Thursday 28 / November / 2024
Saint Petersburg [Russia]: Mikel Oyarzabal held his nerves to score the crucial penalty as Spain entered the semi-finals of the ongoing Euro Cup after beating Switzerland 3-1 on penalties on Friday.
The match had gone to penalties after their last-eight tie had ended in a 1-1 draw. Even the extra time wasn't able to separate the two sides before it all came down to the penalty shootouts for deciding the winner. In the match, it was a dream start for Spain as the side took the lead within eight minutes of the play. Jordi Alba's shot from range took a big deflection off Denis Zakaria. It was the tenth own goal of the ongoing Euro Cup.
Switzerland kept fighting hard for the equaliser however the side wasn't able to find one as the game stood 1-0 at half-time.
Switzerland even replaced Breel Embolo with Ruben Vargas in the 23rd minute but that didn't change the fortune of the side.
The second half started with Switzerland searching for the equaliser and captain Xherdan Shaqiri came to the rescue. The Switzerland skipper scored on his weaker right foot to give his side the equaliser in the 68th minute.
With 13 minutes remaining, Switzerland midfielder Remo Freuler received a red card, however, it didn't stop the side from pressing hard and the game went into the extra time with a 1-1 score.
In the extra time, Yann Sommer's vital saves ensured that Spain didn't get the lead as the match went into the penalty shootout.
Spain will play Belgium or Italy for a place in the Euro Cup final.
