A pre-game chat with Cristiano Ronaldo inspired Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Georgia to one of the biggest upsets in European Championship history on Wednesday, June 26, beating Portugal, 2-0, and advancing to the last 16.
Jun 27, 2024 01:45 AM
Georgia’s No. 7 has admired Ronaldo for years and had spoken before the game of how much he wanted his hero’s shirt. He got it, along with a goal and a slice of soccer history, on a frustrating night for Ronaldo and Portugal. “This is the best day in my life because it was more difficult to do it with the Georgian team than with Napoli,” he said.The Georgians needed a win to reach the knockout stage at Euro 2024 and got their opening goal after only 93 seconds. Georges Mikautadze intercepted a poor pass and set up Kvaratskelia to score with a low shot.
The Georgians will next face Spain on Sunday in Cologne, while Portugal plays Slovenia on Monday in Frankfurt. Slovenia is another defense-first team and it upset Portugal 2-0 in a March friendly. With Portugal already qualified, Ronaldo was one of only three players kept in the lineup from the previous 3-0 win over Turkey, along with Costa and midfielder João Palhinha.
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