Spain will be in the semifinals of the Eurocup. On June 23, everything was at stake against Slovakia and today, July 2, they beat Switzerland and will be on July 6 in Wembley to play the semifinals. A victory in the penalty shoot-out, the weak point of Spain that was solved in Saint Petersburg Unai Simon stopping two Swiss pitches and Oyarzabal that marked the decisive one. A triumph suffered in which Spain was not that of Slovakia and Croatia, but will be in the semifinals, which is what really matters.
Luis Enrique He changed the eleven again in what is already a tradition in this European Championship in which he has not repeated the starting team so far this tournament. This time, Pau Torres returned to ownership to the detriment of Eric Garcia and the same happened with Jordi Alba who returned on eleven instead of Gayá. Two changes in a team that from the first moment had possession against a Switzerland that gave it up to play against.
With the ball in their possession, the Red commanded, but did not generate real danger while Switzerland pressured the Spanish midfield in search of a robbery to go for Unai Simon. This was the start of a match in which Spain was not the one of the matches against Slovakia and Croatia, but had luck on their side. In the eighth minute, on the first corner kick of the match, a shot from Jordi Alba from the front he finished with the ball hitting Zakaria and assuming 0-1 for Spain.
In his first shot between the three suits, Spain commanded on the scoreboard and had the semifinals of the Eurocup closer. The goal changed the script of the game although not much. Spain still had the ball but Switzerland pressed more, took a step forward to seek the tie. And did it without Plunger on the field, its most dangerous striker had to retire injured after 23 minutes of play.
It wasn't a party for frills and Spain I knew it. It was about holding off the Swiss attacks and waiting for the opportunity to go into halftime winning. That's what happened, that the first half ended with 0-1 for the Red that he only fired one shot between the three sticks in those 45 minutes, but it was worth it for him to be a goal and at this point in the Eurocup, that's what mattered.
Spain had 45 minutes ahead to sentence their pass to the semifinals and was able to do so at the start of the second half with a clear chance of Elm that he had entered for a ‘headdress’ Sarabia. Switzerland, for its part, was the one that had to risk, go all out to draw and that was even going so far as to discuss control of the ball to Spain in some phases of the game and having chances to score.
Tie Switzerland
Seeing how the game was, Luis Enrique decided to remove Morata to put Gerard Moreno in search of the goal that would give Spain the pass to the semifinals. With the two teams looking for the goal, the minutes were passing in favor of Spain, although she could not live calmly because the Swiss were around the tie on more than one occasion.
Helvetic insistence was rewarded with both Shaqiri in the 68th minute of the match. If the goal of Spain came from a rebound, the Swiss also, specifically from one between Pau Torres and Laporte of which he took advantage Shaqiri to put the 1-1 on the scoreboard after a pass from Freuler.
The game was starting again for a Spain that was having a hard time, more than expected, to subdue a Switzerland that was showing that eliminating France in the second round was not a coincidence.
The story of the match changed in minute 77 when Freuler It was sent off with a direct red for a hard tackle on Gerard Moreno. With one more, the Red had it again to face to be in the semifinals, but it had to reflect it on the scoreboard and Switzerland was not going to make it easy for them. Luis Enrique decided to move the bench and in the extension decided to bet on the strength and speed in attack of Marcos Llorente placeholder image in search of the saving goal for Spain against a Switzerland well locked behind.
Step to extension
That yearned for so much from Spain did not arrive and the game went to extra time. An extra time in which the Red began with Luis Enrique changing to Ferran Torres by Oyarzabal and with a very clear occasion of Gerard Moreno, but his shot went off narrowly,
Switzerland, with one less, was very clear that their options were to defend well and seek their chance against it. Spain was in full command of the match and generated chances, some very clear, but could not beat Sommer that avoided the goals of Gerard Moreno and Oyarzabal.
The overtime break was reached without the score moving. Spain had 15 minutes ahead to avoid penalties that if it was not the Swiss goal, they hid it very well. The second part of the extension began as the first one ended, with the Red besieging the area of a Switzerland that was noticing the physical effort it was doing with one less player.
The Hispanic occasions were falling one after another, but none ended with success, that is to say, in goal. Luis Enrique decided that for what defense and removed Pau Torres to enter Thiago. Nothing changed in the panorama of a match in which the minutes passed and the threat of the penalty shoot-out loomed on the horizon. The last bet of Luis Enrique was to remove Pedri from the field to put Rodri, but he was not successful in that change either.
Everything in the penalty shootout
Spain failed to beat Switzerland and everything would be decided by the penalty shoot-out. That, seeing the precedents, did not seem at all good for the Red that started by failing its first pitch Busquets. A mistake that he amended Unai Simon stopping the penalty taken by Schar.
Little or nothing lasted the Spanish joy because Rodri failed after stopping Unai Simon who returned to equalize the batch by stopping the one who launched Akanji. G
erard Moreno did not fail and gave Spain an advantage that it had in the boots of Oyarzabal the pass to the semifinals after the failure of Vargas. The Real Sociedad did not fail and Spain will be on July 6 in the semifinals of the Eurocup.
Switzerland, 1 (1)
Sommer; Elvedi, Akanji, Rodríguez; Widmer (Mbabu, m. 100), Freuler, Zakaria (Schar, m. 100), Zuber (Fassnacht, m. 92), Shaqiri (Djibril Sow, m. 81), Embolo (Rubén Vargas, m.23), Seferovic (Gavranovic, m. 82).
Spain, 1 (3)
Unai Simon; Azpilicueta, Laporte, Pau Torres (Thiago, d. 113), Jordi Alba; Koke (Marcos Llorente, m. 92), Busquets, Pedri (Rodri, m. 119); Ferran Torres (Oyarzabal, m. 91), Morata (Gerard Moreno, m. 54) and Sarabia (Dani Olmo, m. 46).
Goals: 0-1, Zakaria (p.p. m. 8); 1-1, Shaqiri (m. 68)
Penalties: For Spain, Dani Olmo, Gerard Moreno and Oyarzabal scored and Busquets, Rodri failed
Gravanovic scored for Switzerland, Schar, Akanji, Rubén Vargas missed
Referee: Michael Oliver (England). He sent off Freuler with a direct red (m. 77). Yellow to Widmer (m. 67), Laporte (m. 93), Gravanovic (m. 121)
Stadium: St. Petersburg. 26,500 viewers