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The European Championship C group matches have ended. After dramatic twists and turns, Denmark and Sweden national teams advanced to the quarterfinals with a 2-2 draw. Despite the victory over Bulgaria, Italy's national team finished in third place - with three teams tied on points, they were hindered by the fewer goals scored in the head-to-head matches.
So the third quarterfinal pair was also revealed - the winner of Group D, Czech Republic, will face Denmark. Meanwhile, the winner of Group C, Sweden, will only find out their opponent tomorrow, which could be the Netherlands, Germany, or Latvia.
Sweden - Denmark 2 - 2 28',66' [1 - 0, 2 - 1] 47' [1 - 1] 89' [2 - 2]
The Danes started the match more actively. In the 15th minute, Gronkjaer had the first chance. After receiving the ball in the penalty area, Jonas Dahl Tomasson passed it to Gronkjaer, but the "Chelsea" defender shot inaccurately and hit the outside of the goal.
After a few more attacks, the Danish national team broke through the Swedish defense: Ebbe Sand passed the ball to Tomasson, and the forward scored the first goal with a fantastic shot, moving the ball past the goalkeeper. Seven minutes later, the Danish goalkeeper had work to do - after Larsson's shot from the left side of the penalty area, Sorensen deflected the ball back onto the field. Soon after, Ibrahimovic had a shot, but once again, the fantastic reaction of Sorensen saved the team from conceding.
Shortly after, the Swedes launched another dangerous attack, but luck was on the Danes' side. After a corner kick by Kallstrom, the ball hit Mellberg's head and bounced off the post back into the field. The teams went to rest with a 1-0 lead for Denmark.
Just a couple of minutes into the second half, the score was leveled. Henrik Larsson broke into the penalty area, the goalkeeper brought down the forward, and the referee awarded a penalty kick. Larsson himself converted the penalty to equalize the score. Shortly after, Larsson had another chance, but his shot from 20 yards missed just wide of the post.
In the 66th minute, Tomasson scored another goal for Denmark. After a corner kick near the Swedish goal, Isaksson failed to clear the ball, and Tomasson took advantage, sending it into the corner of the net. A few minutes later, the Danes could have buried the opponents - after a dribble in the penalty area, Gravesen passed the ball to Sand, but Isaksson made a great save.
At the very end of the match, Sweden did what the Italians feared the most - they equalized the score: Wilhelmsson broke into the penalty area, tried to make a pass to the middle, which Sorensen failed to catch, and Jonson, who was nearby, sent the ball into the goal, opening the way for the Swedes to the quarterfinals.
Italy - Bulgaria 2 - 1 45' [0 - 1] 48' [1 - 1] 90'+4
The Italians came close to scoring in the 14th minute when Cassano passed the ball to Fiore, who shot while jumping. Zdravkov, the goalkeeper, deflected the attempt well, and Del Piero's follow-up shot went wide of the post.
Italy continued to control the game, and in the 27th minute, after a pass from Cassano, Corradi headed the ball, but again Zdravkov made a successful save. After three minutes, Buffon defended Petrov's shot on the other side of the field. Soon after, Cassano missed a chance, shooting wide from 12 yards.
In the last minute of the half, Materazzi held Berbatov in the penalty area, and the Russian referee Ivanov awarded a penalty, which Martin Petrov converted. However, Petrov was shown a yellow card for excessive celebration.
At the beginning of the second half, after a pass from Del Piero, Cassano shot powerfully from close range, the ball hit the post, bounced out of the goal, the goalkeeper failed to catch it, and Perrotta scored the equalizer with a follow-up shot. Italy began pressing the opponents again, but they were either unable to capitalize on opportunities, or the Bulgarians defended well.
In the 58th minute, Vieri, who had just entered the field as a substitute, headed just wide of the post. Soon after, Vieri had another chance, but he was slightly nudged from behind by Borimirov, so his attempt to head the ball was not very successful.
In the 76th minute, Cassano was brought down as he entered the penalty area, but the referee did not award a penalty, despite replays showing that Kotev did not touch the ball and impeded the opponent unfairly. In the 85th minute, there was a dangerous moment near the Italian national team's goal - Berbatov's shot from 16 yards was deflected by Buffon.
The Bulgarian onslaught continued, but initially Zambrotto's shot went wide, and then nest's header was saved by the goalkeeper. In extra time, the Italians' hopes were finally dashed as Sweden equalized the result in the other match. However, in the 94th minute, Cassano scored the winning goal, but his joy was short-lived when it was revealed that Italy still did not advance to the next stage.
