Hamburg (Germany), July 6: In the much awaited clash of formidable opponents, France held their nerves and ousted Portugal in the UEFA Euro 2024 quarterfinal at the Volksparkstadion, here. With the win, France marched into the semifinals and will play Spain, who had beaten hosts Germany in their quarterfinal face off.
The two stalwarts of soccer world Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappe faced each other as Portugal took on France on Friday in a tensed quarterfinal. But Mbappe was substituted in the first half the matchowing to his previous injury.
But Ronaldo’s Portugal crashed out of the quarter-final of the Euro 2024 after Mbappe-led France defeated them via penalty shootout. This is Ronaldo’s last European Championship.
Both teams were deadlocked 0-0 at full-time, but France won the penalty shootout 5-3. in the quarterfinal. France thus booked a semi-final showdown against Spain, who sent hosts Germany out of the tournament.
Interestingly, the quarterfinal game between France and Portugal was a rematch of the Euro 2016 final. The match also came on the 18th anniversary of another pivotal clash between the sides: a game at the 2006 FIFA World Cup when Zinedine Zidane smashed the winner through a penalty in the semifinals.
Portugal and France were touted as pre-tournament favourites this time but have failed to light up the event thus far. After two wins in their first two matches, Portugal could not score in their last two outings against Georgia and Slovenia.
Finally, they were beaten by France and ended their Euro 2024 campaign on a disappointing note.
