Euro24 : Belgium stunned by Slovakia 0-1, Romania hand 3-0 defeat to Ukraine

 

Belgium were stunned by Slovakia in what was a major upset in this Euro24 . The Belgians paid for the terrible football.  Miss passes were seen throughout the match.  Standing in front of the goal, Romelo Lukaku left one easy chance after another.  The two balls he scored were also ruled out.  Slovakia took advantage of Belgium's poor performance.  They beat Belgium 1-0 and caused the first accident of the current Euro Cup.

 Belgium is number 3 in the FIFA ranking.  They have been in the top five for the past seven years.  Slovakia is at number 48.  Against a team 45 steps behind them, Belgium could have taken the lead in the opening 3 minutes.  Doku went up the right edge and passed into the box.  Lukaku hits straight at the goalkeeper.

 After 4 minutes, Slovakia pushed Belgium.  Bojenik took a pass from Ivan Shrange and hit a powerful shot from outside the box.  The shot was blocked by Castiles but Schranz scored on the return.  Belgium falls behind.

 Belgium dominated the ball in the midfield.  Kevin the Bruins, Onana, Dokura were keeping the ball to themselves.  They were also attacking.  But all attacks in the penalty box were failing.  Trossard got an empty goal after 21 minutes.  Even after that he could not score.

 Slovakia was playing every attack.  They were using physical force.  There were only two people in the attack.  But when they got the ball, they were troubling the Belgian defenders.  The Belgian team that played in the 2022 World Cup did not have eight members in this team.  Many are playing Euros for the first time.  It was understandable.  Lukaku got another chance after 41 minutes.  He found the goalkeeper Dibravka alone but shot wide.

The second half also came and went for Belgium . They tried to dominate more . Lukaku scored from point blank range but was declared off side . Another goal just before the end by Lukaku was painfully reversed by a VAR decision as another Belgian forward has handled the ball . Belgium just could not score till the end and were stunned by the 1-0 scoreline at the end as Slovakia celebrate an unexpected win.

Romania Stuns Ukraine in Euro 2024 Opener

Earlier  Romania got their Euro 2024 campaign off to a dream start with a convincing 3-0 victory over Ukraine in their Group E opener at the Munich Football Arena.

The Romanians, led by manager Edward Iordăscu, took a deserved lead just before halftime thanks to a moment of brilliance from Nicolae Stanciu. After a poor clearance from Ukrainian goalkeeper Andriy Lunin, Dennis Man set up Stanciu, who unleashed a stunning first-time curler into the top corner. Man nearly doubled the lead before the break, but his shot took a deflection and went wide.

The second half saw Romania take control of the match with two quick goals within five minutes of each other. Răzvan Marin found the net from the edge of the area after the ball fortuitously bounced to him. Shortly after, Denis Draguş capitalized on a swift corner kick to tap in from close range.

Ukraine, coached by Serhiy Rebrov, struggled to respond throughout the game. Although Georgiy Sudakov tested Romanian goalkeeper Florin Niță with a late shot, there were no real signs of a comeback. Romania held firm to secure a memorable victory.