Georgia produce biggest shock of Euro 2024 by stunning Portugal to reach last 16

Georgia stunned Portugal 2-0 in Gelsenkirchen to secure qualification to the knockout stages of Euro 2024 in their first ever major tournament.

Napoli’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia opened the scoring after just 93 seconds for the Crusaders after a sloppy pass from Antonio Silva gifted Georges Mikautadze the ball in a dangerous position.

Mikautadze doubled Georgia’s lead in the second period with his third goal of the tournament as he cooly converted from the spot after Silva was once again at fault for bringing down Luca Lochoshvili.

Roberto Martinez will not be overly concerned after making eight changes to the side that beat Turkey 3-0, with Portugal heading into this evening’s game having already won Group F.

Willy Sagnol’s side go through as one of the best third-placed teams and will now face Spain in the last 16, while Portugal will take on Slovenia.

Following a 3-1 defeat against Turkey and a 1-1 draw last time against the Czech Republic, anything but a win for Georgia would have seen them knocked out but they got off to the perfect start.

Silva’s wayward pass inside gave the Crusaders their first touches of the ball but they broke quickly and Kvaratskhelia made no mistake with his finish as his left-footed strike flashed past Diogo Costa into the bottom right corner.

Sagnol’s side were much harder to break down that in their previous games as they sat in a low block with Portugal struggling to create anything of real quality.

Their best opening in the first half came as a clever Joao Palhinha reverse pass looked to have freed Cristiano Ronaldo, but Giorgi Gvelesiani came across to block his effort superbly.

Georgia were expected to sit even deeper in the second half but it was just 10 minutes after the interval that Silva brought down Lochoshvili and allowed Makautadze to convert his second penalty of the tournament.

The Metz forward is now the leading scorer in the tournament having scored in each of Georgia’s three group games.

It was a sloppy and lethargic second period from the 2016 champions and aside from a couple of long-range efforts from Diogo Dalot, it took until added time for them to carve the Crusaders open.

Martinez’s side created two chances in as many minutes, coming closest through a low driven effort from Francisco Conceicao that flashed wide of the post.

But it was a deserved victory for Sagnol’s side, who defended well in a compact block but always looked dangerous on the counter and pressed with energy at the right moments.

Portugal will look forward to the return of the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva and Ruben Dias who were given a full rest ahead of the round of 16.

Talking Point – Dream start for Georgia as Kvaratskhelia gives Crusaders lift-off

In the 90 seconds of Portugal possession that we saw before Georgia’s opener, Sagnol’s game plan was evident as his side dropped into a compact 5-3-2 formation.

The former Champions League winner’s team talk would have been along the lines of ‘sit deep, absorb the pressure and take a chance if it comes our way’.

The Crusaders would not have expected this chance to come with their first move less than two minutes into the match but the link-up between the two centre forwards and the clinical finish showed a team full of confidence, belief and – most importantly – quality.

Georgia continued to look dangerous on the counter-attack through the hold-up play and energy of Kvaratskhelia and Mikautadze while looking solid defensively.

Sagnol will take confidence from this performance that his team has clicked and found a working formula ahead of their meeting with Spain – the only side to go through the group stage with a 100% record.

Player of the Match – Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Georgia)

Not only did he take his goal in superb fashion, but the Napoli forward was a constant threat throughout the 90 minutes and should have perhaps doubled his tally in the second half when the ball fell to him 12 yards out. It wasn’t just his goal threat that caused problems, the 23-year-old held the ball up excellently, giving his side moments of rest from the Portuguese pressure and at one point dribbled round four defenders before winning the free-kick.

Player Ratings

Georgia: Mamardashvili 8, Gvelesiani 8, Kashia 8, Dvali 7, Lochoshvili 7, Chakvetadze 8, Kochorashvili 7, Kiteishvili 6, Kakabdaze 7, Mikautadze 8, Kvaratskhelia 9*. Subs: Tsitaishvili 6, Kvirkvelia 5, Mekvabishvili 5, Davitashvili 6.

Portugal: Costa 5, Pereira 6, Silva 4, Inacio 5, Dalot 6, Palhinha 7, Neves 6, Neto 5, Conceicao 6, Felix 6, Ronaldo 5. Subs: Neves 4, Ramos 5, Semedo 5, Jota 6, Nunes 5.

Match Highlights

90+3′ – BEST CHANCE OF THE HALF FOR PORTUGAL: Conceicao fires a low effort across the goal. Jota tries to flick it in but it goes just wide of the far post. I’m not sure how that stayed out.

57′ – GOAL! GEORGIA 2-0 PORTUGAL: (Mikautadze) Mikautadze steps up to plate and cooly converts the penalty to Costa’s left. The keeper goes the right way but it is tucked well into the corner.

55′ – PENALTY GIVEN FOR GEORGIA: The referee is told to go and check the challenge by Silva on Lochoshvili. The Portuguese defender gets slight contact on the Georgia player and the referee points to the spot.

52′ – MASSIVE CHANCE FOR GEORGIA: The ball is pulled back into towards Mikautadze who misses it but it falls perfectly to Kvaratskhelia in the centre of the box but he fluffs his lines and scuffs it into the arms of Costa.

2′ – GOAL! GEORGIA 1-0 PORTUGAL: (Kvaratskhelia) A sloppy pass from Silva gifts Georgia the ball and Kvaratskheilia races through before dispatching his effort into the bottom right corner with a left-footed strike.

Key Stats

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