Day 2 of the UEFA Euro t 2024 threw up some surprises as far as results are concerned and none of the big hitters found it particularly comfortable to get through their first round of fixtures. Italy had to come back from behind to defeat Albania, just like the Netherlands had to in their match with Poland. Finally, Denmark failed to beat Slovenia, as both sides shared the spoils in that encounter.
The holders, Italy, emerged victorious in their Euro 2024 opener, but it certainly did not come easy. Federico Dimarco’s misplaced throw-in was pounced upon by Nedim Bajrami, who fired his shot in the near post from a tight angle to hand Albania an early first minute lead. However, the Italians ensured that their opposition’s lead lasted just 10 minutes as Alessandro Bastoni’s thumping header from close range found the back of the net.
From there on, it didn’t take long for Luciano Spalletti’s men to take the lead, with Nicolò Barella firing home a sweet right-footed volley into the corner of the net from just outside the penalty area. Overall, it was Italy who enjoyed more possession, keeping 69% of the ball, while managing 17 attempts on goal, out of which five found the target.
Unfortunately for Albania, they did not manage to test Gianluigi Donnarumma again after scoring the game’s opener early on. Up next for Italy is a difficult test against Spain, while Albania take on Croatia as part of their second group-stage clash.
Probably among the pick of the games on this day was the Netherlands’ comeback victory against Poland. After a strong start from the Dutch, they conceded against the run of play as Adam Buksa, the man who was stepping in for Robert Lewandowski, found the net in the 16th minute. However, the Netherlands importantly found a response as Cody Gakop’s deflected effort in the 29th minute was the game’s equaliser. The men in orange found their winner through substitute Wout Weghorst with seven minutes left on the clock in a closely contested second half.
All-in-all, both sides had their fair share of chances. The Netherlands mixed it up, going long when needed and taking a measured approach through midfield when necessary. Overall, the Dutch, with 66% possession, attempted 21 shots, from which four found the target. On the other hand, Poland registered 11 attempts, out of which seven tested Bart Verbruggen in the opposition goal.
It doesn’t get any easier for the Netherlands after this tricky fixture, as they’ve got 2018 World Cup winners France in their next game. Meanwhile, Poland will be hoping to score all three points against Austria in their upcoming contest.
The final match of the day saw Slovenia take on Denmark and much to the surprise of many, it wasn’t Danes who came out victorious. However, they did open the scoring through main man Christian Eriksen following a good start from them in the 16th minute. After a wonderful bit of control in the center of the box, the Manchester United midfielder stretched his right foot to meet the ball and find the corner. However, Slovenia constantly proved to cause problems with balls into the penalty area. They even on occasion attempted long throw-ins, which Denmark weren’t too convincing in defending.
Rasmus Højlund missed the chance of the game, failing to tap home a low-driven cross in the 65th minute to double his side’s lead. This miss came back to haunt Denmark and Slovenia finally found their equaliser through Erik Janža’s deflected effort in the 77th minute. It was a ball into the box again that created havoc in the Denmark defending and eventually it fell to Janža just outside the area.
Overall, it was a fairly even contest, but Eriksen and company enjoy most of the ball possession (68%). They took 16 shots compared to the opponents’ 11, while the Danes found the target four times as opposed to Slovenia testing Kasper Schmeichel twice.
Denmark play their next match against an England side, who wern’t too convincing against Serbia. Meanwhile, Slovenia face a Serbian side that will be disappointed to not have at least got a point against The Three Lions.
How the points table looks:
Group B Group C
| Teams | Played | GD | Points | Teams | Played | GD | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spain | 1 | 3 | 3 | England | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Italy | 1 | 1 | 3 | Denmark | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Albania | 1 | -1 | 0 | Slovenia | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Croatia | 1 | -3 | 0 | Serbia | 1 | -1 | 0 |
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