HOUSTON, July 4 (Xinhua) — Emiliano Martinez saved two spot kicks as defending champions Argentina defeated Ecuador on penalties to advance to the Copa America semifinals on Thursday.

Lisandro Martinez put Argentina ahead by nodding home just after the half-hour and the Albiceleste looked on course for victory before Kevin Rodriguez equalized in second-half stoppage time.

With no extra-time, the game went straight to penalties and Argentina looked crestfallen when Lionel Messi’s opening attempt bounced off the top side of the crossbar.

But Martinez denied Angel Mena and Alan Minda before Nicolas Otamendi converted the decisive spot kick as Lionel Scaloni’s men prevailed 4-2 in the shootout.

Argentina will now meet the winner of Friday’s quarterfinal between Canada and Venezuela for a place in the final.

“I wasn’t ready to go home,” Emiliano Martinez said afterward. “The truth is that it was a really difficult game. We knew that Ecuador was one of the toughest teams in the competition. They’re a young team that defends well and fights until the end.”

Ecuador began brightly at NRG Stadium and Angel Preciado shot over when he ought to have done better after smart play from Enner Valencia.

Argentina took the lead in the 35th minute when Alexis Mac Allister flicked on Lionel Messi’s corner before an unmarked Lisandro Martinez headed home at the far post.

Ecuador were handed a penalty on the hour after Rodrigo de Paul was deemed to have handled the ball inside the area. But Valencia squandered the chance to equalize by sending his spot-kick crashing off the left post.

Argentina began to push forward with more purpose and Messi forced a smart save from goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez after combining with De Paul.

Lisandro Martinez had an attempt blocked and saw another shot sail wide as the Albiceleste continued to search for a second goal.

But the momentum swung again and Jordy Caicedo’s left-footed effort went narrowly wide before Rodriguez stunned the reigning world champions by breaching Martinez’s goal for the first time this tournament with a header into the bottom left corner following John Yeboah’s cross.

Source(s): Xinhua

BERLIN, July 2 (Xinhua) — Merih Demiral’s double strike was enough for Türkiye to eliminate stubborn Austria 2-1 in a Euro 2024 round of 16 match at Leipzig’s Red Bull Arena on Tuesday.

The Turks had a fairy tale start to the clash, scoring the fastest goal in the knockout stages of the Euro tournament as Austria couldn’t clear the ball following a corner, allowing Demiral to tap home the opener just 57 seconds into the game.

Austria responded with furious attacks, but Christoph Baumgartner missed two chances to restore parity. The Austrians struggled to create more chances against Türkiye’s well-organized defense and failed to produce clear-cut opportunities before the break. Meanwhile, Vincenzo Montella’s side remained dangerous, with Demiral heading over the target following another corner kick.

After the restart, Austria came out with momentum and kept Türkiye’s defense busy. However, Marco Arnautovic couldn’t beat goalkeeper Mert Gunok, and Konrad Laimer pulled wide from a promising position moments later.

Despite Austria’s pressure, it was Montella’s side that scored against the flow of the game. Demiral nodded home his second goal from a corner, making it two for Türkiye.

Austria managed to answer and halve the deficit through substitute Michael Gregoritsch, who sparked hopes after drilling a flicked-on corner into the roof of the net with plenty of time left to play.

Austria went in search of the equalizer, throwing every man forward, while Türkiye kept all their men behind the ball, waiting for counterattack opportunities. Baris Yilmaz had the golden chance to finish off one of those counterattacks but missed the target from inside the box with only goalkeeper Patrick Pentz to beat.

Rangnick’s side nearly restored parity in the dying seconds of the match, but Gunok denied Baumgartner’s close-range header with a one-handed parry on the goal line.

With this result, Türkiye advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2008, where they will face the Netherlands at Berlin’s Olympia Stadium on Saturday.

“We didn’t have the necessary luck, and I believe if the game had gone to extra time, we would have won. We had time to score an equalizer. We didn’t make enough of our own chances, and we didn’t defend their set pieces well enough,” said Austria coach Rangnick.

Source(s): Xinhua

BERLIN, July 1 (Xinhua) — Portugal goalkeeper Diogo Costa denied three penalties in the shootout to eliminate a stubborn Slovenia 3-0 in their Euro 2024 last 16 match at Frankfurt’s Deutsche-Bank-Park on Monday.

Portugal dominated possession from the kickoff, pressing Slovenia onto the back foot in the opening stages.

However, Robert Martinez’s men struggled to convert their dominance into goals, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes both missing close-range opportunities.

Slovenia defended resolutely, keeping all their players behind the ball. Ronaldo had a chance from a promising free-kick position at the half-hour mark but sent it over the target.

In the closing stages of the first half, Slovenia could have caught Portugal flatfooted, but Petar Stojanovic opted for a square pass instead of taking a shot on goal.

Portugal continued to be the more active team after the restart, while Slovenia remained largely passive.

Slovenia’s goalkeeper, Jan Oblak, frustrated Ronaldo by neutralizing a free kick in the 55th minute and a dangerous long-range shot in the closing period.

In extra time, Ronaldo had a golden opportunity to break the deadlock when Diogo was fouled inside the box. However, he couldn’t beat Oblak from the penalty spot in the 105th minute.

Slovenia showed signs of life in the 115th minute but missed a crucial chance when Benjamin Sesko failed to beat Diogo Costa in a one-on-one situation.

After a goalless draw, the match went to a penalty shootout. Ronaldo finally beat Oblak from the spot to open the scoring.

Goalkeeper Diogo Costa then single-handedly helped Portugal progress by denying penalties from Josip Ilicic, Jure Balkovec, and Benjamin Verbic. Bernardo Silva sealed the victory with his successful penalty.

With this result, Portugal will face France in the quarterfinals at Hamburg’s Volksparkstadion.

“I was sad and then happy. It went back and forth, but that’s football. It is all or nothing. I tried to clinch the win for my team, but I failed to do so. I was unhappy, nonetheless, Oblak saved well today. We had to work hard, but we are through now. I think it is a deserved win as Slovenia defended only,” said Ronaldo.

Source(s): Xinhua