itsbeautifuloutside

Hungary 1 Switzerland 3

(Group A - Koln 14:00 on 15.6.24)

⚽️ IBO Reporter: Spot51

Hungary

• Gulacsi (RBL)
• Szalai (Freiburg) Y69 -Dardai (Hertha B) 79
• Orban (RBL)
• Lang (Omnia) - Bolla (Rapid Wien) 46 Y87
• Kerkez (AFCB) - Adam (Usan) 79
• Schafer (Union B)
• Nagy (Spezia) - Kleinheisler (H Split) 67
• Fiola (Fehevar)
• Szoboszlai (Liverpool)
• Sallai (Freiburg)
• Varga (Ferencvaros)

Switzerland

• Sommer (Inter)
• Akanji (Man C)
• Schar (Newcastle)
• Rodriguez (Torino)
• Widmer (Mainz) Y5 - Stergiou (Stuttgart) 68
• Freuler (Bologna) Y59 - Sierro (Toulouse) 86
• Xhaka (Bay 04)
• Aebischer (Bologna)
• N’Doye (Bologna) - Rieder (Rennes) 86
• Duah (Ludogrets) - Amdouni (Burnley) 68
• Vargas (Augsburg) - Embolo (Monaco) 74

REPORT

I always expected Germany to be decent on home soil, and despite Scotland colluding by barely turning up, they definitely were. Switzerland looked the next most likely to have a good tournament, but their opening game was a tricky fixture against the Modern Magyars, who had not lost for months.

Hungary had 2 home-based players in their starting XI, with the rest playing in other European leagues. The Swiss fielded a team comprising 5 from Serie A (3 of whom took Bologna into the ECL), 3 from Bundesliga, and 2 from our EPL. The other was recent cap Duah whose goals had helped Ludogrets retain the Bulgarian title.

Switzerland looked better from the off. They bossed the ball for the first period and opened Hungary up on 12m when Aebischer’s forward pass put Duah through on goal, and he slotted it. Up went the flag, but Automated VAR gave it. 0-1.

They might have had a second on 20m when the usually decent Kerkez presented the ball to Vargas, but the keeper made a great save. Xhaka had his side running like (Swiss)clockwork, and even Schar was carrying the ball the length of the pitch as defenders retreated. Rodriguez was also getting forward, reprising his usual wing-back role as Hungary were forced to defend deep.

Sallai had looked the best of the Magyars, and on 40m, he was tripped by N’Doye to give Szobozlai a first chance to put in a cross. It was a peach, picked out by Willi Orban, but his header was right at Sommer. Close!

Instead of levelling, Hungary conceded again before halftime. The ball was played into Vargas on the right, who laid it back to Aebischer on the edge of the box, who curled a peach beyond the dive of Gulasci. 0-2.

Marco Rossi now had to get his team into the game. His first move was replacing Adam with Rapid Wien’s Bola at centre-back. Switzerland resumed control of the game with Duah forcing a save, but slowly, Hungary got a foothold in the match. On 50m, Szobozlai finally got a sight of the goal - it was blocked, and Sallai was offside, but it gave them hope.

Xhaka continued to run the game, but Szobozlai was now drifting wide left, so Switzerland’s back line stopped pushing so far upfield. It gave Hungary the chance to move out of their own half, but only a couple of their captain’s free kicks caused Switzerland any problems.

Hungary’s fans sensed a change and became much louder, and Varga had 2 chances in quick succession. He scooped a shot over before meeting a glorious cross from Sallai. He really should have scored but put his header wide.

On 66m, they did get one on target. Another lovely cross from Szobozlai out left picked out Varga at the back post. His diving header beat Sommer. 1-2, and the game (now) on!

Kleinheisler had been waiting to come on for Hungary and he now replaced Nagy. The Swiss then withdrew Duah and Widmer, sending on Amdouni and Sirigou. Despite the delight among the Hungarian Blackshirts, Switzerland still posed a threat. Gulasci made a very good save from N’Doye before Schar stuck a header wide from a Swiss corner.

The match was now end to end, so Yakin played his trump card, Embolo, on for Vargas. The Monaco striker has barely played in the last 18 months but will have been delighted to get out there. Rather than dig in and defend the lead, Switzerland were looking to kill the game.

On 79m, Rossi made 2 more changes replacing Szalai and Kerkez with Dardai and Adam, the giant striker playing in Korea. Cue crosses into the box...

In they came, but the defenders won the first few headers against Varga and Adam. Schar also made a good block to foil Sallai, and as Switzerland broke forward, Fiola got booked for tripping Amdouni. A last-minute corner almost saw Szobozlai put the ball into his own net, but his keeper saved him. Five added minutes left.

Switzerland nearly got a 3rd when Embolo played in Rieder, who went too wide, rounding the keeper, and had the ball cleared. The ball found its way back to Sommer, who kicked it long. Will Orban made a hash of his header so that Embolo was able to run in and lift the ball over Gulasci. 1-3 and That’s All Folks!

The Swiss are a good mix of old heads and young talent. They dominated much of this game and did not allow Hungary to build momentum till midway through the 2nd half. Szobozlai did not see enough of the ball to influence the outcome but his team gave some indication that they might trouble Germany and help send Scotland home.

Germany 2 Hungary 0

Group A - Stuttgart 1700, 19th June

⚽️ *IBO Reporter: Spot51

Teams

Germany kept the same XI that started against Scotland, with both Musiala and Wirtz supporting Havertz up front. Hungary made 2 changes, Szalai for Dardai and Lang by Bolla, replicating substitutions made against Scotland.

Report

These sides have met on numerous occasions, but Germany has not always triumphed. Indeed, their last meeting at the previous Euros saw them grab a very late equaliser. Their last win over Hungary in a tournament was at the legendary Wankdorf Stadium in Berne in the 1954 World Cup Final. The “Magnificent Magyars” had previously beaten (West) Germany 8-3 in the group.

Despite this being a second “Home” game for the hosts it seemed the team all in white was Hungary! WTF? The Germans were in some dreadful pink and purple attire instead of their usual green and white. That demonstrates why I rejoice at Saints opting for Puma instead of piss-poor Adidas or Nike.

Hungary were a mite unlucky in their first game. They responded well after the break and might have tied the game at 2-2 till Yakin’s cheat code Embolo gave the score a more flattering sheen. They were much improved here and, whilst the hosts bossed possession, always carried a threat on the counter.

It was a hot summer day in Stuttgart so all players were tested and delivered a good match. Hungary’s large cohort of fans produced epic volumes of noise despite being outnumbered. My enjoyment was slightly dented by having Martin “states the bleedin’ obvious” Keown on pundit duty. Ugggh!

From the kick-off, Varga jumped on hesitation by defenders, and Germany were thankful for Neuer’s timely intervention. The game then settled into Germany, keeping the ball but then scampering back when counter-attacked. Hungary won 2 corners, but the home defence dealt with them.

Germany’s first 2 chances fell to Havertz. The first was a simple catch for Gulacsi, but on 11m, he won the ball off Orban and drew a full-length dive from the keeper to turn it past the post. Indeed, Havertz finally looks like a centre-forward. His improved scoring for Arsenal has lifted him past Fullkrug in the pecking order.

The game continued in the same vein: Germany having the ball and Hungary quick on the break. Then, on 23m, calamitous defending handed the Germans a lead. Gundogan followed the ball into the box, but Orban stepped across him. Rather than seeing the ball out, he stumbled and fell. The ball somehow came loose, and Germany’s captain gratefully turned it into the path of Musiala. Bang 1-0. Despite protests from defenders VAR allowed the goal.

Hungary were unhappy but reacted well. A foul on Kerkez gave Szoboszlai a shooting chance, and Neuer had to get across smartly to save. They continued to make the better chances but Tah and Rudiger were getting in their bodies in the way when needed.

As the half drew to a close, Germany took back control, and Varga almost put a header into his own goal trying to deal with a Kroos corner. Many thought Musiala had bagged another when he collected Wirtz’s pass and rippled the net - but it went the wrong side of the post.

In +2m, Hungary believed they had equalised when Neuer blocked a header from Orban meeting Szoboszlai’s cross. Sallai headed in the rebound. Sadly for them, the striker was offside: still 1-0 at the break.

No changes were made for the second half, which followed the same script, with Germany keeping the ball but Hungary creating similar chances on the break. On 53m Gulacsi made 2 big saves, first from Kroos and then Gundogan. Before the hour, Germany made identical substitutions to their first match, with Fullkrug and Sane replacing Havertz and Wirtz.

On the hour a perfect cross from Sallai picked out Varga coming in behind Tah. The forward met the cross but sent his header off target. Should have scored! They then reprised one of their substitutions from the first game, with Kleinheisler on for Nagy.

Germany extended their lead by 67m after a siege of Hungary’s box. The ball was eventually steered wide to Mittelstadt, whose cross went behind the retreating back line. Gundogan had held his position and simply had to tuck it away. 2-0.

Andrich and Musiala were then recalled with Can and Stuttgart’s Fuhrich coming off the bench. Germany kept the pedal to the metal, with both Kimmich and Sane taking turns to shoot at goal. Neither caused any major issues, but with the ball up that end, Hungary could not respond.

On 77m, more Hungarian subs joined the fray. Kerkez again made way for the big lad Adam while Bolle was replaced by the other Nagy. Adam’s first action was to foul Mittelstadt, and Sane sent the resulting free-kick way over the bar.

Germany looked the more likely to score again, but Can had to outjump Adam to clear a corner from under his crossbar. German fans then cheered both Gundogan coming off and Stuttgart’s Undav coming on. The forward is keen to make his loan from B&HA permanent, but the Seagull’s new German coach (ex-St Pauli) will probably want to look at him first, as he bagged 19 goals last season.

With 2m left, both Varga and Sallai gave way to Csoboth (Ujpest) and Gazdag (Philly Union). Hungary almost scored late on when Neuer made a hash of catching a cross, but Kimmich was on the line to save his blushes.

Three added minutes came and went, and Germany topped Group A with 6 points out of 6.

Hungary will be praying Scotland, and Switzerland draw their evening game…

Scotland 1 Switzerland 1

20:00, 19th June, Group A - Koln

⚽️ IBO Reporter: Spot51

Teams

With Porteous banned for the next 2 games, Grant Hanley continued in the back 3. Scotland’s other change saw Gilmour move into the midfield 4, with McTominey moving forward alongside McGinn, supporting Che at the front.

The only Swiss change saw the young striker Duah benched. N’Doye moved to that role, making room for Shaqiri (now with Chicago Fire) to move alongside Vargas in support.

Report

Slovakia’s top ref (who did the ECL Final) was on duty. The Swiss wore a lovely white Puma kit, but Scotland made the early running. They had rid themselves of the torpor of the opening night and were looking more like a team.

Don’t get me wrong. It was not pretty, and both sides contributed to a gung-ho, error-strewn opening period. A Swiss corner on 13m led to a goal at the opposite end.

The ball dropped to Gilmour on the edge of his box, and he smuggled it to Robertson, who drove down the park. With runners on both sides, he picked out McGinn on his left. The Villa man cut back and rolled the ball to McTominey, who fired at goal. Sommer was right behind it, but in front of him, Schar stuck out a leg and deflected it into the top corner. The Tartan Army could officially party.

UEFA initially gave it as a Schar OG but bowed to OPTA, and the United man opened his account. The quality of the football did not improve much, but Scotland were in the game, and Che was getting touches of the ball.

The Swiss went onto the front foot, and Scotland were forced to defend. A whole host of corners arrived in their box but were dealt with. Then, as they moved upfield, Ralston turned infield and played the ball square.

We’ll never know if he imagined a blue shirt there, but running into the empty space was Shaqiri (thinking “Thanks very much” in Albanian probably). Without breaking stride, he curled a worldy beyond Gunn’s dive right into the “postage stamp” between post and bar. Brilliant strike, and suddenly, it was 1-1.

Boosted by this gift, Switzerland kept attacking, and Widmer came close to beating Gunn again, but his effort went just wide. Scotland dug in, and Giklmour’s calm on the ball helped them get out. He was chopped down by Rodriguez, who saw yellow.

On 32m, the Swiss built their own end-to-end move. This saw a series of swift passes carry the ball box to box. It ended with N’Doye cutting in from the left and shooting. Gunn made a full-length dive to turn it out. From the corner, the ball was cleared but looped back in. N’Doye got to the ball first and turned it past Gunn. He turned to celebrate, only to see the flag go up. VAR confirmed he was offside.

It was noticeable that the Swiss press was triggered by Ralston receiving the ball. He coughed it up once so why not again? In fact, as the half drew to its close, Scotland had more of the ball, and on 41m, we finally got to see a shot from Che. He arrived at the back post to meet Robertson’s corner, drawing a sprawling save from Jan Sommer.

The final minutes were end to end, and Gunn was kept busy. He had a good view of a Shaqiri strike from range and beat it away. Three added minutes passed before the break. The Swiss were ahead in most statistics, but Scotland were in the game. 1-1 at the break.

Neither coach made halftime changes, and the game went on its scruffy course. It was well-contested by the players but lacked the quality you expect from tournament football. I guess that is a criticism of Switzerland who, pound for pound, have more capable footballers. Scotland defended corners effectively enough but their fans wanted them further away from Gunn’s area.

The sheer pedantry of UEFA rules was displayed when Akanji went down making a clearance. The Ref stopped the game and McTominey complained that he’d only headed the ball and Scotland had won the ball back. He was booked for not being Andy Robertson…

Scotland began to see more possession as their fans went through their songs. During “Flower of Scotland”, the Swiss played in Vargas, who drew a decent save from Gunn. This could go any way.

On 59m, N’Doye slipped past Tierney and drew another save from Gunn, but Tierney was down and in agony. James McFadden, doing co-commentary, said, “He’s done his hamstring - again!” It looked that way. He was stretchered off and flew home Thursday to begin treatment. While McKenna got ready to come on, Shaqiri came off, with Embolo replacing him.

When play restarted, the tempo of the match remained slow. Both sides tried to win it, but as time passed, Switzerland visibly eased off. They were sat on 4 points, and that would pretty much guarantee progress from the group.

Whether Scotland noticed this or not, they did begin to create more. Midway through the half, they nearly got another goal. McTominey drew a foul by Akanji on the right wing, and Robertson swung it over with his left boot. Hanley rose, beat his marker and crashed a header against the post. The defenders were able to get the ball clear.

Soon after, Robertson was able to put another free kick into the box. McKenna headed it over the bar. Even Ralston had his moment, overlapping and forcing a corner. Yakin sent on Sierro and Rieder for Freuler and Vargas.

Scotland were now winning their individual battles, but despite winning corners and free kicks they never seriously threatened Somer’s goal. With 10m left, Gilmour was replaced by McLean as Scotland tried to force the issue.

Suddenly a long ball out from the back found Embolo running into space behind the Scots. He dinked it over Gunn and wheeled away - as the lino raised his flag. Replays showed he was indeed too eager when crossing the halfway line.

Both sides had very tired players out there. The commentary team remarked that Ralston looked all in. Both sides brought on 2 last subs, and Ralston stayed on! Stergiou and Amdouni replaced Widmer and N’Doye then Christie and Shankland took over from McGinn and Adams. By then, we were in added time, and one last cross from Robertson, low and hard, was somehow lifted over his own bar by Akanji.

That was that. 1-1 gives Scotland a point but means they must beat Hungary to finish on 4 points, which (with the -4 goal difference looming) is the only chance they have of finishing 3rd. The Swiss would have preferred to win, but 4 points and +2GD should see them through.

Scotland 0 Hungary 1

23rd June, Stuttgart Arena

⚽️ IBO Reporter: Spot51

Teams

There was much chatter about how the Scots would cope without Tierney. Change of shape? Change of personnel? Neither happened. McKenna was again drafted in to fill that hole with the rest in the 3-4-3 that had got them to Germany.

Hungary, on zero points, had to win and hope 3 points would allow them to carry on in the competition. They made 2 changes from the defeat by Germany. Fiola was replaced on the right of the back 3 by Botka. In midfield, whichever Nagy started that game was benched for the fit again Callum Styles of Sunderland. Styles was born in Bury and, during lockdown, researched his family tree. He was surprised to find his Gran was Hungarian and posted the discovery on social media. A call came from the Hungarian FA and Callum has been a regular ever since. Hungary are unbeaten in his 14 previous starts…

Report

I didn’t watch this match.

I love Scotland and its football team, but I am also a connoisseur of The Beautiful Game (and a pragmatist). When Channers accepted my bid for Group A, I expected that Germany and Switzerland would be contesting the top spot and would always watch that. My copious notes will be used to create that report later.

I did see the last few minutes live, as this match went on longer than that in Frankfurt. I also watched the ITV highlights this morning and shared Ally McCoist’s anguish. A draw here would have seen both sides knocked out. A Scotland win would probably see them through, but Hungary could only win and hope…

It seems the first half was a non-event. The fear of losing clearly dominated the will to win, and Scotland’s domination of the ball led to no chances before the break. Twice during these Euros has a side created nothing before half time: Scotland against Germany and now Scotland against Hungary. About 90% of the Tartan Hordes inside the Stadium would have played Shankland alongside (or before) Che.

At half time on BBC2, they said they had planned to show highlights from Stuttgart “but there weren’t any”. I checked the stats and Scotland had a 0 in every column except fouls. Hungary had 5 attempts, with 1 on target. ITV showed the 3 yellow cards Hungary had collected were richly deserved, and the Ref was probably overgenerous to show that few. Everything of import happened during the second period.

As the 2nd half progressed, desperation set in. Scotland maintained more possession, but Hungary continued to have more shots and get some on target. Gunn was rarely idle.

On 50m, McTominey got a nonsense yellow card, which will see him miss the next Euros match - whenever that might be. On 53m, Robertson carried the ball out and passed to Che. He cut in from the left and finally saw that big white rectangle with the net attached to it. He took a punt, but it flew too high.

Approaching the hour mark, it was very end to end. It pretty much stayed like that till the final whistle. The difference in possession is readily explained by Scotland taking an age to get the ball forward and Hungary doing it in mere seconds. It wasn’t pretty, but it was getting exciting.

The first change saw Callum Styles being replaced by A Nagy soon after. A silly foul by Hanley allowed Hungary to bring up their big guys and put one into the mixer. Gunn came to punch and both he and Varga were flat out as the ball was cleared. Gunn was soon up, but the Ferencvaros striker was not. His teammates frantically called for assistance and the prone player was, like Eriksen last Euros, soon behind a screen as the medics did their work. He was taken to a hospital in Stuttgart, where he is being treated for a concussion and a fractured cheekbone.

While this was going on, a VAR penalty review found Gunn not guilty. Play resumed after an 8 minute hiatus with the burly Adam on for Varga and Szalai for Dardai. Clarke then made his first changes, Shankland and Stu for Che and McGinn. Soon after, McTominey sent Stu through on goal. A player brought him down from behind, and the Referee waved, “Play on”. WTF!!?? VAR? “Nothing to see here!” Frankly, FFS!

Another brace of Scots subs saw Gilmour and Ralston make way for Christie and McLean. The latter dropped into a back four, and McTominey went up to support Shankland. The intensity, if not the quality, cranked up a few notches.

The final Hungarian changes saw Csoboth replace Bolla and Z Nagy for AFBC’s Kerkez. A final Scots change saw Robertson limp off after passing the armband to Callum McGregor. The replacement was Lewis Morgan, who went to MLS in 2020 and is now a goal-scoring winger with RB New York.

In the 90th minute, Schafer had a couple of strikes at goal. Gunn turned the first away, and from the corner, the next was skewed well wide. Ten minutes of added time were signed, and Gunn was called upon again, this time getting behind a powerful strike from Szobozlai.

At long last, Scotland were getting lots of men forward, but each time they lost the ball, they had to chase speedy Magyars towards their own goal. All Scotland held its breath as Csoboth put his shot past Gunn and sighed with relief as it bounced off the post.

A draw sent both sides home so caution was thrown to the wind as both sides fought to hang on that bit longer. Morgan took too long and was closed down; McTominey shot high, and when Scotland did get a chance, it fell to Grant Hanley, who hit the target (if the target was Gulacsi).

Hanley was now a 3rd striker and stayed up as Scotland won a final corner from the left. The commentator said something like “Now or never” but was talked over by Ally McCoist shouting “You can’t do that!” Stu swung in the cross, and the ball came loose to McGregor, but a defender hacked it away. Suddenly, the Hungarians were breaking forward again.

“You can’t leave it one-on-one at the back”, explained Ally as the ball was swept wide to Sallai on the right. He carried the ball to the edge of the area and cut it back to Csoboth, who turned past Gunn and which of his defenders had got back on the line. 0-1 in the 100th minute. Scotland were heading home.

Hungary finished 3rd on 3 points and must now wait and hope that at least 2 sides fail to reach that mark. Two 3rd places sides already have 3 points, and the other 3 have one game left.

Switzerland 1 Germany 1

23rd June, Frankfurt Arena

⚽️ IBO Reporter: Spot51

Teams

With both teams virtually through this game was about 1st or 2nd. The Swiss put Shaqiri and Vargas back on the bench and brought in Rieder and Embolo alongside N’Doye at the top. Nagelsmann opted to leave well alone and kept the same XI that had won both their earlier games.

Report

Switzerland are on 4 points and Germany 6, so a comfortable draw sees both through to the knockout phase. A draw is statistically likely, too, as Switzerland’s recent tournament record is P12 W4 D7 L1. They love a draw in the Cantons.

With Switzerland, the “Home team”, they wore their 2 tone red kit. (Note to Puma: nothing like this in Saints changing rooms EVER! Thank you.) That meant the Germans had no excuse to wear their vile second strip and played in white.

At 48, tonight’s referee, Mr Orsato from Italy, is officiating his final match. I also watched his last ECL (PSG v Dortmund) and Serie A (Atalanta v Fiorentina). You expect Refs to have no feelings, but he has been very emotional about retiring.

If anyone expected this to be a tame match they could not have been more wrong. With either Italy or Croatia awaiting the runner-up, both sides were trying to win with no quarter asked or given!

Whereas Scotland and Hungary was a desperate affair, here we had 22 top players right up for the challenge. Being the Nerd I am, I checked where they were playing: 9 from Bundesliga, 5 from Serie A, 3 from both EPL and La Liga and 2 from Ligue 1.

The early minutes saw both teams attacking with chances, corners and fouls coming in quick succession. The first real incident of note came on 15m when Mittelstadt got down the left and crossed for Musiala. As he closed in, Aebischer got a foot in first and cleared the ball. It was collected by Andrich, whose fierce shot flew past Sommer. The German celebrations were in full swing when VAR decided Musiala had clattered the Bologna player after the ball had gone: no goal.

Germany was being Germany. Musiala was breezing past players and Kroos pinging passes all over yet everywhere they tried to get, the Swiss were there waiting. It was like a game of chess on steroids FFS. N’Doye got the first yellow for smashing into Rudiger, but challenges like that were not uncommon.

Then, on 28m, the Swiss press coughed up the ball deep in Germany’s half. Xhaka saw Freuler’s move to his left and gave him the ball. He smashed in a cross, which N’Doye met on the volley to beat Neuer at his near post. Those 2 have helped Bologna into the ECL with goals like that. 1-0, and the cowbells were clanging!

Soon after, Aebischer played N’Doye in again. He got his body in front of Rudiger and hit a low shot, which fizzed just past the post. Germans rarely do “reeling”, and here they dug in and carried on. The foul count continued to rise. Tah’s on Embolo on 38m was significant as it earned his second yellow of the Euros. He will not play in Germany’s next match.

With halftime approaching, Germany cranked it up. Rudiger met a Kroos corner but his header just missed. The same could not be said of their next strike, which Havertz sent horribly wide. Andrich did likewise before 3 added minutes passed without incident. HT 1-0, and Switzerland is at the top of Group A.

After the break, Germany, with their coach’s polite requests ringing in their ears, started like a runaway train. Musiala drew a routine save from Sommer, and both Gundogan and Kroos sent shots he was able to watch fly past his posts. The hosts won further corners, but the red wall stood firm, and from the hour, both coaches began making changes.

First, Schlotterbeck replaced Tah, which he’ll probably have to do in the next match, and Mittelstadt came off to give RBL’s Raum (who played every game at the last Euros) a run at left-back. Eager to join the fray, the former set up the latter, whose shot sailed over the bar.

Switzerland were under plenty of pressure, but Ajanji and Schar remained unflustered. As Havertz sent a header high above the bar, it probably occurred to Nagelsmann that Fullkrug needed to come on. Instead, the Swiss replaced their whole front line. Off came N’Doye, Rieder and Embolo, with Amdouni, Duah and Varga as their replacements.

Having already lost one Leverkusen player, Germany protected Andrich by replacing him with Hoffenheim striker Maxi Beier. Gundogan would play a little deeper alongside Kroos, and Wirtz and Musiala would support two forwards.

On 67m, Xhaka won his long-awaited first yellow card of Euro 24. Whether that would alter his approach or not was not obvious. Raum then put in a lovely cross right on Havertz’s head between the posts, but again, it went high. Where is Fullkrug FFS?

Germany kept trying. Wirtz played a lovely ball into Kimmich but the substantial frame of Akanji was all over him as he tried to shoot and deflected the ball to safety. Beyond 70m, the Swiss seemed to catch their second wind, and the 3 fresh forwards began influencing the match. Xhaka gave Duah a chance to shoot, and the youngster drew a diving save from Neuer. After spending much of the half camped outside the Swiss box, Germany were again being pressed on the edge of theirs.

So, on 76m, it happened. Fullkrug and Sane came off the bench with Musiala and Wirtz going off. There was no immediate impact, and the exchange of niggly fouls carried on. Inside the last 10m, Widmer was carded for a foul on Raum. With everyone expecting a cross, Sane had a shot which missed but Germany soon won a few corners and laid siege to the Swiss goal again. With one of these, Kroos found Havertz, and this time, it clattered against the bar before being cleared.

Again the Swiss were able to use the movement of their forwards to get out. A run in behind from Vargas was just offside before Xhaka had the last decent chance in the 90m. His shot into the top corner was acrobatically tipped around the post by Neuer.

Partway through +4 added minutes, one of Raum’s decent crosses finally hit the jackpot. Fullkrug rose in front of Havertz and powered his header beyond the helpless Somer. 1-1, Germany top and the Swiss with a tough game against one of the Big Beasts from Group B.

Great match, and neither side deserved to lose it. We didn’t see whether Mr Orsato was all emotional afterwards, but I’m sure we’ll all wish him a happy retirement from The Beautiful Game.

Group A Summary

⚽️ IBO Reporter: Spot51

In other groups, chaos sometimes reigned, and unlikely sides found a route into the knockout games.

Not here, though: Germany and Switzerland were the De Luxe models of Group A, and both had relatively untroubled progress to the business end of Euro 24. They play again on Saturday. Switzerland face Italy in Berlin at tea time then Germany and Denmark meet that evening in Dortmund.

The upsets elsewhere resulted in Hungary's hard-earned 3 points not being enough. They must now follow the Scots through the exit door.