⚽️ Euro 2021 Quarterfinals Review ⚽️

Euro 2021 Quarterfinals

Spain 1, Switzerland 1 (Spain wins, 3-1 during penalty shootout) – La Roja got by the Swiss, but just barely. Despite dominating on many levels, including shots on goal, time of possession, passes and pass accuracy, the Spanish could not convert enough of those opportunities to earn the win outright. In fact, it was not even a Spanish player who scored the team’s only goal, but an Own Goal by Swiss defender Denis Zakaria in the 8th minute, to give Spain the early 1-0 lead. However, the Swiss would answer with a tying goal by Xherdan Shaqiri in the 68th minute, tying the game after a rare defensive lapse by the Spaniards. Not too much later, however, Remo Freuler received a red card in the 77th minute, which forced Switzerland to play a man short the rest of the way. Still, the Spanish side could not capitalize, and so the game went into extra time, and then the penalty shootout. In the end, however, Spain was able to overcome a shaky start during the penalty shootout to ultimately come out on top and survive the Swiss scare.              

Italy 2, Belgium 1 – Two of the very best in the business clashed. And it was then Italians, seeking redemption after the embarrassment of failing to qualify for the last World Cup, who came out on top in this one. Nicolò Barella got things started with a goal in the 31st minute to give the Italian side the early lead. Lorenzo Insigne followed that with another goal for Italy in the 44th minute, giving the Italians a seemingly commanding 2-0 lead. At that point, it looked like it might be a rout. But the Belgians answered when Romelu Lukaku got a goal off a penalty kick to close to within 2-1 just before halftime. However, the Belgians were unable to get the equalizer, as the Italian defense held tough the rest of the way. Italy was not far better than Belgium in this game, but they held just that little bit of an edge that proved to make all the difference in the end, as they advance to the semifinal round, and a date with Spain to see who gets to the final.              

Denmark 2, Czech Republic 1 – Playing with some seeming motivation following the bizarre collapse and heart attack by Christian Eriksen not long ago, the Danish side has been playing some of the most inspired football in the tournament. They pulled off another huge win, just holding off the Cech Republic to earn the win that punches their ticket into the semifinal. The two sides were actually fairly even in most statistical categories, and the Czechs actually enjoyed an advantage in passes and time of possession. But it was the Danes who capitalized the most on what opportunities they were able to create. Thomas Delaney broke through first in just the 5th minute, giving Denmark the early 1-0 lead. Kasper Dolberg scored Denmark’s second goal in the 42nd minute, and it looked like the Danish side might have a relatively easy day. But then, impressive Czech star Patrik Schick, who has enjoyed an incredible Euro tournament and is currently the top scorer for this Euro, earned another goal to pull his team within a goal of tying the game. However, they were unable to get the equalizer, as the Danish side held them off to survive into the next round.              

England 4, Ukraine 0 – This game was decisive, to say the least. England took control early, taking the lead in just the 4th minute off a Harry Kane goal. He would get a second goal in the 50th minute, just four minutes after Harry Maguire had scored for England in the 46th minute. Yes, Ukraine tightened up after that first Kane goal in the first few minutes of the game, and indeed, it was still close by halftime. But the English just took over in the second half, with those two goals, and then yet another in the 63rd minute by Jordan Henderson, that made it 4-0 in favor of the English side. Statistics showed a relatively even game, with the English enjoying somewhat of an advantage, but the real story here was how they were able to convert as many of their opportunities as they did, pulling away and making this game out of reach for a Ukrainian side that nevertheless enjoyed the best tournament results that the country has ever enjoyed in a major international tournament. However, it will be the Three Lions who would be celebrating, as they break through to the semifinal round in their second consecutive major international tournament, as they also reached the semifinal of the World Cup in 2018.              

Euro Semifinal Predictions:              

Italy defeats Spain              

England defeats Denmark              

Euro Final Prediction:              

England defeats Italy