Euro 2024: immense feat, Sagnol’s Georgia qualified at the expense of Greece

Georgia qualified for Euro 2024, which it will play for the first time in its history, by beating Greece on penalties on Tuesday (0-0, 4-2 tab) in the play-off. The selection, coached by Frenchman Willy Sagnol, has never qualified for the final phase of an international tournament, Euro or World Cup, since the country's independence in 1990. The Caucasians will be the little Thumbs of Group F, with Portugal of Cristiano Ronaldo, Turkey and the Czech Republic. Greece, unexpected European champion in 2004, once again misses the mark. She has not participated in a Euro since 2012, and was eliminated in the quarter-final by Germany (4-2).

For this barrage at home, the Georgians had clearly chosen their tactic: to leave possession to the Hellenes and oppose them with an iron defense, with three central defenders. By counting on counterattacks or set pieces to try not to relive the nightmare of the Euro-2021 play-offs, when North Macedonia came to impose 1-0 in Tbilisi, against all expectations.

The game was locked in a double lock, and we had to wait until the 45th minute to see the first shot on target, a free kick from Giorgi Chakvetadze just under the bar, well slammed by the Greek goalkeeper of Nottingham Forest, Odysseas Vlachodimos.

The first huge thrill in the Tbilisi stadium happened during extra time, when Greek defender Konstantinos Mavropanos placed an outstretched header on the bar after a corner (102nd). It was then the Georgians who thrilled their supporters, with Davidashvili (104th) then Kiteishvili (110th), who both came up against the Greek goalkeeper. But it was written that the Georgians would qualify after the anguish, and that their goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, who plays in Spain in Valencia, would be the hero of a historic evening, by stopping the first Greek shot on goal.