In the early hours of July 1st, two Round of 16 matches took place at the European Championship. England and Spain both staged comebacks to advance. However, although they both fought back from losing positions, the Three Lions barely managed to overcome Slovakia, while the Spanish bullfighters cruised to a landslide victory over Georgia.
After a stuttering group stage performance, few expected England to breeze past Slovakia. Despite facing a team with limited attacking prowess, Southgate stuck to his guns and deployed a 4-2-3-1 formation. Bellingham, Foden and Saka seemed to operate in isolation for much of the game, and Kane appeared uncomfortable.
Despite their lavish squad worth a reported £1.52 billion, England were tormented by Slovakia’s counter-attacks. Schranz opened the scoring, plunging the Three Lions into a desperate situation.
On the verge of crashing out in the Round of 16, Bellingham emerged as a savior, scoring an acrobatic equalizer in the 95th minute to rescue England from the brink. Kane sealed the victory in extra time, ending Slovakia’s fairytale run. Following the match, fans praised Bellingham’s moment of brilliance and Southgate’s resilience. But against a more formidable Swiss side with greater efficiency, will England have the same fortune?
If England’s qualification was a nail-biting affair, Spain’s was a complete demolition. Although an early own goal from Le Normand, forced by Kvaratskhelia, put them behind, Spain unleashed a barrage of shots in the first half, keeping Mamardashvili on his toes. Rodri equalized in the 39th minute with a thunderous low shot, quickly extinguishing the crisis.
After the break, Spain’s attack exploded. Yamal assisted Fabian Ruiz to give them the lead, followed by goals from Nico Williams and Olmo. The Spanish bullfighters thoroughly crushed Georgia’s spirit with a four-goal blitz after conceding first, achieving a thoroughly dominant win. To top it off, Spain recorded a staggering 35 shots on goal, almost nine times their opponents’ total.
The 16-year-old Yamal shattered numerous records. He became the youngest player in European Championship history to feature in the knockout stages, and he equaled Cristiano Ronaldo’s achievement to become the first player under 20 to register two assists in a single European Championship tournament since Ronaldo in 2004.
As the saying goes, heroes emerge from youth. Remember that Ronaldo was 19 when he achieved this, while Yamal, four years later, is still eligible for the U20s. His future is undeniably bright.
With their 4-1 comeback against Georgia, Spain achieved a perfect start to the tournament, winning all four of their matches. Let’s compare this to their previous triumphs. In 2008, they also enjoyed a dominant run, but were forced to a 0-0 draw against Italy in the Round of 16 and ultimately progressed only after a penalty shootout. In 2012, during their title defense, they drew their opening match against Italy. In other words, this Spanish squad seems even more dominant than their predecessors during their dynasty years.
However, Spain will face a grueling test in the quarter-finals against the hosts, Germany. Can they continue their winning streak?
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