Kickoff chronicles

England vs Slovakia

The first game played on day 2 of the Round of 16 saw England take on Slovakia at the Arena AufSchalke. England dominated the ball for the opening quarter of the game but it was Slovakia who went on to score first in the 25th minute. A long ball from the Slovakian half was cushioned down into the path of Juraj Kucka who had space to run. Kucka had two men either side of him with only 2 England defenders back. He played it through to his right where Ivan Schranz had made a smart run. He was strong enough to prevent Marc Guehi from making a challenge on him and finished the move calmly with the outside of his right boot. It was a shock to the system for both England’s players and fans and it certainly threw a spanner in the works for Gareth Southgate. The Three Lions continued to dominate possession in the Slovakian half but had nothing to offer up in the final third. The first 45 minutes ended 0-1 with Southgate needing a big performance from his players in the next half.

England thought they had made the perfect start to the second period when Phil Foden tapped the ball into the Slovakian net with 50 minutes on the clock. Harry Kane spotted the run of Kieran Trippier on the left side of the penalty area. He progressed with it into the 6 yard box and maybe should have taken it on himself. Instead he opted to put it on a plate for Phil Foden who had the easy task of tapping it in. Unfortunately, Foden’s timing of his run was terrible and it was miles offside when VAR checked it over. The score stayed 0-1. England threw everything they could at Slovakia, hitting the post and their captain and focal point in attack, Harry Kane, was missing open goals left right and centre. Finally, in the last minute of the game, Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham conjured up a thing of beauty to send the teams into extra time. With only 60 seconds left on the clock, England sent up almost everyone to try and get something off the final action of the game, a throw-in. Kyle Walker’s hefty throw was met by the leaping Marc Guehi who flicked the ball into the danger zone. Bellingham then acrobatically jumped to strike the ball, watching as his overhead kick found the bottom right corner to save England once again.

With the momentum in their favour, it only took the Three Lions 2 minutes into extra time to go ahead for the first time in the fixture. After Foden’s free kick was cleared away, Eberichi Eze attempted to volley the ball back at the Slovakia goal but got the strike all wrong as it bounced over to the left side of the 6 yard box. It was the perfect pass for Ivan Toney who headed the ball intelligently back across goal. Running in was Harry Kane who smashed the ball into the back of the net with his head, giving England a 2-1 lead in the game. Slovakia never really looked like converting to send the game to spot kicks and England held out for the 2-1 win. Like every game in the tournament so far from the Three Lions, it wasn’t pretty but they got the job done. They will face Switzerland on Saturday afternoon in what looks like a brilliant quarter final clash. It ends in heartbreak for Slovakia. They were just 1 minute away from winning their first ever knockout game in a major international competition.

Spain vs Georgia

The final game of day 15 saw Spain take on Georgia at the Cologne Stadium with the only team to win every game in the group stages taking on the lowest ranked FIFA team left. Much like the previous tie, Spain dominated the opening exchanges but found themselves down 0-1 after 18 minutes. Full back Otar Kakabadze made a run down the right wing before whipping a ball into the 6 yard box. Unfortunately on the end of the brilliant delivery was the young Spanish centre back Robin Le Normad who put the ball into the back of his own net feeling the pressure as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was coming in behind him. It continued to be the tournament of the own goal, the tally now up to 8. Spain’s reaction was quite the opposite to England, coming up with the perfect response just 21 minutes later. Nico Williams received the ball down the left wing before he played it back to Manchester City man Rodri just outside the area. Rodri set himself up before poking the ball into the bottom right corner, levelling the two sides. The half finished 1-1 with it only a matter of time before Spain found the lead.

The 3 time champions found their 2nd of the tie just 6 minutes into the second period. 16 year old wonder kid Lamine Yamal played a brilliant whipped cross over to the back post where Fabian Ruiz headed the ball powerfully into the back of the net. In the 75th minute, Spain wrapped up the tie when Nico Williams scored a fantastic 3rd. He received the ball almost in his own half before sprinting at the Georgian backline. When he made it to the penalty area, he made a fool of Georgian defender Guram Kashia, dropping the shoulder and progressing even further into the box. He then capped off a brilliant individual move by smashing the ball into the roof of the net, sending Spain into the quarters. Dani Olmo capped off a perfect second half performance from Spain when he scored in the 83rd minute to make it 4-1. He received the ball just outside the penalty area and his first touch was spectacular, putting the Georgian defender out of the picture and setting himself up for a brilliant finish into the bottom left corner. The fixture ended 4-1 with Spain’s dominant 2nd half display enough to see them into the quarter finals with a star studded tie against hosts Germany awaiting them. Georgia were knocked out of the Euros on their first appearance at a Major international competition but it was certainly one for their fans to remember, especially their famous win against Portugal to qualify themselves for the knockouts.

Written by Ollie Wade