UEFA Euro 2021 Quarter Finals Update

As we head into the UEFA Euro 2021 Quarter Finals of the (delayed) 2020 edition of the UEFA European Championship, eight national teams maintain dreams of hoisting the Henry Delaunay trophy.

Some of the squads one might expect to see in the quarterfinals of the Euro (France, Portugal, Germany) are now sitting at home, while teams like Ukraine and Denmark continue their march toward everlasting glory – something soccer needs in the absence of Maradona. But perhaps no upset was more shocking than defending World Champion France losing to Switzerland via penalty kicks in Romania on Monday.

After remaining deadlocked at 3-3 after both regulation and extra time, the match was decided on the 10th and final penalty, during which Swiss goalkeeper Yann Sommer dove to his right and stopped French wunderkind Kylian Mbappe’s attempt. “I think that everything we had in us, we left out on the field,” Sommer said. “I’m unbelievably proud of this team, how we’ve done it this evening.” With the win, the Swiss reached the quarterfinals of a major tournament for the first time since the 1954 World Cup, which, coincidentally, was held in Switzerland.

In Copenhagen, Spain held off Croatia in what is undoubtedly a contender for best match of the whole tournament. The Spaniards overcame an own goal by Pedri and a late onslaught by Croatia to secure their first win in a major tournament knockout game since the 2012 European final.

Goals from forward Mislav Oršić (85’) and midfielder Mario Pašalić (90’+2) gave the Croatians life and forced extra time, but, it was all for naught, as Álvaro Morata and Mikel Oyarzabal found the back of the net in extra time, and helped Spain secure the win. “I’ve lived through really intense matches as a player and manager but this one genuinely had a bit of everything,” Spain’s coach Luis Enrique said. Morata, who has had a subpar tournament, provided what turned out to be the decisive goal in the one hundredth minute. “I don’t think there’s any coach in the world who wouldn’t admire a player like Morata,” Enrique said. “He dominates in the air, he scores goals, he is physically powerful. He is a striker we should really value.”

In what was possibly Cristiano Ronaldo’s final Euro appearance, defending champion Portugal was ousted from the tournament by top-ranked Belgium. After injuries to Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne left the Belgique side particularly vulnerable, midfielder Thorgan Hazard stepped out from his brother’s shadow and scored the game’s only goal in the 42nd minute.

While both stars have been ruled out of Belgium’s quarterfinal date with Italy, coach Roberto Martinez is confident they can return to the pitch should the Red Devils advance. “It’s quite positive for us. Eden and Kevin have no structural damage. They will remain with the squad,” said Martinez. “We won’t get them fully fit for Friday. In the next phase they will be fit to play. We take it day by day.”

England, for their part, overcame years of agony (even if only for a night) against rival Germany. Goals from forward Raheem Sterling and captain Harry Kane gave the Three Lions their first victory over the Germans in a knockout game of a major tournament since the World Cup final in 1966. The victory was especially satisfying for England coach Gareth Southgate, who famously missed a pivotal penalty against Germany in the semifinal of the 1996 Euro. “I can’t change the fact the guys I played with in ’96 didn’t get to play in a final and that will always live with me,” Southgate told ESPN. “But what this group of players have been able to do is give a new generation a lot of happy memories and another afternoon where they’ve made a bit of history.”

A weekend full of action kicks off Friday, July 2 at 12 p.m. ET as Switzerland takes on Spain in St. Petersburg, followed by Belgium vs Italy live from Munich at 3 p.m. ET. On Saturday, the Czech Republic faces off against Denmark in Baku at 12 p.m. ET, while Ukraine and England round out the quarterfinal round in Rome at 3 p.m. ET.
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