Portugal and Turkiye assume pole positions in Group F of the ongoing UEFA European Championship tournament in Germany after winning their respective opening games.
Turkiye got their campaign underway with a meeting with debutant Georgia, who had won just once in five meetings with the Turks.Turkiye however was on a run of five defeats in six major tournament games, having not won more than just their 2-0 success over Czechia in Euro 2016.
They also headed into the game on a poor run of no wins in five games, a run which produced three defeats, including a 6-1 humbling in the hands of Austria.
However, Vincenzo Montella’s side got off to a wonderf start in Dortmund as Mert Muldur fired them inf front with a sensational volley five minutes before the half-hour mark.
Kenan Yildiz thought he had doubled the advantage two minutes later only to be penalized for an offside following a VAR review.
Georgia drew level two minutes after the half-hour mark as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia assisted Georges Mikautadze for the country’s first-ever goal in UEFA European Championship finals.
Georgia grew in confidence following that goal, but Arda Güler scored a sensational curling strike five minutes after the hour-mark to help Turkiye reestablish their lead.
The goal saw him, Güler, 19 years and 114 days, become the youngest player to score on their UEFA European Championship debut, breaking the record set by Cristiano Ronaldo at 19 years and 128 days, in 2004.
Kerem Akturkoglu scored in the final minute of added time after Georgia committed all players out for a free-kick as they look for an equalizer. Orkun Kokcu cleared the ball towards Akturkoglu, who ran the lenght of the pitch before slotting into an empty net.
It finished 3-1 to Turkiye, who asssumes top of the table and kept the spot, even after Portugal’s meeting with Czechia.
Up next is a meeting with group favourite Portugal. The win over Georgia will given them the needed boost ahead of the game, even though an entirely different challenge awaits.
Portugal tamed a stubborn Czechia
It was not going to be an easy clash against a side that came into the tournament with momentum. The Czech has probably been the best team on form heading to Euro 2024.
They had won all of their five previous games and remained unbeaten in seven, winning six all together. In addition, Czechia has won all four games under the management of Ivan Hasek, who replaced Jaroslav Silhavy at the turn of the year.
Despite each of of their four previous meetings with Portugal ending in defeats, there was a glimmer of hope that their current form could earn them something positive against Roberto Martinez’s minions, who have not been performing at a level expected of them.
At kickoff, Pepe became the oldest player to feature in a UEFA European Championship game in history after his inclusion in the starting XI of Portugal while the team’s captain Cristiano Ronaldo became the first player to feature in six different edition of the competition.
Portugal started the game brightest and dominated the first-half but the match ended in a goalless draw, the first time a game in Euro 2024 will not produce a goal before the interval.
Portugal created three big chances but couldn’t put any away. Cristiano Ronaldo was amongst those denied by Czechia goalkeeper Jindrich Stanek, while Rafael Leao was booked for a dive as half-time approached.
Lukas Provod finally broke the deadlock two minutes after the hour-mark with a sensational shot from outside of the box from a Vladimir Coufal assist. The goal helped Czechia end a run of three games without scoring in the fixture.
Portugal surged forward, desperate for an equalizer. They did manage to carve one out in an unusual circumstance as Leao’s head down created havoc in the box, and Stanek’s pounch came off Robin Hranac and into the net for an own goal.
Substitute, Diogo Jota scored after a Cristiano Ronaldo’s header had came off the woodwork in the 87th-minute but the goal was ruled out by the VAR as Ronaldo was just offside in the build-up.
The winner eventually came through 21-year-old substitute Francisco Conceicao two minutes after he came on in the 90th minute.
Fellow substitute Pedro Neto sent a low cross into the box that was cut-out by a Czechia defender, leaving the ball at the mercy of Conceicao, who slots home for his first international goal for Portugal and complete the comeback.
A winning start for the 2016 champions as the new generation of players set to achieve success of their own in the company of their greats approaching the end of their careers.
Portugal faces Turkiye next while Czechia will hope to get a result against debutant Georgia in the next round of games to stand any change of reaching the next round.
