Against Belgium, France let no surprises happen, and they eventually beat their opponents 1-0 to become the fifth team to advance to the quarter-finals of the European Championship.
In this game, the Belgian team did not work hard, facing France, which is probably one of the best teams in football today, the Belgian team was very passive, but they did not give their opponents many chances. As the clock ticked by, Belgium saw hope of extra time.
Unexpectedly, at the critical moment, the French team scored. To be precise, it was the Belgian team's own goal that helped the French team score. With 85 minutes played, N'Golo Kante played the ball up front and Muani received the ball and turned and volleyed, the ball hit Vertonghen's thigh and eventually changed direction and flew into the goal.
Vertonghen looked dead at the sight of his team-mate's goal, and he knew for sure that his own goal would lead to Belgium's elimination. I have to say that the luck of the French team is indeed too rebellious. In the first round of the group stage, they relied on an own goal from Wolbel to defeat Austria. Unexpectedly, just entered the knockout round, the opponent gave the French team an oolong gift, and won 2 oolongs in 4 games in a major competition, is the French team really the chosen son?
However, the French team can wait for this oolong, thanks to the referee's noble hand. Because before they attacked, Saliba had actually fouled Lukaku, and the referee turned a blind eye. Lukaku had his back to the ball and Saliba pulled and pulled behind him, causing Lukaku to lose control of the ball, before France had a chance to counter-attack and eventually score the fateful goal for both teams.
It was precisely because of this controversy that the Belgian team was eliminated. It's no wonder that the world's No. 3 Belgian team was so angry after the game, they were definitely out of the tournament unjustly. Although there is no shame in losing to the world No. 2 French team, the Belgian team is indeed unwilling to be eliminated in such a way. If the game goes to extra time, Belgium may not be out of chances.
Because of this loss, the Belgian team also missed the quarterfinals, which also led to their 129-year team, and they still have 0 titles in major competitions such as the European Championship and the World Cup. The past decade has seen Belgium usher in a golden generation, with the likes of Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne giving hope to a team that was founded in 1895 and has a chance to win the tournament. Unfortunately, Belgium only finished third in the 2018 World Cup and never won the title. At the European Championships, they and the champions are even more out of reach. Now that they are out again, the Belgian team can only continue to wait, but they don't know when their next golden era will come.
Seeing France beat Belgium 1-0, Portugal must have been under a lot of pressure as well. If given the choice, they would certainly prefer to face Belgium rather than France. Against Slovenia, Portugal beat their opponents 3-0 on penalties to reach the quarter-finals. In the next quarter, they will face France. Although the latter is not in the best condition, the overall strength of the French team is definitely above the Portuguese team.
In the top half, there are also key battles such as Germany and Spain, with two teams being the best performers in this European Championship, but unfortunately only one team will make it to the last four. In the top half of the knockout round, the four favourites will battle for a place in the final. Which team do you think will come out of the encirclement in the end?