Euro 2024 daily recap: Italy seals spot in Round of 16, Spain completes perfect group stage – Football News

Euro 2024 daily recap: Italy seals spot in Round of 16, Spain completes perfect group stage

Italy sealed its spot in the Euro 2024 Round of 16 with a 98th-minute heartbreaker against Croatia at the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig.

Here’s a recap of everything that happened on the final day of Group B games, with stats from FOX Sports Research:

  • Spain will face a third-place team in the Round of 16. Albania has been eliminated.
  • Spain improved to 9-0-0 (W-L-D) all-time vs Albania, outscoring them 32 to 3 in those matches and keeping a clean sheet in six of them.
  • Spain recorded three clean sheets in the group stage of the Euros for the first time ever (since group stage began in 1980). This was the first time in history it didn’t concede a single goal in the group stage of a major international tournament. It also became just the second team to win all three matches in the group stage of the Euros without conceding a single goal — Italy is the only other team to achieve this at Euro 2020 before going on to win the tournament.
  • Spain is unbeaten all-time at the Euros when leading at half, now 11-0-3 (W-L-D).
  • Spain made 10 changes to their starting lineup today, the first side to do so in a Euros match since they did it in 2008.
  • Ferran Torres now has 20 goals for Spain in 15 matches, with Spain earning a victory in all 15 of those matches. He’s now scored five goals at major tournaments for Spain since making his major tournament debut at Euro 2020 — only Alvaro Morata (7) has more in that time.
  • Dani Olmo has recorded four assists across his seven Euros matches; only Cesc Fabregas (5) has more for Spain. His five assists in major tournaments are also the most of any European player since 2020.
  • At 38 years and 216 days, Jesús Navas became the oldest player to play for Spain in a major international tournament, surpassing the previous record of Santiago Cañizares against Saudi Arabia in Germany 2006 (36 years and 248 days).

Albania vs. Spain Highlights | UEFA Euro 2024

Albania vs. Spain Highlights | UEFA Euro 2024

  • Italy has advanced to the Round of 16 as group runner-up. It will face Switzerland in the Round of 16. Italy has now advanced out of the group stage in last five Euros tournaments.
  • Italy fielded a starting 11 without Juventus players in a major international tournament for the first time since the 1998 World Cup.
  • Mattia Zaccagni’s goal was the latest scored by Italy — excluding extra time — at the EUROs ever (97 minutes and 19 seconds).
  • At 25 years and 120 days, Gianluigi Donnarumma is the youngest goalkeeper in the history of the Euros to reach 10 appearances.
  • Croatia is now 3-1-6 (W-L-D) all-time vs. Italy, but has split the scoring 10-10. It’s unbeaten in nine straight matches with Italy, with Italy’s only win coming in their first ever meeting back in April 1942.
  • Croatia finishes third in the group with only two points. It’s not officially eliminated, but no third-place team has ever qualified with two points.
  • Luka Modrić became the oldest goal-scorer ever at the Euros at 38 years and 289 days old.
  • There have been five penalties in this tournament, with the only two misses coming from Croatia.

Croatia vs. Italy Highlights | UEFA Euro 2024

Croatia vs. Italy Highlights | UEFA Euro 2024

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