The quarter-finals of the Euro 2024 will kick off today with the hosts Germany playing Spain in a huge clash and France playing against Portugal in what will be a Euro 2016 final rematch.
Spain vs Germany – Stuttgart
Spain and Germany are still undefeated in the Euro 2024 ahead of their quarterfinal meeting in Stuttgart. Germany won two matches in group A against Scotland and Hungary and drew against Switzerland. They faced a tough test against Denmark in the Round of 16 but the hosts came out as 2-0 winners.
Spain come into the quarterfinal with a 100% record beating Italy, Croatia, and Albania in the group stage. In their first Round of 16 match against Georgia, they demolished newcomers 4-1.
Germany captain İlkay Gündoğan was full of praise for both sides leading up to the clash “It will definitely be a match of equals,” Gündoğan said.
“The two sides are probably playing the best football in the tournament at the moment. It will come down to who deals better with not having the ball at times and not panicking.”
The two meeting between the two nations came in the FIFA World Cup group stage match when the game ended in a 1-1 draw.
France vs Portugal – Hamburg
Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappe will be in the spotlights when France play Portugal in the quarter-final of the Euro 2024 at Hamburg.
Portugal faced some bumps after making a positive start to the tournament. The Euro 2024 beat Czechia and Turkiye in the first two games but lost to Georgia in the third.
They had to dig deep in their Round of 16 clash against Slovenia. The game ended in a 0-0 draw after 120 minutes and it was Diogo Costa who saved Portugal’s blushes saving three penalties in a row to take Portugal to the last 8.
France finished second in the group D with 5 points. They beat Austria in their opening match and drew the next two against Netherlands and Poland. In their knockout game against Belgium, they emerged as 1-0 winners to set a date with Portugal in the quarter-final.
Both the teams have found it difficult to hit the back of the net lately with France yet to score in Euro 2024 from open play. Portugal on the other hand have also failed to score in the last two matches.
Portugal have only won once in the pair’s last 7 meetings but that win famously came in the Euro 2016 final when Eder scored the only goal of the match in extra time to give Portugal their first-ever Euro triumph.
Mohd Faisal Hakak is a sports author from Kashmir. He likes to keep tabs on the sporting world with a keen interest in football, motorsports, NBA, and other marquee sports. He is a science graduate from Islamia College Srinagar.
