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After all that action, the group stages of the Euros are finally over, and in just a couple of hours as I type in this blog, the UEFA 2012 European Football Championships enter the famous knockout stages. But before that, let me give you a hard-and-fast recap of the final day of the group stages.
Group A:
1. Denmark 1-0 Poland
The first hour of the game showed close saves and near-goals as the two sides were in a fierce, heated deadlock that got loose when Jiracek let one go an found the net just about 20 minutes before full-time. Poland went in the rush to find two goals for them to stay in the competition, but they were denied.
Co-hosts Poland leave the Euros disappointed, that's for sure. They simply didn't capitalize on their chances. They weren't able to connect their finishes.
2. Greece 1-0 Russia
This was a very weird match. Just before half-time, the Greek side's Karagounis somehow fired one into Malafeev's net, scoring the only goal in this match. It was a bit of a shocker since Malafeev seemed to have had it covered, but somehow the ball ricochet's past him and into the back of the net. To quote Coelho, the "Gods of Football" were watching Greece that night.
This shock loss astonishingly knocks Russia out. And considering they were pretty much on a roll in their past two matches... Football is a weird but fun sport, indeed.
Karagounis somehow beats keeper Malafeev to net the winning goal for Greece against Russia.
Video retrieved from youtube.com. Uploaded by t0nysFootballVideos.
Group B
1. Portugal 2-1 Netherlands
The Dutch were determined to win this one. After all, they needed the planets to line up this night. They needed a win plus they also needed Germany to beat Denmark for them to progress. They dreams seemed to have been half-met when van der Vaart finds the goal in the 11th minute. But then comes the previously misfiring Ronaldo, who nets ten minutes later. Ronaldo would pull the coup-de-grace trigger for the Dutch come the second half, when he finds the net again.
This means the Netherlands leave Group B without a single win. Miserable? Definitely.
2. Denmark 1-2 Germany
Denmark, like Netherlands, also needed a win tonight for them to progress. A 19-minute goal from Podolski made that seem less possible, until Bendtner made a crucial pass to his teammate Krohn-Dehli who successfully hit the back of the net for the equalizer. But then, lightning strikes twice, as they say. Just like their heart-breaking loss to Portugal after finding the equalizer, they suffer the same fate when German kid Lars Bender shoots a brilliant goal at the 80th minute.
Group C
1. Croatia 0-1 Spain
Before the match, UEFA's computers predicted a 2-2 draw between the two, to much anger from Ireland fans, since a draw here would kick them out the match. Both sides said the match-fixing allegation was nothing but that, a prediction. How true. Croatia tried to make sure they left this match with a win, to no avail. The deadlock was broken as late as the 88th minute, when Jesus Navas found the winning goal.
Croatia leaves Euro 2012 on a defeat, but a hard-fought defeat.
2. Italy 2-0 Ireland
Contrast to the Croatia-Spain bout, this one had no controversy. It was straightforward football, and the luck of the Irish was simply not to be found and Italian prowess reigned. A goal from Cassano in the 30th minute, and a fantastic finale goal from Balotelli at the 90th minute seals the Irish defeat.
Ballotelli pulls a cool volley to sink Ireland 2-0.
Image retrieved from 3news.co.nz
Group D
1. Sweden 2-0 France
Already knocked-out Sweden made sure they walked out of the Euros with fireworks. Goals from Captain Ibrahimovic and Larsson was enough for Sweden to walk into the sunset with a smile.
2. England 1-0 Ukraine
Rooney starts for England after a two-match ban has been imposed on him. And sure enough, he made sure Hodgson would know of his value when he netted the winning goal for his country, sending co-host country Ukraine out of the competition.
This was an important win for the Three Lions because they needed it to progress to the knockout stages of the competition.
Rooney heads the winning goal for England.
Image retrieved from nationalturk.com
And with that, the group stages are finished and we enter the quarter-finals! Here's the list of fixtures for that one, courtesy of Soccerway.com.
Oh, and don't forget to go here for updates on the Euros! The fixtures look like they could be really exciting!
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