With the conclusion of the final day of Round of 16 action from Euro 2024, we finally have our last eight remaining teams as the Netherlands set up an intriguing quarter-final clash against Türkiye in Berlin.
The Dutch made lightwork of a spirited Romania side in Munich before Türkiye sealed a memorable 2-1 win against Austria to make it to their first quarter-final in major tournaments since 2008.
So without further ado, let’s break down all the action from the final day of Round of 16 action of Euro 2024.
Match 43: Romania 0-3 Netherlands
A clinical first-half Cody Gakpo goal followed by two late goals from substitute Donyell Malen was enough to book Ronaldo Koeman’s side a place in the last eight of Euro 2024.
This being their first knockout game since Euro 2000, Tricolorii approached the game without any fear. Their energy and aggression both on and off the ball forced the Dutch to drop deep for the opening ten minutes. However, it was only a fleeting period of nervousness as the in-form Cody Gakpo scored his third goal in this tournament when he took a touch on the inside of Andrei Ratiu and struck a crisp strike beating goalkeeper Florin Nita at his near post.
It should have been 2-0 or 3-0 at the break had it not been for wastefulness of the Netherlands’ part in front of goal. However, they finally got the decisive second when Gakpo kept the ball alive on the by-line and squared it to Malen, who could not miss his near-range effort. The pacey forward added the gloss with the final action of the match, latching onto Xavi Simons’ neat ball before chopping inside Rãzvan Marin to find the bottom corner.
Also watch: UEFA Euro 2024 Round of 16 preview
Match 44: Austria 1-2 Türkiye
Two Merih Demiral goals from two corners were enough as Türkiye beat Austria 2-1 in Leipzig to set up a quarter-final clash with the Netherlands, though they also needed a wonder save from Mert Günok in stoppage time.
Austria had gone ahead inside the first 10 minutes in their previous two matches, but yesterday they were on the receiving end. Arda Güler, Türkiye’s teenage sensation, whipped in a corner that goalkeeper Patrick Pentz could not deal with and Demiral fired home the opening goal. Clocked at just 57 seconds, it was the fastest goal in the history of the European Championship knockout stages.
Marko Arnautovic squandered a golden opportunity to equalise when he failed to put the ball in the back of the net when he went one-on-one with the keeper, and Austria never did draw level. Demiral nodded in another superb Güler corner just before the hour mark to put Türkiye in total control of the tie.
Substitute Michael Gregoritsch did latch onto a knockdown to pull one back for Austria and set up a dramatic finish, though the Türkiye goalkeeper, Günok, produced the save of the tournament to deny Christoph Baumgartner in the final moments of a thrilling match.
Following a tight battle in Leipzig, Türkiye will now face the Netherlands in the quarter-finals, with the winner set to face one of England or Switzerland in the semi-finals.
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