The end of the group stage at a major international tournament is always a bittersweet moment. No longer are we treated to a feast of two-to-four matches per day, but with the knockout rounds beginning you’re left with the best teams going head-to-head in win-or-go-home matches. With that in mind, here are The18’s Euro 2020 Round of 16 predictions for the eight matches we can’t wait to watch.
After 13 straight days of Euro group play, fans can finally take a moment to catch their breath. Over 3,240 minutes of soccer were played in the group stage and now it’s time for the Round of 16. Before moving on, it’s worth looking back at the worst Euro teams from the group stage that left us disappointed.
The European Championship is entering its knockout phase and the following is an overview of the remaining 16 teams:
AUSTRIA
Last week, Hungary passed an anti-LGBTQ+ law outlawing any content that might “promote homosexuality” to Hungarians under the age of 18. It’s a law that has already sparked legal proceedings against it, and one that came front and center in the soccer world for Hungary’s Euro 2020 match against Germany on Wednesday in Munich.
Lackadaisical, idealess and without any clear attacking direction, Germany still managed to dramatically avoid an early Euro 2020 exit after Leon Goretzka’s 84th-minute strike salvaged a 2-2 draw with Hungary in Munich on Wednesday night.
It was never going to be easy in the group of death, but no one could’ve predicted Hungary’s ability to take points off both France and Germany to hugely alter the shape of the group.
UEFA has turned down a request from the mayor of Munich for the city's stadium to be lit up in rainbow colors for Wednesday's Euro 2020 match between Germany and Hungary.
Munich mayor Dieter Reiter had said he wanted to light up the stadium in the colors in protest against a new law in Hungary that bans the dissemination of content in schools deemed to promote homosexuality and gender change and restricts the media from showing content with homosexuality in programming accessible to minors.
MUNICH, Germany - Four German players nursing injuries from their 4-2 victory over Portugal skipped training on Monday, the team said, with attacking midfielder Thomas Müller's availability in doubt for their next Euro 2020 game against Hungary.
Müller, recalled for the tournament after more than two years out of the team, suffered a capsule injury in his right knee towards the end of Saturday's Group F win over Portugal as he attempted to clear a ball.
Alemania se recuperó de su derrota inicial ante Francia, venciendo este sábado a Portugal por 4-2 y manteniendo intactas sus esperanzas de seguir avanzando en la Euro 2020. La gran figura del encuentro fue Robin Gosens, lateral de Atalanta, quien de paso logró perpetrar una dulce venganza personal hacia Cristiano Ronaldo.
This is the Germany we’ve grown to expect. This was not the Germany Portugal wanted to run into at Euro 2020. Robin Gosens — not Cristiano Ronaldo — was the star man in Saturday’s critical Group F clash, setting up two goals and scoring once to help Germany thrash Portugal 4-2 in Munich.