENALTY!Kasper Schmeichel went the right way but it is a brilliant strike from the Germany and Arsenal forward into the bottom right hand corner. Germany finally have the lead in this game!Copy linkCopiedPENALTY CHECK: Germany 0-0 Denmark51. Moments after the disallowed goal we have got a check for a potential handball by the man who scored it, Joachim Anderson!It was from very close range, but could well be a penalty here. IT’S GIVEN.Copy linkCopiedGOALLLLLL! NO! Germany 0-0 Denmark50. DENMARK STRIKE FIRST. JOACHIM ANDERSEN, HIS FIRST DENMARK GOAL!Hold on. This will be checked…The goal is ruled out for offside, and in a game that could easily have been 1-1, we are stuck at 0-0. Copy linkCopiedSECOND-HALF: Germany 0-0 Denmark45. We are back underway in Dortmund here, and we are crossing everything we have got that we can get to the end of this game safely and on time!Copy linkCopied More

ITALY and Switzerland will kick start the knockout stages of Euro 2024 at the Olympiastadion in Berlin NEXT!The Azzurri scrapped through the group stages with a last-gasp equaliser against Croatia.Switzerland had an impressive group stage campaign as they went unbeaten to seal second place behind host nation Germany.Murat Yakin’s side beat Hungary in their first game before picking up 1-1 draws against Scotland and Germany.TV/stream: BBC1 / iPlayerSwitzerland team: Sommer; Schar, Akanji, Rodriguez; Aebischer, Freuler, Xhaka, Rieder; Vargas, Ndoye, Embolo.Italy team: Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Mancini, Bastoni, Darmian; Fagioli, Cristante, Barella; Chiesa, El Shaarawy, Scamacca.CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO WELCOME OFFERSFollow our live blog below…Switzerland 0-0 Italy5. Half the pitch is covered by the shadow of the Olympiastadion, but the rest is bathed in the early evening sunshine.”I’m surprised to see Italy press so quickly in this heat,” notes Danny Murphy on BBC co-commentary.Copy linkCopiedSwitzerland 0-0 Italy3. The Swiss have made a strong start here.Embolo had a shot blocked after just 14 seconds, some nine seconds quicker than the record-breaking goal the Italians conceded against Albania.That’s not the end of the early Switzerland pressure either. A Freuler shot from outside the box loops up and goes for a corner, that is eventually well defended by Mancini.Copy linkCopiedKick-off – Switzerland v Italy1. Peeeeeeeep! Polish referee Szymon Marciniak blows his whistle and Switzerland – all in red – get this knockout match underway in Berlin.The Italians, World Cup winners in this stadium 18 years ago, are all in blue, and eager to defend their European title.Copy linkCopiedHere come the two teams!The aperitif that was the group stage has been dealt with, and now it’s time for the main course.And first up, it’s the pasta masters of Italy and the hot chocolate of Switzerland.Gianluigi Donnarumma was crowned Player of the Tournament at the last European Championship, and he’s front and centre as captain three years later in leading the reigning champions out.Across for him at the Olympiastadion is Granit Xhaka, the Swiss skipper and their Mr Reliable in midfield. Over the next two hours – maybe more – one of these two will lead their nations into the last eight with many of their teammates taking on starring roles.This historic venue is the perfect setting to get the Round of 16 underway, and the weather conditions look equally adept for tournament football.Kick-off comes next.Copy linkCopiedEl Shaarawy’s shock selectionFew expected to see Stephan El Shaarawy’s name in the Italian line-up this afternoon, but Luciano Spalletti has trusted him with an important role it the Azzurri attack.This evening will be only the forward’s second appearance for Italy at an international tournament after appearing against the Republic of Ireland at Euro 2016, eight years and seven days ago.It is the second largest gap between appearances for an Italian player at a major competition after Ciro Ferrara in June 2000 (9 years and 348 days after his first appearance).Copy linkCopiedHow the sides shape upCopy linkCopiedAzzurri faves for final eightReigning European Champions Italy are expected to make it through to the quarter-finals of this year’s edition but they will be given a game by the Swiss. That’s the view of the bookies, who have the Azzurri as odds-against favourites while their opponents are a touch bigger than 2/1.Switzerland win 21/10Draw 15/8Italy win 13/8To reach the quarter-finals:Switzerland to qualify EvensItaly to qualify 8/11Odds from William Hill correct at time of post publication.Copy linkCopiedItalian feel to Swiss squadLong gone are the days of international football pitting two unfamiliar sets of players and cultures against each other.Six of Switzerland’s 26-man squad currently play their football in Serie A, five of whom start today.Yann Sommer (Inter), Ricardo Rodriguez (Torino), Remo Freuler (Bologna), Michel Aebischer (Bologna) and Dan Ndoye (Bologna) are all well known to fans of the Italian game.Copy linkCopiedDon’t bet against extra-timeIf you’re expecting a straightforward evening of knockout football that lasts little more than 90 minutes, then you might want to think again.And that’s because 15 of Italy’s last 26 knockout matches at major tournaments have gone to extra-time, including four of their last five.Overall, the Azzurri have had more games go to extra-time than any other nation at World Cups and European Championships, and have contested the joint-most penalty shootouts along with Spain (11).Copy linkCopiedSpalletti switches up AzzurriAfter changing things up for the group game with Croatia, Italy head coach Luciano Spalletti again rotates his squad.Federico Dimarco is injured and Riccardo Calafiori suspended, and they join Jorginho, Lorenzo Pellegrini, Giacomo Raspadori and Mateo Retegui in dropping out of the starting XI.Gianluca Mancini comes into a defence which is now a back four, while Nicolo Barella is now joined in midfield by Bryan Cristante and Nicolo Fagioli.Up front, former West Ham striker Gianluca Scamacca plays in between the supporting Federico Chiesa and Stephan El Shaarawy.Italy (4-3-3): 1 Donnarumma; 2 Di Lorenzo, 17 Mancini, 23 Bastoni, 13 Darmian; 16 Cristante, 21 Fagioli, 19 Barella; 14 Chiesa, 9 Scamacca, 22 El ShaarawySubs: 12 Vicario, 26 Meret, 3 Dimarco, 4 Buongiorno, 6 Gatti, 7 Frattesi, 8 Jorginho, 10 Pellegrini, 11 Raspadori, 15 Bellanova, 19 Retegui, 20 Zaccagni, 24 Cambiaso, 25 FolorunshoCredit: @Azzurri on XCopy linkCopiedVargas starts for SwissMurat Yakin makes one enforced change to the Switzerland side that pushed hosts Germany all the way to the final whistle last time out.Silvan Widmer is suspended after collecting two yellow cards in the group stage, and so he is replaced n the right by the more attacking Ruben Vargas.It’s a switch that’s likely to see Michael Aebischer playing in behind Vargas with Fabian Rieder operating back out on the left.Breel Embolo continues in attack following his recent injury woe while Granit Xhaka captains the team from the heart of midfield.Switzerland (3-4-3): 1 Sommer; 22 Schar, 5 Akanji, 13 Rodriguez; 20 Aebischer, 8 Freuler, 10 Xhaka, 26 Rieder; 17 Vargas, 7 Embolo, 19 NdoyeSubs: 12 Mvogo, 21 Kobel, 2 Stergiou, 4 Elvedi, 6 Zakaria, 9 Okafor, 11 Steffen, 14 Zuber, 15 Zesiger, 16 Sierro, 18 Duah, 23 Shaqiri, 24 Jashari, 25 AmdouniCredit: @nati_sfv_asf on XCopy linkCopiedAssured Azzurri dominating SwissThis evening’s encounter in Berlin will be the fifth meeting between Switzerland and Italy in a major international tournament.The Swiss won the first two games, both at the 1954 World Cup – 2-1 in the group and then 4-1 in a group play-off – but that’s as good as it’s got for the Red Crosses. The Italians have been 3-0 group stage victors in each of the last two such fixtures, at the 1962 World Cup, and – more recently – Euro 2020.In fact, since prevailing 1-0 in a May 1993 World Cup qualifier, Switzerland are winless in 11 matches against Italy in all competitions (D6 L5).They are only currently on a longer winless run against England (13) and Russia (12), while Italy are only on longer unbeaten streaks against Finland (14) and Turkey (13).Italy celebrate after victory against Switzerland at Euro 2020.Copy linkCopiedGood afternoon from BerlinWelcome to live coverage of Switzerland against Italy in the Last 16 of Euro 2024.It’s the first day of the knockout stage, and so it is fitting that we begin with the reigning champions.Mind you, they nearly didn’t make it this far in their defence at all.Had it not been for Mattia Zaccagni’s 90+8th minute equaliser against Croatia in Leipzig on Monday, then the Azzurri would already be back home having failed to make it out of Group B as one of the best third-placed teams.But the Italians are renowned slow starters, and a test against the Swiss this evening could prove the perfect opportunity to kickstart this summer’s campaign.In contrast, the Rossocrociati eased their way out of Group A – and almost beat hosts Germany to top spot until an injury time goal from Niclas Fullkrug denied them at the last six days ago.Murat Yakin’s men are now eager to at least replicate their quarter-final showing of the last Euros when they sparkled at this stage of the tournament with an epic comeback against France before prevailing on penalties.So which nation will be the first to book a place in the quarters? It’s almost time to find out.It’s a 5pm kick-off in the German capital, and team news is on the way.Copy linkCopied More