Euro Round Up Insights: Turkey's Dominance and Portugal's Narrow Escape

Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal won a thrilling game against Czechia in the closing seconds to launch their Euro 2024 bid.

There was a thrilling Group F opening between Turkiye and Georgia before then.

But one has to watch out for more than just the football.

Here is what happened at Group F on the last day of Euro 2024 round one group stage matches. 

Turkey and Georgia: Guler makes a difference

A fierce rainstorm in Dortmund saturated the field and seeped through the stadium roof before the game started.

About five million individuals in Germany have Turkish ancestry, and there is a sizable Turkish population in the Dortmund-area Ruhr industrial region.

Famous Signal Iduna Park Yellow Wall was painted crimson on Tuesday night.

Along with goals by Mert Muldur and Kerem Akturkoglu, Real Madrid playmaker Arda Guler delighted the Turkish fans.

Turkey led after Mert Mulder volleyed into the top corner. The crowd roared again a short while later when Kenan Yildiz believed he had made it two goals to one. VAR ruled the goal out. Georgia equalised in the thirty-second minute.

The undisputed team hero, Georgian winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, was the target of the Turkish defence. Still, his colleague Georges Mikautadze levelled the score by firing the ball low into the near corner.

Georgia erected a defensive wall of their own after the equaliser, which Turkey found difficult to breach until the moment of brilliance produced by teenager Guler.

In the sixty-fifth minute, Turkey made the breakthrough as the Real Madrid player curled the ball from the right side into the top corner.

His goal made him the first youngster to score on his Euro debut since Cristiano Ronaldo in 2004.

Giorgi Kochorashvili and Zuriko Davitashvili were both unlucky, and goalie Giorgi Mamardashvili moved forward for one final attempt as Georgia had numerous excellent opportunities to equalise and even hit the post in injury time.

Turkey won thanks to a breakaway goal by Kerem Akturkoglu at the very end. Star player Khvicha Kvaratskhelia of Napoli was not at his best, but his squad still gave itself hope for the following games against Portugal and the Czech Republic.

Portugal – Czech Republic: The Selecao wins three points thanks to a late goal

Cristiano Ronaldo played in his sixth European Championship game, and 41-year-old defender Pepe became the oldest player in tournament history during the game.

In the first half, Bruno Fernandes came closest to breaking the lock, slicing through the Czech backline to reach Cristiano Ronaldo in the 32nd minute, but Jindřich Staněk saved his shot.

The Czechs disrupted the fun in the 62nd minute when Lukas Provod scored a beautiful goal from outside the box against the flow of play.

Seven minutes later, Czech goalie Jindrich Stanek blocked Nuno Mendes' header, but the ball ricocheted back into the defender's net not far from Robin Hranac's leg. Portugal was level.

Ronaldo tried his hardest to grab the lead with an equal score, but the striker struck the post. Diogo Jota tapped in the rebound, but the goal was ruled out for offside against Ronaldo.

Coach Roberto Martínez added Francisco Conceicao and Pedro Neto in the ninetieth minute, and the two scored in the same minute.

A close-range strike by Conceicao helped the squad grab the win.

"Things were tough for us today, but for the way they reacted, we deserved to win," said Martinez.

"Francisco is the ultimate example of 'earning it'. He showed he was ready to help the squad. He's a very mature player with a nose for danger in the box.

"Francisco is doing what he has done for the past four months for his club team. It's not easy; he showed character and his worth." VNS

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