On the evening of the arrival of the French team in Vienna, the knockout rounds began. At 8:45 p.m. on the 20th, the match between Portugal and Germany will be played at St. Jakob's Park in Basel, Switzerland.

Portugal's squad was unchanged from their starting XI for the first two group games, with Nuno Gomes coming up and Cristiano Ronaldo and Simão splitting the left and right wings. Germany started three changes in midfield from the previous game, with Hitzersperger and Schweinsteiger playing on the wings, Rolfes replacing Frings with a rib injury, and Podolski joining Klose up front.

The head coach of the German team, Loew, was suspended for this game, and he could only stay in a glass private room without communication equipment to watch the game, which had a certain impact on the German team. The German media believe that this game will be a serious test for the German team, and they will play without the coach's on-the-spot command.

The Portuguese media encouraged their team to take on the courage to challenge a strong German team and strive to achieve what they did four years ago. Four years ago, Portugal made it to the final at the European Championships on home soil, knocking out formidable opponents all the way. It's a pity that they lost to the dark horse Greece in the end.

Cristiano Ronaldo said before the game that he would lead his team to a victory over Germany to advance to the semi-finals. Ballack said: "This is probably my last European Championship and I don't want to leave myself with regrets. Tonight, the whole world will see how we beat Portugal! ”

The brutal knockout rounds are about to begin, the battle clouds are thick, and the air in Europe is tense. The winner is king, the loser is the loser, and the winner will continue to move forward. The loser was saddened and left the big stage. Who will be the winner? Who will make a name for themselves in this cup and write their own legend?

At 8:45 p.m., the St. Jakobs Park in Basel, Switzerland, was packed. With the shouts of fans on both sides, with the referee's whistle, the game officially began!

After some probing, Portugal took the lead in attacking. In the fourth minute, Friedrich's pass was wrong, and Ronaldo dribbled down the left side to cross, and Lehmann jumped up. Hold the soccer ball with ease. Nine minutes. Hitzersperger's free kick from 30 meters hit the wall and was blocked by the wall.

The German team immediately returned to the color, the tenth minute. Schweinsteiger throws the ball into the right touchline. Hitzersperger is 25 meters to the right. Left-footed shot wide of the near corner. As time passed, the two sides fought more and more bravely, and the eighteenth minute. Germany took a tactical corner from the right, Hitzersperger crossed, and Ballack headed high from eight yards.

In the nineteenth minute, Ronaldo burst into the penalty area and almost formed a single knife, and Friedrich made up for it in time to shovel the ball out. In the twentieth minute, Bosingwa broke through the cross on the right side with speed, and Moutinho, who was unguarded five meters in front of him, did not adjust his pace and hit the ball high with his left knee.

In the 22nd minute, the German team skillfully coordinated with three people on the left side, Ballack passed, Podolski crossed after breaking through with speed on the left, Schweinsteiger inserted a right-footed shovel shot from five meters in the middle, Germany 1-0!

With the score behind, Portugal launched an onslaught and the Germans were on the lookout. In the 26th minute, Petit brought down Metzelde, who suddenly stepped forward, and received a yellow card. Schweinsteiger took a free kick from the left side of the midfield into the penalty area, Portugal marked and missed, and the unguarded Klose hit the goal with a header from six meters, Germany 2-0!

With two goals down, Portugal are in a tough situation and they continue to attack. In the 40th minute, Simão made a wonderful pass after breaking through the middle, Ronaldo shook off Mertesacker with his speed, burst into the left rib of the penalty area and shot with his left foot twelve meters, Lehmann blocked it!

The football rebounded into the penalty area, Nuno Gomez scored with a left-footed shot from five meters, and Portugal pulled one back, 1-2!

Portugal, with their tenacity, closed the gap and saw hope of an equaliser. Under the leadership of Cristiano Ronaldo, they frequently threatened the German goal. In the 43rd minute, Ronaldo forced a right-footed shot from 25 meters, but his shot was blocked by a defender. In the first minute of stoppage time, Ronaldo burst into the penalty area on the left side, dodged the defense, and fired a right-footed shot into the far corner from 12 meters on the left rib that was slightly off. At the end of the first half, Portugal trailed Germany 1-2.

In the 46th minute, Deco dribbled the ball in the middle to attract the defender and passed the ball, and Meireles' right-footed shot from 25 meters missed the left post. A minute later, Cristiano Ronaldo was tripped by Friedrich on a breakaway, who received a yellow card.

In the 57th minute, Simão took a corner kick from the right side, and Deco headed back in front of him, and Pepe inserted a header from three meters in the middle to hit the top of the goal. In the 59th minute, Ronaldo's left-footed shot from 25 meters was blocked by Mertesacker.

The game was very close, Pepe made a mistake at a crucial moment, and in the 60th minute, Pepe deliberately blocked Klose, who formed a breakthrough, and received a yellow card. Schweinsteiger's free kick from the left side was hoisted into the penalty area, Ferreira failed to clear the ball with a header, Ricardo was slow to attack, Ballack scored with a header from six meters, Germany 3-1!

The Germans are in good shape and will need to tighten their defence for the next game to hold on to the win. The Portuguese team, which had no way out, launched the final offensive, and in the 68th minute, Ronaldo took a free kick 30 meters to the left and shot high with his right foot.

Portugal had no better way to deal with Germany's dense defence and tried to knock on the German goal with a long-range shot. In the 75th minute, Nani tried to shoot wide from distance, and then Meireles' right-footed shot from 30 yards went wide again. In the 78th minute, Deco tried to shoot from distance, and Lehmann got the ball. In the 81st minute, Simão tried to shoot high from distance.

The Portuguese's efforts finally paid off in the eighty-seventh minute. Nani broke through on the left and crossed, and the unguarded Postiga scored with a header from five meters, Portugal 2-3!

In the final minutes, the competition intensified, with Portugal trying to pull off a miracle equaliser and the Germans not wanting the win to slip away. The free-spirited Portuguese laid siege to Germany, and the Germans used their experience and tenacity to erect several strong walls outside the box.

At the end of the fourth minute of stoppage time, the match between Germany and Portugal finally came to an end as the referee's whistle blew for the end of the game. Three to two, the German team entered the semi-finals. The runner-up of the last session was eliminated. Excited German fans turn Basel's St. Jakobs Park Stadium into a sea of joy.

A lot of sad Portuguese fans shed tears as their team was eliminated and had to leave the stage. Cristiano Ronaldo looked up at the night sky with blank eyes, and no one knew what he was thinking.

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With the start of the match between Germany and Portugal, it means that the brutal knockout stage has officially begun. At 8:45 p.m. on the 21st, the Ernst Haple Stadium in Vienna, Austria, will play the second quarter-final of this European Championship, Croatia against Turkey.

In the first half, both sides battled hard in midfield, although Croatia's attack was more threatening. But they also failed to seize the opportunity. The two sides continued to fight for 45 minutes in the second half. Ninety minutes were tied 0-0 and the two sides went into extra time. Croatia scored first in the 119th minute of extra time, but two minutes later Turkey miraculously equalised and the two teams had to go to a brutal penalty shoot-out.

Penalty shootout. Croatia scored just one penalty in the first four rounds. Turkey made 3 of 3 free throws. Turkey won 3-1 to advance. Turkey will compete with Germany for the right to the final!

The war is raging. Fans enjoy a quadrennial football feast on site or at home. At 8:45 p.m. on the 22nd, at the St. Jakobs Park Stadium in Basel, Switzerland, the match between the Netherlands and Russia began. Before the game, there was a general bullish outlook on the Dutch team. In the group of death, they defeated the champions and runners-up of the 06 World Cup and qualified first in the group. Neither in terms of strength nor tournament experience, Russia has no advantage.

Both sides were proactive in the first half, playing a head-to-head battle, but neither side was able to score. Shortly after the start of the second half, Arshavin organized a delicate attack, and Pavlyuchenko scored to give Russia a 1-0 lead!

Not to be outdone, the Netherlands equalised in the 86th minute through Ruud van Nistelrooy to make it 1-1 after 90 minutes.

The two sides went into brutal extra-time, with Arshavin dominating the game, providing one assist and one goal at a time to help Russia beat the Netherlands 3-1 and reach the semi-finals in history.

After the match, the Russian fans went crazy as their team won against the mighty Dutch team. After the game, most of the media thought that this was an upset, the biggest upset since the start of the game, and the mighty Netherlands lost to Russia.

The European Cup is a big stage, some people shine brightly, and some people dim and irrelevant. Arshavin shone all over the field, and the Dutch stars dimmed. One game makes a star. According to media reports, Arshavin, the leader of this game, has attracted the attention of many giants. British media reported that Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal are all interested in the Russian star.

Before the start of the new season, Arshavin finally accepted the call of Professor Arsene Wenger to go to Arsenal.

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With the Netherlands vs Russia game over, attention has shifted to France vs Spain. These two teams have a lot of superstars, among which Tang Jue is the star that people pay the most attention to. Many people are predicting whether the number one star of Real Madrid will be able to amaze the world as much as the last game in this game?

La Rijère de Paris was the first to report on the telephone interview with Tang Jue: last night the reporter of this newspaper conducted a telephone interview with the French captain, and Tang said: "Tomorrow night, we will defeat the Spanish team!" ”

He said that the atmosphere of the whole team preparation is very good, and the state of the whole team is gradually improving, and it is about to enter the peak state. As for himself, he believes he has fully recovered from his injury. The reporter asked him if he would score tonight, and he replied in the affirmative: "I will definitely score, as for how many, it is unknown." Maybe one, maybe two, or even a hat-trick again! ”

He's still so confident. We have reason to believe that under his leadership, the French team will gradually enter the peak state and achieve the glory of eight years ago!

Team newspaper report: Zidane said in an interview with this newspaper, "I am optimistic about the French team, I am optimistic about Don, they will definitely surprise us tonight." I'll be there to cheer them on! ”

Le Monde Sport believes Spain have a better chance of winning tonight because Spain's midfield is stronger. A strong midfield, plus Villa, who has already scored a hat-trick, this Spanish team is the strongest Spanish team in history.

The Spanish team is arguably the strongest Spanish team of all time, with Casillas being brave and a solid backline led by Lion King Puyol, conceding just three goals in three group games. Spain's midfield is nothing short of luxurious, with Xavi, Andres Iniesta and others being extremely creative and in control.

As for the strikers, Villa was in great form, scoring a hat-trick against Russia.

Marca also cheered for his national team: limit Don and Spain will win. It is said that the old coach Aragonés called Mourinho two days ago to ask for advice, and the two mainly discussed the defense of Don. We believe that Spain have what it takes to defend the Don! (To be continued......)