On Tuesday, Ukraine secured its qualification for Euro 2024 by defeating Iceland with a score of 2-1. This victory provided a significant emotional lift to a nation that has been devastated by war since the Russian invasion in February 2022.
Ukraine qualified for Euro 2024
The game for Serhiy Rebrov’s team was much improved by the second-half goals scored by Viktor Tsygankov and Mykhailo Mudryk. Before this, the team needed to catch up after Albert Gudmundsson’s opening goal.
“Thank you, gentlemen!” Thank you, team! To evoke profound sentiments across the entire nation. In order to achieve a significant triumph and reach the EURO. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky’s statement on X shows that Ukrainians consistently emerge victorious when confronted with challenges, demonstrating their unwavering determination and resilience.
During periods of adversarial aggression, Ukrainians consistently exhibit their resilience and determination daily. Ukraine is currently and will continue to be. I express my gratitude for the triumph! Ukraine deserves commendation.
The Ukrainian hosts, who were playing in the Polish city of Wroclaw due to the ongoing conflict, commenced the match with a more promising performance and established a dominant possession advantage within the initial 10 minutes.
In the 14th minute, Iceland made significant progress in breaking the deadlock, as Hakon Arnar Haraldsson’s impressive run provided Jon Dagur Thorsteinsson with an opportunity to challenge Andriy Lunin in the Ukraine goal.
Rebrov’s team promptly countered, but Vitaliy Mykolenko evaded his left-footed shot while positioned advantageously within the box.
Gudmundsson had a significant breakthrough at the halfway point by delivering an exceptional individual performance to score his 10th goal while wearing an Iceland jersey.
The individual, aged 26, executed a slalom manoeuvre, successfully evading two Ukrainian defenders and executing a precisely executed curling shot with his left foot, surpassing Lunin’s reach from a distance of 25 yards.
After six minutes, Georgiy Sudakov, a 21-year-old Ukrainian player, successfully struck Hakon Rafn Valdimarsson on the palms at the near post after an inadequate defensive clearance executed by Iceland.
In the 39th minute, the hosts believed they had restored their relationship when Roman Yaremchuk successfully scored a goal from Tsygankov’s pass.
However, following fervent celebrations by the Ukrainian supporters, the goal was disallowed due to VAR’s determination that Tsygankov had been previously offside from Sudakov’s truncated pass.
Ukraine maintained a dominant position during the latter part of the first half as physicality escalated. Ruslan Malinovskyi received a yellow card for an elbow strike on Haraldsson immediately following the decision to deny Ukraine’s equaliser.
Tsygankov rectified his previous offside by scoring a goal for Ukraine nine minutes into the second half.
Sudakov once again assumed a crucial role in the game, as his precise crossfield pass reached the winger, who advanced from the right flank and successfully outperformed Valdimarsson with a left-footed shot within the far post.
Ukraine was on the verge of completing the turnaround with less than 20 minutes remaining. However, Mykolenko failed to capitalise on a favourable position in the box again and missed the post with his shot.
The keeper for Real Madrid, Lunin, executed an exceptional save to prevent Thorsteinsson from scoring from a short distance in the 77th minute. Subsequently, Gudmundsson missed the target one minute later while in a precarious position.
Iceland appeared to have a higher probability of scoring until Mudryk found an opening 18 yards out and successfully volleyed Sudakov’s pass into the opposite corner of the goal with only six minutes remaining.
Following a narrow defeat in the play-offs for the 2022 World Cup, the war-torn country will experience a significant boost by qualifying for Euro 2024.
The sensation is just remarkable. I am elated since it represents the realisation of yet another aspiration. “We express our profound gratitude to our supporters, who have provided us with remarkable assistance during these challenging circumstances,” stated midfielder Oleksandr Zinchenko.
The victory guarantees that Ukraine will participate in the European Championship for the fourth consecutive time, starting from hosting the tournament in 2012 alongside Poland.
Ukraine will compete against Belgium, Slovakia, and Romania in Group E at the European Championship in Germany this summer.
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