SEVILLE / GLASGOW – The chances came and went but neither Spain nor Sweden managed to put any of them in the net. Spain dominated possession and kept the pressure on the opposing area for most of the match but the Swedes held on for a 0-0 draw at the Euro 2020.
Sweden managed only a few chances at La Cartuja Stadium, but they were some of the most dangerous ones. Alexander Isak, who plays for Spanish club Real Sociedad, had a shot from inside the area hit the post after deflecting off Spain defender Marcos Llorente in front of the goal line, AP reported.
Early in the second half, Marcus Berg was inside the area with the ball coming his way, but he mishit his shot.
Alvaro Morata had Spain´s best chance just a few minutes before Isak but his shot missed wide with goalkeeper Robin Olsen the only opponent to beat..
“Everyone can make mistakes, we all make them,” Spain midfielder Pedri Gonzalez said about Morata, who was booed by part of the Spanish fans. “He works hard for the team and that always shows on the field.”
Morata had already missed some chances and been jeered in Spain´s final warm-up match against Portugal, also a 0-0 draw.
Spain pressed until the end but kept misfiring. Olsen made a 90th-minute save off a header by substitute Gerard Moreno, and he had already stopped another close-range header by Dani Olmo in the first half.
“The way we earned that point today, the entire team, the way the guys ran in the heat, it wasn´t just me who earned this point,” Olsen said.
“It was an incredible team effort. We didn´t play our best game. It´s not the most well-deserved point we´ve ever taken. But we battled. We showed that we wanted it.”
“We played against a rival that decided to defend and tried to create some danger with long balls, and it actually had the chance the win the match,” Spain coach Luis Enrique said. “It’s a disappointing draw for us.”
Slovakia defeats Poland
Poland goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny doesn´t have much luck in his opening game at European Championships. Sent off in 2012. Injured in 2016. Now an own-goal at Euro 2020.
The Juventus player became the first goalkeeper to score an own-goal at the tournament in Poland´s 2-1 loss to Slovakia.
Szczesny had already committed himself to a dive in an attempt to save a shot from Slovakia winger Robert Mak in the 18th minute when the ball rebounded off his near post, onto his outstretched arm as he lay on the ground, and back into the net.
He was also left helpless for Slovakia’s winner by Milan Skriniar, barely moving as the center back hit a fierce, low shot into the corner in the 69th minute.
Szczesny has established himself as one of the most reliable goalkeepers in Europe, his reputation having soared since joining Juventus from Arsenal in 2017. Poland has long been well-stocked with keepers, with Lukasz Fabianski also a solid option, but Szczesny is the regular No. 1.
In 2012, he was shown a red card in the opening game of a European Championship co-hosted by Poland, punished for a professional foul on Greece player Dimitris Salpingidis in the second half.
In 2016, and again in Poland’s opening match, Szczesny damaged a thigh muscle against Northern Ireland and wound up missing the rest of the tournament.
Czech Republic beats Scotland
Patrik Schick spotted the goalkeeper off his line, launched a looping shot from just inside the halfway line, and gave his team a two-goal lead it wouldn’t relinquish.
Schick scored both goals for the Czech Republic in a 2-0 victory over Scotland at the European Championship. But it was his second goal that will be talked about for years to come.
Scotland lost possession when a shot toward the Czech goal was blocked and the ball fell to Schick. The Bayer Leverkusen forward looked up and spotted opposing goalkeeper David Marshall way off his line before hitting a long, curling shot that bounced into goal.
Marshall gave chase, but he could only watch the ball sail into the goal before he ended up tangled in net.
“There was a deflected ball,” Schick said. “I took a look (at the goalkeeper) to see where he was standing and he was pretty high. I checked it again and fired.”
Schick and the other Czech players ran toward the corner of Hampden Park where a few dozen Czech fans erupted in celebration.
UEFA said it was the longest distance for a goal in the tournament at 49.7 meters. The previous record of 38.6 meters came from Germany midfielder Torsten Frings at Euro 2004.
“It’s a fairy tale to score such a goal,” Czech Republic midfielder Tomás Soucek said. “It’s fantastic how he hit it.”
Soucek later added on Twitter: “It’s clear we already have the goal of the tournament. No need to try to beat it.”
Schick had earlier given the Czechs the lead in the 42nd minute with a powerful header after muscling himself between two Scotland defenders. It was an excellent finish that came from an equally outstanding cross from right back Vladimír Coufal.
Schick has now scored 13 goals from 27 appearances for Czech Republic, a rate of about a goal every other game.
Scotland coach Steve Clarke didn’t blame his goalkeeper for his positioning on Schick’s second goal.
“It’s a fantastic finish. Instead of assigning blame, sometimes you have to credit the goalscorer,” Clarke said.
Czech Republic coach Jaroslav Silhavý said Schick has been practicing long shots in training, and has tried to score from long range before.
“The second goal was something out of this world,” Silhavý said. “We really haven’t seen a goal like that from the middle of the field in a long time.”
The Czech Republic took the lead in Group D with three points and spoiled the party for Scotland, which was returning to a major men’s soccer tournament for the first time since the 1998 World Cup.
