The 17th edition of the European Championship started with a bang as the host, Germany, thrashed Scotland 5-1 in the opening match, at the Allianz Arena in Munich.
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The Euro 2024 is living up to its promise of high-quality football. Following are the matches that are scheduled to be played on June 29, the first Round of 16 fixtures:
- Romania vs Netherlands (Round of 16) - July 2, 9:30 PM IST; 6:00 PM local time (CET); 5:00 PM BST
- Austria vs Turkiye (Round of 16) - July 3, 12:30 AM IST; 9:00 PM local time (CET); 8:00 PM BST
ROMANIA VS NETHERLANDS
The Netherlands might have emerged from a disappointing performance in the group phase of the European Championship with a favourable pairing but it will be wary of Romania when they meet on Tuesday in Munich in the round of 16.
The Dutch finished third in their group after losing to Austria in Berlin, but it could have turned out a lot worse after they avoided a potential meeting with England and got Romania in the first knockout round.
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Romania is 40 spots below seventh-placed Netherlands in the FIFA rankings and has won only two of 19 games played in six Euros finals appearances.
Romania has also only won once in 14 past meetings against the Dutch, losing 10. Its sole success was a Euro 2008 qualifier, won 1-0 in Constanta.
There will be no inferiority complex, however, from Romania, which has little to lose and faces a struggling Dutch side trying to find some sort of rhythm after tepid showings in Germany.
AUSTRIA VS TURKIYE
More than a few eyebrows were raised when Austria hired manager Ralf Rangnick in 2022 after a miserable stint at Manchester United, but the 66-year-old German has turned Austria into Euro 2024 contenders -- and earned the nation’s respect.
Austria, one of the biggest stories of the tournament after upending tough opponents France and the Netherlands to win its group, plays Turkey in the round of 16 on Tuesday.
After a hard-fought 1-0 loss to World Cup runners-up France, Austria reeled off a 3-1 victory over Poland and a 3-2 win over star-studded Netherlands to clinch a knockout berth for only the second time.
“To actually become the group winner in the end, that’s incredible,” Rangnick said after the victory over the Netherlands.
“When you beat the Netherlands and win the group, then you can’t be that bad,” said Borussia Dortmund midfielder Marcel Sabitzer, who scored the winning goal against the Dutch.
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