Croatia v Italy LIVE: Reaction as last-gasp Zaccagni goal sends Azzurri through to Euro 2024 knockouts
Croatia 1-1 Italy: An equaliser with the final kick of the game sent the Azzurri through and likely knocks Croatia out
A dramatic added-time goal from Italy’s Mattia Zaccagni snatched a 1-1 draw with Croatia which was enough to earn them a place in the last 16 of Euro 2024 and likely sends Croatia home.
After a goalless first half, Croatia’s Luka Modric had a penalty saved in the 54th minute but just 60 seconds later he smashed home a rebound after Gianluigi Donnarumma pulled off another fine save from Ante Budimir.
The goal brought defending champions Italy to life, and they pressed for the equaliser which would take them through and, with time running out, Zaccagni curled home a shot from distance to break Croatian hearts.
It meant Italy finish as Group B runners-up and will face Switzerland in the last 16, while Croatia are third on two points and must wait to see if they will progress as one of the best four third-placed finishers, although it is now unlikely.
Relive all the drama below:
The young stars are out at Euro 2024 as football’s next era arrives
When Julian Nagelsmann sat down with Jamal Musiala on becoming Germany manager, he repeated a piece of advice he gave to the playmaker when they were together at Bayern Munich. That was to just keep playing as if he’s back on a small pitch having fun. Musiala’s age means that was just a few years ago, and it makes the words all the more striking, given he’s now effortlessly illuminating the greatest stage in European football.
Zinedine Zidane didn’t get this before dominating Euro 2000, when he was 28. Despite that gap, Musiala is being seen in similar terms to the French great then, at least as far as an individual European Championships goes. That is as the potential player of the tournament.
Part of that comes from Musiala’s uniquely balletic abilities, but it is also a wider shift. The majority of stand-out performers at Euro 2024 have been players that are still eligible for the under-21s or younger. Musiala’s main rival for burgeoning star, Jude Bellingham, is 20. Musiala’s teammate and scorer of the opening goal, Florian Wirtz, is 21. The scorer of perhaps the best goal, Turkey’s Arda Guler, is 19. Spain’s Lamine Yamal became the youngest player to ever appear at a Euros at a mere 16, and has thrilled alongside the 21-year-old Nico Williams in giving Spain a new intensity. The 18-year-old Warren Zaire-Emery is meanwhile considered more than ready to step in for a Didier Deschamps France, which would have been close to unthinkable during Deschamps’s time as a player with Zidane.
The young stars are out at Euro 2024 as football’s next era arrives
With the likes of Jamal Musiala, Jude Bellingham and Lamine Yamal dominating the early stages of the tournament, the first theme of Euro 2024 is clear
Euro 2024 power rankings: Rating every nation’s chances after their first game of the group stage
While the favourites all appeared fallible coming into this European Championship, they have got off to strong starts across the board. Germany were most impressive of all and thumped Scotland in the tournament’s curtain-raiser in Munich to send out a signal that the hosts are a serious prospect, powered by the talent of Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz.
Here, we assess how every Euro 2024 nation stacks up after the first round of group games (this article will be updated after each round of matches).
Euro 2024 power rankings: Rating every team’s chances after round one
Germany and Spain impressed while France and England got the wins they needed – but who has leapt up the rankings and where are Scotland now?
Euro 2024 fixtures: Schedule, results and kick-off times at European Championship
Below is the full schedule for Euro 2024. You can also see day-by-day fixtures and times (BST) in text form, with the knockout games and reports to be included as the tournament progresses.
Euro 2024 fixtures: Full schedule, results and kick-off times
Every group match to be played in Germany and including planned dates for knockout stages
Euro 2024 results
Here’s an updated list of the results at Euro 2024 then.
Friday, June 14
Group A, Munich: Germany 5-1 Scotland
June 15
Group A, Cologne: Hungary 1-3 Switzerland
Group B, Berlin: Spain 3-0 Croatia
Group B, Dortmund: Italy 2-1 Albania
June 16
Group D, Hamburg: Poland 1-2 Netherlands
Group C, Stuttgart: Slovenia 1-1 Denmark
Group C, Gelsenkirchen: Serbia 0-1 England
June 17
Group E, Munich: Romania 3-0 Ukraine
Group E, Frankfurt: Belgium 0-1 Slovakia
Group D, Dusseldorf: Austria 0-1 France
June 18
Group F, Dortmund: Turkey 3-1 Georgia
Group F, Leipzig: Portugal 2-1 Czechia
June 19
Group B, Hamburg: Croatia 2-2 Albania
Group A, Stuttgart: Germany 2-0 Hungary
Group A, Cologne: Scotland 1-1 Switzerland
June 20
Group C, Munich: Slovenia 1-1 Serbia
Group C, Frankfurt: Denmark 1-1 England
Group B, Gelsenkirchen: Spain 1-0 Italy
June 21
Group E, Dusseldorf: Slovakia 1-2 Ukraine
Group D, Berlin: Poland 1-3 Austria
Group D, Leipzig: Netherlands 0-0 France
June 22
Group F, Hamburg: Georgia 1-1 Czechia
Group F, Dortmund: Turkey 0-3 Portugal
Group E, Cologne: Belgium 2-0 Romania
June 23
Group A, Frankfurt: Switzerland 1-1 Germany
Group A, Stuttgart: Scotland 0-1 Hungary
June 24
Group B, Leipzig: Croatia 1-1 Italy
Group B, Dusseldorf: Albania 0-1 Spain
What do Italy, Croatia and Albania need? Euro 2024 group permutations and third-place standings explained
Spain: After beating Italy 1-0, Spain were already through as group winners. Spain finished with maximum points after beating Albania and will play one of the four best third-placed teams in Cologne on Sunday 30 June at 8pm.
Italy: On a dramatic night in Leipzig, the holders denied Croatia with a last-minute equaliser to advance to the last-16. They will face Switzerland.
Croatia: Luka Modric and company looked to be doing it again, until Mattia Zaccagni’s last-gasp goal knocked them out. Croatia needed to win but went from being in the last-16 to going home. Two points is unlikely to be enough to go through in third, but it may be possible if results in other groups go their way.
Albania: Albania had to beat Spain to have any chance of going through and are out following a 1-0 defeat.
Italy pass their test of nerve but Croatia left to rue late goals - and subbing Luka Modric
Italy have spent the last few years veering between ignominy and glory. When embarrassment beckoned, a glorious goal instead lent salvation. For 43 minutes when they trailed, the holders confronted the possibility of an early exit, of expulsion at the first stage.
Instead, almost certainly, Croatia will be cast out of Euro 2024. The team who can excel over 120 minutes and penalties missed a penalty and went out to a 98th-minute goal. When it was shaping up as the night of an all-time great, in Luka Modric, he was instead upstaged by a newcomer to such occasions.
When Mattia Zaccagni came off the bench, the 29-year-old forward had never scored for Italy. When he did, it was magnificent, the Lazio winger curling a shot around Dominik Livakovic.
Italy pass test of nerve but Croatia left to rue late goals - and subbing Modric
Croatia 1-1 Italy: Zaccagni’s sensational late equaliser sends Azzurri through in dramatic style
Young fan evades stewards after invading the pitch during Albania vs Spain
Stewards were deployed to the pitch during Albania vs Spain after a young fan bypassed security and started running, briefly halting the tie.
The youngster took to the turf in Dusseldorf on the 90th minute of the Euro 2024 group-stage clash.
He turned to the Albania bench after being chased by several brightly coloured security detail, before being apprehended and escorted off.
The game finished 1-0 to the outside favourites, despite 10 changes being made from Spain’s previous fixture.
Spain advanced to the knockout stages after finishing top of the group.
Young fan evades stewards after invading the pitch during Albania vs Spain
Stewards were deployed to the pitch during Albania vs Spain after a young fan bypassed security and started running, briefly halting the tie. The youngster took to the turf in Dusseldorf on the 90th minute of the Euro 2024 group-stage clash. He turned to the Albania bench after being chased by several brightly coloured security detail, before being apprehended and escorted off. The game finished 1-0 to the outside favourites, despite 10 changes being made from Spain’s previous fixture. Spain advanced to the knockout stages after finishing top of the group.
How Albania left a unique mark on Euro 2024, even with an early exit
It is a fair walk from Dusseldorf Hauptbahnhof to the Merkur Spiel-Arena. It clocks in at around 90 minutes, typically, although it feels much longer in 27 degrees of heat, with the spring sun glancing off the surface of the Rhine and slow-roasting your cheeks. Still, the long, straight, riverside route is scenic, and on Monday evening the blue of the Rhine was balanced out by the streams of red on its bank, as swathes of Albanians and Spaniards made their final pre-game trek of the group stage.
For the Albanians, it would be their last at Euro 2024, full stop. Not that they saw that as an inevitability before kick-off.
They outnumbered the Spanish supporters convincingly on this particular path, and they were in jubilant voices and seemingly confident spirits. Near the start of the route, at a junction by Oberkasseler bridge, the fans who had opted against walking to the stadium were either driving or hanging out of cars – the latter group sang and waved flags; the former blared their horns, having tied the national crest to their bonnets.
How Albania left a unique mark on Euro 2024, even with an early exit
Albania 0-1 Spain: The underdogs finished bottom of Group B after a loss to La Roja, but their team and fans made this an occasion to remember
Spain’s second XI prove they’re better than most first teams at Euro 2024 but one key flaw remains
If this was very much the night’s second match, those watching Italy-Croatia may have missed the chance to see the fifth-best team a Euro 2024. That just happens to be Spain football’s second team, who kept playing with a fluidity beyond virtually everyone else at the tournament.
They had many of the same qualities as the first team, if also the same flaws in the finishing. That didn’t matter here, as they beat Albania football 1-0 to make it a perfect three wins from three in the group stage. They will now surely look to become the first European champions to win all their games, something no one has yet done, even in the 16-team era. That is what Spain should be aiming for.
This isn’t to diminish Albania, who did eventually up it at the end as they knew they had a chance to stay in this competition but they couldn’t get close enough. They sank to their knees in disappointment at the end, but there was probably considerable exhaustion from chasing passes in that too.
Spain’s second XI prove they’re better than most first teams but one key flaw remains
Spain 1-0 Albania: Ferran Torres scored the only goal for a much-changed Spain side as they kept their powder dry for the knockout challenges to come
FT: Croatia 1-1 Italy – Italy are through to the last 16!
Here’s that Zaccagni goal in real time. What a superb finish!
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