Euro24 : Austria stun Netherlands in a thriller, France locked 1-1 with Poland

 


France missed the chance to top their group despite Kylian Mbappe scoring his first European Championship goal in a 1-1 draw with Poland on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Austria secured a dramatic victory over the Netherlands to claim first place.


Didier Deschamps' French team failed to lead their group at a major tournament for the first time since Euro 2012 due to missed opportunities.


Austria, who lost their opening match to France, managed a thrilling 3-2 win over the Dutch, securing a place in the last 16 and pushing their already-qualified opponents to third place in Group D.


France dominated much of the game against Poland but have only scored two goals in Germany – an own goal by Austria's Maximilian Woeber and Mbappe's penalty. Les Bleus will now face the runners-up from Group E, where Belgium, Ukraine, Romania, and Slovakia all have three points, in the last 16.


Poland's goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski, filling in for Wojciech Szczesny, made two excellent saves to deny Mbappe – who was playing with a mask after breaking his nose against Austria – in the first half. Mbappe finally scored in the 56th minute, converting a penalty after Ousmane Dembele was fouled by Jakub Kiwior in the box. However, Poland equalized with 13 minutes remaining when Robert Lewandowski converted a penalty on his second attempt after Mike Maignan saved his initial shot but was found to have moved off his line.


**Austria's Triumph**


Dutch fans turned Berlin orange, maintaining their vibrant presence in the tournament, but Austria started strong. Their early efforts paid off when Donyell Malen accidentally scored an own goal.


Malen’s troubles continued when he missed a clear opportunity, shooting wide when clean through on goal. The Netherlands equalized shortly after halftime when Cody Gakpo finished a swift counter-attack following a midfield error by Austria’s Florian Grillitsch.


Austria regained the lead as Romano Schmid's header deflected off Stefan de Vrij into the net. Memphis Depay equalized again for the Netherlands with a superb volley following a header from substitute Wout Weghorst.


The excitement peaked when Marcel Sabitzer scored in the 81st minute, securing Austria's third and final lead.  This time there was no way back for the Dutch .


Ralf Rangnick's team will now face either Turkey, the Czech Republic, or Georgia in their bid to reach the quarter-finals for the first time. The Netherlands will play the winners from either Groups B, C, or E.



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