By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88
The final round of matches in Group A took place on Sunday
night and if you were hoping for goals, goals and more goals, then you would be
left feeling incredibly disappointed. The two games in Lyon and Lille produced
just a solitary goal.
Albania won’t care about that though. They stunned Romania
in the Stade de Lyon to beat them 1-0 and achieve history. This was the night
they won their first major tournament finals game and it was richly deserved
too.
The Eagles’ now finish third in Group A and can still
qualify for the last 16. They face an agonising wait to see what happens in the
remaining group fixtures, possibly not knowing until Wednesday night their
fate. Romania will be joining Ukraine in boarding the early flight home out of
the competition.
In the night’s other game, hosts France and Switzerland
played out a snooze fest – drawing 0-0. The point ensures France progress as
group winners with Switzerland finishing runners-up.
Albania’s
night in Lyon
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| Albania players show their emotion after Sadiku's goal beat Romania |
In truth, the overall quality in the Romania vs. Albania
match in Lyon was low. However, Albania fully deserved their victory (players celebrating pictured) and if
they don’t go any further in the competition, they have something to fondly
remember at EURO 2016.
They created the better chances and should have gone 1-0
infront before they did. Ermir Lenjani somehow scooped the ball over the
crossbar with the goal gaping from three yards out. Fortunately for Lenjani,
who was excellent otherwise, his miss didn’t ultimately matter.
Albania’s main forward is Armando Sadiku and the FC Zurich
man kept chasing and pressing the Romanian defenders throughout the first half.
He got his reward two minutes before the break.
Sadiku met Ledian Memushaj’s cross and expertly guided his
header back across the goal and into the net. Romanian goalkeeper Ciprian
Tatarusanu had another horrible moment at these championships, once again coming
for a cross he never looked like collecting.
Romania pressed forward in the second half but struggled to
create much and leave EURO 2016 without a goal in open play. Both of their
strikes in this tournament coming from the penalty spot. It means that at five
European Championships, they still have only one win to their name which was the 3-2 success against England at EURO 2000.
With a -2 goal difference, Albania are not in the healthiest
of positions. They will now be praying for results to go their way in the next
few days. Czech Republic, Northern Ireland and Sweden are probably going to
be their main opponents for these best third-placed spots.
If they do advance, they will most likely play Germany or
England next weekend.
Ripped
shirts in Lille
The match between Switzerland and France in Lille would have
struggled to keep many fans awake, both in the stadium and those watching on
television. It wasn’t a good spectacle and pushes Germany vs. Poland close in
the battle for worst game of the tournament.
Already qualified, Didier Deschamps made plenty of
alterations to his team, giving the likes of Andre-Pierre Gignac, Moussa
Sissoko and Yohan Cabaye rare starts. Olivier Giroud and Dimitri Payet were
among those to be rested.
Paul Pogba was the livewire in this match. He forced Yann
Sommer into a couple of decent stops and struck the crossbar in the first half.
Payet, who came on for the last 25 minutes copied the trick, smashing a volley
against the bar with the goalkeeper beaten.
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| Valon Behrami deflated the football in a dull game in Lille |
Switzerland offered very little and seemed happy to get the
point they were looking for. You could tell that their main highlights were
Valon Behrami (pictured) stamping on the ball and making it deflate and ripped shirts for
Granit Xhaka and Admir Mehmedi after a couple of physical battles.
France will next play in Lyon next Saturday evening against
one of the best third-placed sides, with Northern Ireland or the Czech Republic
looking like potential opponents. Switzerland will kick the round of 16 off on
Saturday lunchtime and they are almost certain to face Poland.
My best
three players of Romania vs. Albania
Man of the Match: Ledian Memushaj (Albania)
Ledian Memushaj was the standout attacking player in Lyon.
He was head and shoulders above anyone else. Three shots on goal, several key
passes and one cracking assist for Armando Sadiku to head home and create
Albanian history.
2nd: Arlind Ajeti (Albania)
Having played well against the tournament hosts
last week, Ajeti kept his place in the team ahead of national team skipper
Lorik Cana. It was a wise decision from Italian coach Giovanni De Biasi. Ajeti
was solid throughout and limited Romania to only long-distance sights of goal.
3rd: Armando Sadiku (Albania)
He was only on the pitch for 59 minutes but Armando Sadiku
will now go down in Albanian sporting folklore. He worked hard for his side
throughout and got his goal with a deft header to ultimately seal a thoroughly
deserved Albanian win.
My best
three players of Switzerland vs. France
Man of the Match: Paul Pogba (France)
Dropped for the Albania match, Paul Pogba had a point to
prove and he demonstrated why he was considered France’s Golden Boy going into
the tournament. He hit the bar and was busy testing Yann Sommer in the first half.
No end product in Lille but this is what all of France wants to see.
2nd: Dimitri Payet (France)
Payet only played half an hour of this one as he was rested
by Deschamps for bigger tests to come. His introduction though lifted the crowd
and the team. He too was desperately unlucky not to find the net, smashing the crossbar from Sissoko’s excellent
cross.
3rd: Yann Sommer (Switzerland)
Yann Sommer came into this tournament off the back of an indifferent
campaign at club level for Borussia Mönchengladbach. He is so far one of the best goalkeepers of EURO 2016, making some sharp saves to frustrate
Pogba. He deserved his luck with the two French efforts that left him beaten,
but struck the woodwork.
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