Now that the round of 16 is completed, the remaining eight teams must prove themselves in the quarterfinals. On Friday, July 5, and Saturday, July 6, they will compete for a spot in the semifinals of the 2024 European Championship. Read here which teams will face each other.
Spain – Germany
The quarterfinals kick off with a bang on Friday, July 5: host nation Germany plays against top favorite Spain. The latter is well on its way to winning the European Championship after the Nations League. After winning their group without dropping any points and a decisive victory over Georgia, it is clear that this Spain will not be an easy opponent for the Germans. We should also not forget that Lamine Yamal is still searching for his first goal to break the record of the youngest goal scorer ever at a European Championship.
In their own country, Germany is still trying to make up for the poor results of recent years. They already proved their current form with a 5-1 win against Scotland, but their performance dropped slightly afterward. They did reach the round of 16, where they sent Denmark home. Germany plays with a solid team, supported by experienced players and sped up by their younger teammates. Jamal Musiala is tied for first place in the Golden Boot rankings of the European Championship, and Kai Havertz and Niclas Füllkrug are also not far from the top.
Portugal – France
On the same day, we also get a clash between Portugal and France. Portugal handed the victory to Georgia on the last day of the group stage but still finished on top with the same number of points as Turkey. This easily secured their place in the round of 16, where Slovenia proved to be a tough opponent. After extra time, the penalty shootout ended 3-0. Star player Cristiano Ronaldo has yet to score in this European Championship, and after the match against Slovenia, it was clear he still wants to score at least one goal.
France also dropped points in the group with the Netherlands and Austria, just enough to prevent them from finishing first. The French ended up in second place. This put them against Belgium in the round of 16, where they advanced to the quarterfinals with a narrow 1-0 victory. Kylian Mbappé performed slightly better than Cristiano Ronaldo, but with just one goal, it can’t be called a great success. We will have to wait and see if he can match the level he reached at the World Cup in Qatar.
England – Switzerland
The ‘Three Lions’ of England did not perform as expected in the group stage. They did win their group, but only with one (narrow) victory and two draws. They also did not perform at their best in the round of 16, with the equalizer against Slovakia coming only in extra time. Jude Bellingham temporarily prevented England’s elimination, and Harry Kane decided the match with a goal in the first minute of extra time.
Switzerland also won only once in the group stage, but that was enough to advance to the next round. The Swiss did not win their group; that was Germany, but finished second. This put them against Italy in the round of 16, who also did not impress in the group stage. The Italians couldn’t raise their level, leading Switzerland to defeat them 2-0. The Swiss will face England on Saturday, once again with their captain Granit Xhaka. The midfielder led Bayer Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title, but can he also lead Switzerland to victory?
Netherlands – Turkey
The Netherlands were particularly lucky to be among the best third-placed teams. With a surprisingly strong Austria and a less impressive France, they earned enough points to qualify. Romania became their opponent in the round of 16. That country couldn’t win against Belgium but still topped their group. Oranje started strong in the match, scoring their first goal after 20 minutes. Donyell Malen sealed the victory for the Netherlands with two more goals in the last ten minutes. With stars like Virgil Van Dijk, Memphis Depay, and Frenkie de Jong, we can expect more from this team.
Their opponent on Sunday, Turkey, impressed in the group stage with their good football. They won against Georgia and the Czech Republic, with only Portugal proving too strong. They finished with the same points as the Portuguese in second place, leading to a match against Austria in the round of 16. The Turks quickly took the lead, and Merih Demiral extended it with his second goal of the night after nearly an hour. Michael Gregoritsch scored a consolation goal for Austria, but it was too late. Turkey has many players who make a difference on the field, including Hakan Calhanoglu, Arda Güler, Kerem Aktürkoglu, and many more.
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