Tag Archives: Georgia

Spain sink hard-fighting Georgia (Watch Video)

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Three-time champions Spain survived an early scare to beat a spirited Georgia 4-1 on Sunday and reach the Euro 2024 quarterfinals, bringing an end to their opponent’s fairytale run.

La Roja will meet hosts Germany in the quarterfinals after a polished performance, with goals from Rodri, Fabián Ruiz, Nico Williams and Dani Olmo in Cologne.

They had gone behind in the 18th minute when Robin Le Normand turned Otar Kakabadze’s bouncing cross into his own net.

“We are very happy to get through to the quarterfinals, very excited,” Williams said after the match. “Step-by-step we have shown that we are a great team and if we continue at this level we can do great things. Their goal was a mistake, it was unintentional, we all cheered Robin on and in the end we are all pleased and happy.

“[Germany will be] very difficult, they’re a tough nut to crack, but we have a wonderful, well-structured team and if we play at this level we can win.”

Spain had a perfect record in the group stage with three wins and no goals conceded, their best start since 2008, when they went on to win the tournament.

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Coach Luis de la Fuente brought his first choices back into the starting lineup having made 10 changes in the final group game, while Georgia kept faith with a side that included the tournament’s joint top scorer, Georges Mikautadze, and its leading shot-stopper, Giorgi Mamardashvili.

Playing in their maiden Euros, Georgia were riding a wave of euphoria and seeking an unlikely Iberian double after last week’s staggering 2-0 win over Portugal sent them into the knockout rounds.

Spain were dominant from the outset and almost went ahead five minutes in, when Dani Carvajal’s cross from the right found Pedri, who forced an early save from Mamardashvili.

Williams came close soon after when his goal-bound shot was deflected wide of the target.

But Georgia stunned Spain when they went ahead as Mikautadze found Kakabadze on the right and he whipped in an early cross that struck Le Normand and bounced into the net.

Spain kept their cool and equalised after 39 minutes when Williams picked out Rodri, who fired a low shot into the corner.

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They made it 2-1 six minutes after the break when a magnificent Lamine Yamal curling cross was headed home by Fabian Ruiz.

Williams killed off any hope of a Georgia comeback with a superbly taken strike in the 75th before substitute Olmo completed the rout with seven minutes left.

Photo Credit: EURO2024/x

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Georgia hand Ronaldo’s Portugal shock defeat, help England to avoid huge clash

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Georgia booked a place in the last 16 of Euro 2024 in their debut appearance at a major tournament with a 2-0 win over Portugal on Wednesday in the biggest upset by FIFA rankings in European Championship history.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s early goal and a Georges Mikautadze penalty earned Georgia, ranked 74th in the FIFA rankings, the win over already-qualified Portugal. Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal are ranked sixth in the world, and they were European champions in 2016.

Slovakia’s (48th) win over Belgium (third) earlier this tournament previously held the distinction for the biggest upset.

The win, albeit against a largely second-string Portugal who had already made it into the next round, also represented the greatest result for Georgia since the country gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Coming from a disappointing fourth in their Euro qualifying group, Georgia had to take a circuitous route to Germany, first by winning their group in the less glamorous UEFA Nations League tournament then by defeating Greece in a playoff.

But there was nothing undeserved about the way Coach Willy Sagnol, the former Bayern Munich and France defender, and his side claimed a third-place finish in the tournament’s Group F and set up a last-16 meeting with three-time Euro winners Spain.

When those two sides met last September in the qualifying stage for the tournament in Germany, Spain thrashed Georgia 7-1 in Tbilisi.

Georgia’s win also means that England will face Slovakia in the round of 16 on Sunday afternoon, avoiding a potential heavyweight clash with the Netherlands.

Georgia, the tournament debutants, took the lead in the second minute when Kvaratskhelia, the Napoli winger, raced away after a careless pass by António Silva and powered a low shot past Diogo Costa in Portugal’s goal.

Ronaldo — one of only three starters for Portugal who also played in their 3-0 win over Turkey on Saturday — stretched and strained for every ball as he sought to become the oldest goal scorer at a Euro tournament at the age of 39.

But Georgia defended as if their lives depended upon it and sought to catch Portugal on the break. In the 53rd minute, Silva compounded his earlier error by committing a foul in the box that was given as a penalty after a VAR check.

Mikautadze, who had provided the pass for Kvaratskhelia to open the scoring early on, steered his spot kick past Costa, making him the top scorer at Euro 2024 so far with three goals.

Ronaldo was booked in the first half for arguing and cut a frustrated figure when he was substituted after the break, kicking out at a water bottle. It is the first time in his long career that he failed to score in the group stage of a major international tournament.

Georgia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili made late saves to keep Portugal at bay, and at full time the rest of the squad and coaching staff sprinted on to the field to leap and dance in front of their fans.

The celebrations were fully deserved. Georgia came close to snatching a draw with Turkey but lost 3-1 in their opening game and missed a great chance to beat Czechia a few days later in a 1-1 draw, leaving them perilously close to elimination — until Wednesday’s historic night in Gelsenkirchen.

Photo Credit: EURO2024/x

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Spain manager warns Cucurella, others about their next opponents, says they are “dangerous”

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Spain manager Luis de la Fuente has told his team that Georgia should not be underrated despite being debutantes.

The La Roja will be taking on Georgia, who booked their place in the knockouts with a famous 2-0 victory over Portugal.

Luis de la Fuente said : “We have maximum respect for them. They are a team that is having a great tournament, that has defeated Portugal; and that, due to the experience we have, we have seen that they have been improving and progressing in their performance. We will have to give our best version to have a chance of going through.

“We have seen that they have changed the system somewhat, but not the idea they have, with players who come out very quickly in transitions. We will have to be very careful. The experience of having played matches and the security of having qualified, with the motivation that comes from beating Portugal, make them more dangerous. They, thanks to that trajectory, will have security. We, too, with ours.

Spain and de la Fuente will be aware that they are coming up against a very confident Georgia side, although it’s worth noting that La Roja defeated the Easter Europeans 1-7 and 3-1 respectively in their Euro 2024 qualifiers, which could provide a psychological edge on Sunday in Cologne.