In Europe, an additional selection for Germany has begun. 12 teams are competing for three places in the final phase of Euro 2024. All of them became the best among those who did not qualify from their Nations League groups. Therefore, they will play a mini-tournament. It was inaugurated by Georgia, which received Luxembourg in its field.
Paradoxically, both teams, at different times in the main selection, claimed direct entry. Georgia started the tournament well, staying in the leading group, but then lost seven to Spain. It was a blow from which the team never seemed to recover. In fact, Luxembourg had the best group stage in history: five victories, when the opponents (Portugal, Bosnia, Slovakia, Iceland and Liechtenstein) coincide, not bad. This is no longer a dwarf team: the team is really progressing and definitely deserves to participate in this mini-selection. Although, of course, Georgia was considered the favorite. Even without Khvichi in the lineup.
The team’s main star was absent from the match lineup due to too many yellow cards. He got third in the last selection round with Spain, but went to the qualifying phase. So we had to do without him. Furthermore, all the other stars of the major championships were ready to play. Except that Zuriko Davitashvili started on the bench, but in principle he is not a frequent guest in the starting eleven.
Jvicha Kvaratskelia
Photo: Getty Images
We didn’t see anything unexpected in the first minutes. The Georgians, favorites, took control of the ball, although without much aggression. With similar formations, the team tried to force the opponent to press more actively to take advantage of unoccupied areas. But Luxembourg was ready for it. The team played in a low block, clearly hoping to counterattack and make several counterattacks.
Interesting plot in the Ukraine match.
Milosevic scored Rubin’s golden goal and loves Russia. And now he is two games away from the Euro Cup
The first alarm came in the 12th minute. The main star of the guests, Gerson Rodrigues, played in the center of the field and lost the ball. The Georgians immediately took it to the forward line, where Chakvetadze and Zavzivadze performed a brilliant combination with a backheel pass, which ended with a hit to the post. Then the game calmed down. In general, in the first half it was divided into episodes: the ball could be in the center of the field for 4-5 minutes, and then suddenly there was a loud explosion. The next one happened in the 21st minute, when Zavzivadze scored! But he did it by violating the rules: before sending the ball to the goal, he crashed into the goalkeeper’s head. The goal, naturally, was disallowed.
I will be zavzivadze
Photo: Levan Verdzeuli/Getty Images
What followed was another mediocre game with many fouls, but at the end of the half the Georgian team got involved again. This time it was much more effective: first Kakabadze made a great shot from inside the area, but the goalkeeper stopped it. And then a corner, which ended in a rebound from Zavzivadze himself, who still sent the ball into the net. In principle, the question of the winner could have been resolved already in the first half, but the Georgians again failed to take advantage of the next opportunity.
This is always a dangerous precedent. When you have 3-4 great opportunities, but you only take advantage of one. And 1:0 is a very slippery result. And both teams understood it very well. No one was surprised that it was the guests who started the second half better. And he immediately had an excellent chance with a very simple attack: a cross from the wing and an accurate shot from Barreiro. But Mamardashvili came to the rescue.
A couple more minutes passed and a similar attack. This time Barreiro crossed from the wing and Rodrigues already shot without much chance for the goalkeeper. The guests even celebrated, but then all the cameras were pointed at the referee. It turns out that video assistants saw the violation in the episode about 45 seconds before the goal. There Mikautadze’s legs were trapped near the opponent’s area. After the goal there were no breaks in the game, which is why the decision was so dramatic. A few minutes passed, but the result was the disallowance of the goal, a red card to the Luxembourg defender and the same score.
The referee annuls Luxembourg’s goal
Photo: Levan Verdzeuli/Getty Images
This is how hope is destroyed. Of course, emotionally this episode killed the rival of the Georgians. And it was important for the locals to increase their advantage to be able to play the final without nerves. And in the 63rd minute he achieved it. In the remaining 25 minutes, both teams seemed to accept the inevitable. Georgia kept the ball more often and calmly repelled rare attacks. They no longer needed the third goal.
Willy Sagnol’s team is in the final of Route C, where the ticket to the Euro Cup will be played. And they will face the winner of the Greece-Kazakhstan pair.
You can follow the Adiev team’s game online:
Live
Scandal at the Georgia party! Instead of scoring a goal, Luxembourg received a red card! LIVE
