Euro 2020 Matches - Recap.

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Belgium played their first game of the Euro 2020 against Russia and everyone expected it to be a tough match. It wasn't in any way an easy game for Belgium because Russia showed their class but Belgium, even though they didn't play at their best, they managed to get the result they wanted.

It is always good to start your first game of any tournament with a win and now, Russia would have it all to do against Denmark and Finland.

This Euro has been characterized by defensive mistakes and it is to be expected for the first game when everyone wants to impress and also try not to concede goals. In the bid to avoid this, they try to make it simple and end up making it more complicated with passes and misjudged movements.

Lukaku got his 61st goal in 94 games for Belgium when a defensive blunder came in the 11th minute and he pounced on it. He was initially offside when an inswinging cross from the side was aimed at him but the ball came off a Russian defender to nullify the offside and Lukaku pounced. He didn't need to look at the post before hitting his effort. It wasn't the cleanest of strikes but it was enough contact to take the ball away from the reach of the goalkeeper. His quality has never been in doubt and he proved that in his title-winning season with Inter Milan.

Russia had a chance of their own in the 14th minute when a flying header from a corner kick was saved by Courtois. Dendoncker should have made it 2-0 for Belgium after another defensive mistake my Semyonov. Lukaku did brilliantly well to find Dendoncker in the box but he blasted his shot over instead.

With Russia being shaky and being forced into errors by Belgium, another error could have proved costly but the goalkeeper raced in on time to deny Thorgan Hazard at the near post.

The two sides were forced to make a substitution when Castagne and Kuzyayev both classed their heads that led to a concussion. They both couldn't go ahead with it and had to leave the pitch. It was one of the substitutes that made his presence known and this time, it was Meunier. He got Belgium's second goal of the day when an initial shot was saved by the goalkeeper. The ball came into his path and he wasted no time in burying it in the 34th minute.

The game was completed to perfection by Belgium when Lukaku scored his second and the third for Belgium when he sprinted into space after being found by a perfectly weighted pass. His finishing and placement was good for his 22nd goals in 19 international games for Belgium.

The game ended 3-0 in favour of Belgium who took a giant step in getting out of the group stage by getting the maximum 3 points for this game.

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In the other game that was played, Switzerland took the lead against Wales before Wales got another back to end the game 1-1. They both had to settle for a single point apiece.

The emotional part of the games played featured Denmark and Finland. A game where Christian Eriksen slumped and was attended to for a long part of the game. It was an emotional game as you can see both his teammates and opposition players crying their eyes out, as well as the fans in the stadium. After lengthy attention, he was wheeled off the pitch and thanks to God, he was revived. The game was initially called off and both players left the pitch but the fans stayed. After hearing about the good condition Christian Eriksen was in, the game was restarted and Denmark succumbed to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Finland.

I feel the game shouldn't have been allowed to go on especially because those players were not in the right frame of mind. It is understandable why UEFA would want them to play the match so other matches wouldn't be affected but the players were drained emotionally and it would take a lot of effort for them to win that game anyway. No disrespect to Finland, being in their first major competition in Euro, they played well, got their goal and would be excited even though they were sensitive not to celebrate due to the unfortunate situation around Eriksen.

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This is how the table is looking:

Belgium - 3 Points

Finland - 3 Points

Denmark - 0 Point

Russia - 0 Point

For the other group:

Italy - 3 Points

Switzerland - 1 Point

Wales - 1 Point

Turkey - 0 Point

Austria won North Macedonia by 3-1. It was a debut for North Macedonia too but they produced a gallant performance. They should have done better with their chances which should have given them a shock lead over Austria but they lacked that extra bite but you cannot fault their performance.

Netherlands and Ukraine produced a masterclass performance that ended up being 3-2, in favour of the Netherlands. It was a lovely encounter as Ukraine clawed their way back in after being 2 goals down to draw 2-2 only for Dumfries who missed several chances before that time to deliver the blow with 5 minutes to go.

Here is how their table stands:

Austria - 3 Points

Netherlands - 3 Points

Ukraine - 0 Point

North Macedonia - 0 Point.

England defeated Croatia to win their first game of European tournament which they always struggle to win. It puts them in the right place as they gathered the 3 points. England dominated the first half while Croatia played better in the second half but England got the goal through Raheem Sterling who was perfectly set up with a beautifully weighted pass from Matt Phillips. It was enough to give England their first win in their opening game.

I am sure there would still be more twists to come as the tournament progresses.