THE DAY REPLAYED – Putting effectiveness before entertainment, Poland, Wales and Portugal took the spoils on the opening day of the Round of 16 at UEFA EURO 2016. The Poles squeezed through on penalties against Switzerland, while the Welsh needed a little help from a Northern Ireland defender to edge a tight match, and the Portuguese left it until the closing stages of extra time to knock out a Croatia side that had dominated for long periods.
The Swiss scored the highest style marks of the day thanks to a breathtaking goal, though sadly for them it was to no avail. FIFA.com rounds up all the highlights from the first day of knockout action at France 2016.
The day’s results*Switzerland 1-1 Poland a.e.t. (Poland win 5-4 on penalties) Wales 1:0 Northern Ireland Croatia 0-1 Portugal a.e.t.*
The analysis Between them, Switzerland and Poland let in a solitary goal in their six group matches, the penalty conceded by the Swiss against Romania. Yet while all the indications were that their tie would be a tight, cagey affair, it turned out to be anything but, as the chances flowed. Taking one for Poland at the end of a sweeping counter-attack was Jakub Blaszczykowski, while the Swiss replied in superlative fashion through Xherdan Shaqiri. Locked together after two hours of football, the two sides settled the matter in a shootout, with the Poles making the most of Granit Xhaka’s miss to advance to the quarters.
Despite proving a little less resolute at the back in their group matches, Wales and Northern Ireland proceeded to cancel each other out in their tie. Michael O’Neill’s men kept the Welsh forwards at bay but reckoned without one of their own scoring at the wrong end, with Gareth McAuley’s late own goal - diverting a wicked Gareth Bale cross - allowing the men in red to advance.
The meeting between Croatia and Portugal produced even less goalmouth action, with normal time yielding only 11 attempts at either end, all of them off target. Portugal managed just three, with Cristiano Ronaldo responsible for none of them. Dominant for the most part, the Vatreni could not convert their superiority into goals and were undone right at the end of extra-time, when Ricardo Quaresma nodded home after Ronaldo had a close-range effort saved.
Highlight of the dayNot only was Xherdan Shaqiri’s late equaliser for Switzerland a crucial goal, it was also a stunning one. Positioned on the edge of the box, the Stoke City attacking midfielder launched his stocky frame into the air and unleashed a superb bicycle-kick, propelling the ball in off Lukasz Fabianski’s left-hand post. As crucial and stunning as it was, however, his work of art was not sufficient to take the Swiss through.
The stat 100 - Nani made his 100th international appearance against Croatia on Saturday, joining a very select band of Portuguese centenarians formed by Fernando Couto (110), Luis Figo (127) and current team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo (130). For his part, the Real Madrid man was playing his 31st match in a major international competition, putting him level with Iker Casillas in seventh place on the list of players with most FIFA World Cup™/UEFA EURO appearances.
What they said“No disrespect to Northern Ireland, but we knew it wasn’t going to be the prettiest of games. They made it hard for us. We did not have a lot of space, but the team was the most important thing and we knew one goal might be enough.” Wales forward Gareth Bale.
Sunday’s fixtures*Round of 16* France-Republic of Ireland (15.00) Germany-Slovakia (18.00) Hungary-Belgium (21.00)
The winners of UEFA EURO 2016 will represent Europe at the FIFA Confederations Cup Russia 2017