With a commendable team performance, the host Germany defeated Hungary (2-0) to maintain its unbeaten status and become the first team to qualify for the round of 16 of the 2024 UEFA European Football Championship, while Croatia faced difficulties by drawing against Albania.
As part of Group A in the city of Stuttgart, the Germans once again delighted on the field and celebrated the goals from Jamal Musiala, at 22 minutes, and İlkay Gündoğan (67) to reach six points.
Musiala, a 21-year-old offensive midfielder, scored his second goal in the competition, while Gündoğan was selected as the Most Valuable Player at the MHPArena stadium.
Hungary, meanwhile, once again suffered a defeat after their debut against Switzerland (1-3), leaving them on the brink of elimination.
Precisely, the Swiss were unable to secure their advancement to the next round, after drawing 1-1 against Scotland, in a match that could have gone either way at the RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne.
On the other hand, Croatia, universal subtitle in Russia 2018 and semifinalist in Qatar 2022, missed the opportunity to surpass Albania in the second match of Group B and faces an uphill battle to secure a spot in the knockout stages.
The Croats were ahead on the scoreboard until the 95th minute, when Klaus Gjasula secured the draw (2-2) on the electronic screen of the majestic Volksparkstadion in Hamburg.
Gjasula went from the ridiculous to the sublime (or from villain to hero), since in the 76th minute he had been the protagonist of the own goal that put the Balkans ahead. Qazim Laci (11) and Andrej Kramaric (74) were the authors of the rest of the goals.
Therefore, both teams are obliged to win their next matches if they wish to stay alive. History tells us that there has never been a crossing of stages with two draws since the European Championship has been organized with 24 teams.
The schedule for the tournament includes on Thursday the matches Slovenia-Serbia, Denmark-England, and a European classic: Italy-Spain.
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