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Showdowns, own goals, thrills at Euro 2024
As the competition moves closer to its pivotal final week, the quarterfinals of Euro 2024 begin on Friday with a thrilling match between hosts Germany and Spain.
Here is the current situation with at least eight matches between some of the top players in Europe:
Big boys fight with each other
The two top-performing teams in the Euros will face off in Stuttgart against Spain at least one round earlier than fans would have preferred because of an unfair elimination bracket that includes four strong contenders for overall triumph on one team.
In the semi-finals, the victor of Friday's matchup will play either Portugal or France, two reigning European champions with rosters full of players from the best clubs on the continent.
England, meanwhile, will take on Switzerland on Saturday after narrowly defeating 45th-ranked Slovakia in the round of 16. Despite playing much worse than expected in each of their four games, England is now in the final eight.
Well-known failures
Some of the world's top football players have come together for the Euros, but none of the bigger names have emerged just yet because the two dominant sides, Spain and Germany, have mainly performed below expectations.
While Kylian Mbappe is far from the incredible form that won him the Golden Boot at the last World Cup and only has a group-stage penalty to his credit, Cristiano Ronaldo appears to have gone too far in this tournament.
Despite scoring all four of England's goals, Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane, the league's player of the year and top scorer in the Bundesliga, respectively, have performed much below expectations.
Icons of ageing & young firearms
In Germany, records have decreased for people of all ages. The 16-year-old winger from Spain, Lamine Yamal, is shining in Germany after making history as the youngest player to appear at a European Championship. If he scores in the quarterfinals or later, he will make tournament history as the youngest scorer.
In contrast, Pepe, 41, may potentially overtake Real Madrid's master midfielder Ronaldo, 39, and Croatia's Luka Modric, 38, who scored against the duo of Portugal and Italy.
Pepe has now become the oldest player in Euro history, and 12 out of 24 teams' records for the most age of a Euro player were established during this competition.
personal objectives in flames
The record of 11 own goals set at the last championships three years ago looks certain to be broken, even though the continent's top strikers have not been able to score. There have been nine own goals at this Euros.
In the tournament's history, there has only been 11 before Euro 2020. While UEFA's more lenient definition of an own goal has contributed, Germany has produced some outstanding efforts.
The most hilarious occurred during Portugal's 3-0 rout of Turkey, when Samet Akaydin inadvertently increased the margin by playing a sloppy back pass which ended with Zeki Celik and goalkeeper Altay Bayindir bundling into the net in a vain attempt to keep the ball out.
The bulk, however, have resulted from risky crosses, such as the one that saw Spain defeat Spain 1-0 in one of the most eagerly awaited group stage matches thanks to a header from Riccardo Calafiori.
Similar mistakes were made in attempted clearances to low crosses by Austria's Maximilian Woeber, Czech defender Robin Hranac, and Spain's Robin Le Normand, who all found their own net.
Underdogs make people happy 2024 Euro
Some outstanding underdog performances have countered the sluggish, immobile performances of FIFA's four highest-ranked teams heading into the tournament: France, Belgium, England, and Portugal.
Georgia's run to the last 16 of the competition, especially their 2-0 victory over Euro 2016 winners Portugal, shone despite their lowest ranking.
Prior to Euro 2024, Romania had only won one of its sixteen championship games. However, they had emerged victorious from their group, which included Slovakia, Belgium, and Ukraine, before losing to the Netherlands in the round of 16.
But Turkey has emerged as the real dark horses of the competition, securing a quarterfinal berth on Tuesday with a commanding 2-1 victory against fellow underdogs Austria.
In front of a fervent Dortmund crowd, Vincenzo Montella's Turkey and Georgia also played the finest group-stage match, with the Turks winning 3-1.