Spain, France to meet in Euro semi-finals, Turkey deplores ‘unfair’ Demiral ban

Published on: 06/07/2024 – 00:15Amended: 06/07/2024 – 00:32

3 minutes

Luis de la Fuente’s Spain won 2-1 in a thrilling encounter between the tournament’s two best-performing teams, thanks to Mikel Merino’s header from Dani Olmo’s cross after the match looked destined for a penalty shootout.

“He’s a winning horse… I’m proud to train players like him, insatiable players,” De la Fuente said.

It was a tough end to the tournament for Germany, who pushed Spain all the way and took the game into extra time thanks to Florian Wirtz’s 89th-minute goal that equalised after Olmo had opened the scoring for La Roja.

“We had a good tournament but when you’re so close, to be eliminated like that is bitter,” said Toni Kroos after his last match with Germany.

Spain will now be favourites to win a record fourth European crown after their seventh straight victory was inspired by Olmo, who replaced the injured Pedri after just eight minutes following a clash between the Barcelona midfielder and Kroos.

They passed a huge test against the Germans in Stuttgart and will pose a completely different kind of problem for France, who beat Portugal 5-3 on penalties after a dull game that ended goalless after extra time.

Theo Hernandez coolly scored the winning penalty and France qualified for the semi-finals, despite their only open goals in the tournament coming from opposition players.

Joao Felix was the only player to miss his spot-kick, hitting the base of the post, meaning Portugal went home and ageing icon Cristiano Ronaldo failed to score at a major tournament for the first time in his career.

France have reached the semi-finals in four of the last five editions and coach Didier Deschamps said: “You can’t take this for granted, that’s what I always say. It’s what all the players in the team deserve.”

Anger over Demiral ban

The Turkish government has called Demiral’s suspension “unfair and biased”, meaning he will miss Saturday’s last-16 match against the Netherlands and his Euro campaign will be over unless Vincenzo Montella’s side reach the final.

Demiral was the unlikely hero with a brace in Turkey’s 2-1 win over Austria in the last 16 and during the celebrations for his second goal he made a gesture associated with Turkish far-right group the Grey Wolves.

UEFA suspended Demiral for, among other things, “violating basic rules of good conduct”, a decision that Turkish Sports Minister Osman Askin Bak called politically motivated and which Montella dismissed as a “misunderstanding”.

“It was not a political gesture as it has been interpreted,” insisted Montella, who added that the wolf gesture is a “symbol of the Turks.”

Turkey will receive vociferous support in Berlin for a match attended by the country’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who said Demiral was only “showing his enthusiasm”.

Bellingham to face Switzerland

England will be able to rely on Jude Bellingham for their quarter-final against Switzerland after UEFA granted him a reprieve for his crotch-grabbing celebration after keeping the Three Lions in the competition in the last 16.

Bellingham, who scored twice in Germany, was filmed imitating the gesture while apparently looking towards the Slovakia bench after his stunning overhead kick in added time which took the game into extra time.

Manager Gareth Southgate described UEFA’s decision to allow him to select his star player as a “common sense” decision.

“I don’t think there was any intention in that gesture towards anyone, other than the communication he has with his family,” Southgate said.

Victory against Switzerland, who knocked out Italy in the last 16, would see England reach a semi-final with Turkey or the Netherlands as they seek to end a 58-year stalemate at a major tournament.

© 2024 AFP