By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88
Considered favourites once again after cruising through
their opening Group D battles, Spain coasted through their final game in the
group against Croatia and paid a very heavy price.
Ivan Perisic continued the theme of late goals at EURO 2016.
The Inter Milan winger scored an 87th minute winner for Croatia,
squeezing a shot inside David de Gea’s near post.
Croatia won an entertaining duel 2-1 and top Group D,
bumping Spain into second spot and consequently, forcing them into a tasty
last-16 clash next Monday with an in-form Italy.
Elsewhere and Northern Ireland’s progression was sealed
after Czech Republic were beaten 2-0 in Lens by Turkey. Turkey still hold a
slim chance of going through but will be requiring a favour from Italy and
Belgium on Wednesday night to keep them in the tournament come the weekend.
Off-colour
Spain
Spain weren’t meant to be taking any chances and Vicente del
Bosque showed that in his team selection. He kept an unchanged line-up from the
side that dispatched Turkey comfortably four nights ago.
By contrast, Croatia boss Ante Cacic made five changes to
his personnel although this was down to injuries and the risks of possible
suspensions to three of his team. Luka Modric and Mario Mandzukic were both
sidelined by injuries sustained in the draw with the Czechs on Friday
afternoon.
It looked like the reigning champions would run away with
the game in the opening exchanges and they led inside of seven minutes. Alvaro
Morata scored his third goal of the tournament, finishing off a cracking pass
by Cesc Fabregas. It has been a busy day for Morata, who is returning to Real
Madrid after a buyout clause, was activated in his contract with Juventus.
Whether it was complacency or just an off-night, Spain
seemed to take too many risks with and without the ball. The usually polished
Andres Iniesta couldn’t dictate the tempo of the match and the game bypassed
the likes of Nolito and apart from assisting the goal, Fabregas.
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| Nikola Kalinic had a great night in Bordeaux, with one goal and one assist |
Croatia levelled just before the interval. Ex-Blackburn
Rovers forward Nikola Kalinic (pictured) finished from close range. It was the first goal
Spain had conceded at the European Championships since Antonio di Natale struck
for Italy in a EURO 2012 group game in Gdansk.
The Croats carried on their momentum in the second half but
received a stroke of good fortune in the last 20 minutes. David Silva won a
contentious penalty and up stepped skipper Sergio Ramos. His spot-kick was
powerful but saved by Danijel Subasic. Replays showed that the goalkeeper was
at least three yards off his line so the penalty should have been retaken.
On the backfoot and clearly rattled, the Spanish conceded a
soft winning goal. Kalinic found Perisic and his shot took a slight deflection
off Gerard Pique’s boot and beat De Gea at his near post. It was unfortunate on
Pique but a goalkeeper of De Gea’s calibre shouldn’t have been beaten as he
was.
Croatia now head into the easier section of the draw and
Spain now will have to beat Italy and probably Germany and France to even make
the final. Their task to retain the Henri Delaunay trophy has just got a lot
tougher.
No revenge
for Cech
Eight years ago, Turkey and Czech Republic played out one of
the most gripping games ever seen at a European Championships. The Turks came
from 2-0 down in the last quarter to sensationally win 3-2, helped by a rare
effort on the night by Petr Cech.
Cech would have been desperate to gain revenge for that
painful night he suffered in June 2008 in Geneva. It wasn’t to be.
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| Burak Yilmaz set Turkey on their way to victory in Lens |
The momentum the Czechs had following their comeback point
against Croatia didn’t transform into this match. They were on the backfoot
once Burak Yilmaz (pictured being congratulated) had fired Turkey infront in the tenth minute.
Volkan Babacan had a fine game in the Turkish goal as he
kept the Czech Republic out before their ambitions of making the knockout
rounds were shattered by Ozan Tufan’s strike after the interval.
It will close the book on Cech’s international career with
retirement expected so he can focus on a strong end to his club career at
Arsenal. It was a disappointing campaign for the Czech Republic and although it
was always going to be a tough group to progress from, they didn’t do enough in
their three chances to shine.
My best
three players of Croatia vs. Spain
Man of the Match: Ivan Perisic (Croatia)
In Luka Modric’s absence thanks to injury, Perisic stepped
up to lead the attacking charge for Croatia. He has been one of the most
consistent players of the competition so far, always producing a threat from
the flanks. Now has two goals to his name and deserved to score the winner
here.
2nd: Nikola Kalinic (Croatia)
It was a delightful performance from Croatia and Kalinic
definitely played his part in proceedings. Brought his country back into the
game and laid off the winning strike for Perisic. Kalinic is an able deputy for
Mario Mandzukic. Blackburn Rovers’ fans will be wondering why he struggled so
badly for them during his spell in England.
3rd: Darijo Srna (Croatia)
This has been a tough nine days for the Croatian skipper who
has had to deal with the death of his father during the group stages and fly
back in-between games for the funeral. With that in mind, he has performed so
well. Produced a fine cross for the equaliser and also had a vital block in the
build-up to the second goal. Apart from an unnecessary booking for dissent,
this was another very good show by the right-back.
My best
three players of Czech Republic vs. Turkey
Man of the Match: Mehmet Topal (Turkey)
Centre-back is not Mehmet Topal’s preferred position but he
is filling in capably in the competition for Turkey. He created the second goal
that killed Czech Republic’s hopes off and marshalled everything brilliantly
from the back with a performance of leadership and courage.
2nd: Volkan Babacan (Turkey)
Volkan Babacan hasn’t exactly covered himself in glory in
his first two games for Turkey in EURO 2016. He made up for that in this match,
making five saves and organising his defence well for a morale-boosting clean
sheet.
3rd: Emre Mor (Turkey)
Fatih Terim placed a lot of trust in the 18-year-old and he
looked completely unfazed. Produced a delightful cross for Burak Yilmaz to
finish and offered a fresh impetus out wide. This performance indicates how
much Borussia Dortmund rated him as they’ve just bought him from Norwegian
football.
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