Dusan Tadic has grabbed a ticket for next year’s European Championship with Serbia on Thursday. The Ajax forward lost in an all-deciding play-off match after penalties from Scotland. Iceland, which reached the quarter-finals at the previous final tournament, was also unable to qualify for the European Championship.
Serbia and Scotland kept each other in balance in Belgrade in the first half, but after the break it went completely wrong for the home team. Ryan Christie worked the ball through the inside of the post in the 52nd minute behind the Serbian goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic.
The poor playing Serbia seemed to reconcile itself with a defeat against the Scots, but in the ninetieth minute the team of captain Tadic came alongside. Real Madrid player Luka Jovic headed home from a corner kick, requiring extra time.
In the aftermath Serbia dominated, but the Scottish wall held up in the extra half hour and also dragged a penalty shootout against the number thirty in the FIFA rankings, with Feyenoord player Uros Spajic coming in in the 108th minute.
In the penalty shootout, Tadic was the first Serb to score his penalty, after which Scotland used all his five bets from the spot. The fifth and decisive penalty kick from Serbian Aleksandar Mitrovic was saved by Scottish goalkeeper David Marshall.
It is the first time since 1996 that Scotland qualifies for the European Championship. The islanders never progressed beyond the group stage in a final tournament.
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The fatal moment for Péter Gulácsi near Hungary-Iceland. The Hungarian keeper lets a free kick slip out of his hands, but sees his team win against Iceland later. (Photo: ANP)
Iceland loses despite a huge goalkeeper blunder
For a long time, Iceland seemed to qualify for the European Championship due to a mistake by the Hungarian keeper Péter Gulácsi, but in the final phase it went wrong against Hungary. The home team turned a backlog and won 2-1.
Gulácsi let a durable free kick by Gylfi Sigurdsson slip through his hands after the eleventh minute. The goalkeeper of RB Leipzig seemed to catch the ball easily, but lost his balance and could not prevent a goal against.
Hungary messed up several great opportunities in the future, but in extremis it was still hit. Loïc Nego took advantage of a pinball machine in the Icelandic defense after a free kick, then Dominik Szoboszlai shot Hungary to the European Championship in the second minute of injury time.
It is the fourth time in total and the second time in a row that Hungary qualifies for the main tournament of the European Championship. In the previous edition in 2016, the number 47 of the FIFA rankings reached the eighth finals, in which it was eliminated by Belgium (0-4).
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The Slovaks fall in the arms of Juraj Kucka after his opening goal against Northern Ireland. (Photo: Pro Shots)
Slovakia deals with Northern Ireland
Slovakia qualified for the main tournament of the European Championship for the second time in history. In front of 1,060 spectators, the Slovaks won in Belfast after an extension of Northern Ireland: 1-2.
Juraj Kucka opened the score for Slovakia after seventeen minutes, which reached the eighth finals at the 2016 European Championship in France. The Parma midfielder mercilessly punished a wrong back pass.
Milan Skriniar endangered the European Championship ticket for Slovakia in the final phase of regular time by working a cross from Paddy McNair into his own goal, but in extra time Michal Duris put in a place with a slide in the short corner. the main tournament safely.
The European Championship starts next year on June 11 and will be held in twelve different playing cities in twelve different countries in Europe in honor of the 60th anniversary of the tournament. Due to the corona crisis, the European Championship has been moved by one year. The Dutch national team will meet Ukraine, Austria and North Macedonia in the group stage.
Group classification EC
- Group A: Italy, Switzerland, Turkey, Wales
- Group B: Belgium, Russia, Denmark, Finland
- Group C: Ukraine, Netherlands, Austria, North Macedonia
- Group D: England, Croatia, Czech Republic, Scotland
- Group E: Spain, Poland, Sweden, Slovakia
- Group F: Germany, France, Portugal, Hungary
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