But the stronger one does not necessarily win.

WAIT TO SEE A " MASTER " … STANDARD

Should Kobbie Mainoo start alongside Declan Rice in midfield? That would allow Gareth Southgate to move Trent Alexander-Arnold back to his natural position at right-back. Up front, could Jude Bellingham and Bukayo Saka make way for Anthony Gordon and Cole Palmer? There are other issues too. How Foden and Bellingham can combine effectively, or where Harry Kane should operate primarily. In short, the problems England need to solve before entering the knockout stages are more their own than their opponents’.

Will Bellingham ( right ) help England make the difference against Slovakia?

Of course, the above examples are just the opinions of the commentators. Southgate does not necessarily care, but he certainly has his own difficult problems, when what has been shown in the group stage shows that this is not the perfect England team. For the neutral audience, the feeling of waiting to see the appearance of the England team in the knockout match against Slovakia is no different from the feeling of waiting to see the "Three Lions" debut match 2 weeks ago. It is still hard to believe that the England team in the group stage is a truly formed England team. How can the number 1 championship candidate be so bland?

While the English people - most of whom are criticizing Mr. Southgate - have raised so many topics worth discussing, that alone shows that Southgate's squad is too strong. Without stars, how can they replace this or that? Although not convincing, it must be reiterated that Mr. Southgate and his team have not "lost" anything after 3 consecutive matches of criticism. They still continue as group leaders and the reward is too great: falling into the easy bracket - with Spain, Portugal, Germany, France, Belgium all in the remaining bracket (that's because France is also disappointing, standing below Austria). England's "unstable" defense has only conceded 1 goal and has the lowest "expected goals conceded" index in the tournament.

In all respects, England are still completely superior to Slovakia, who surprisingly beat Belgium in their opening match but then only advanced via a third-place play-off. This is Slovakia's third consecutive appearance at the EURO. The first time was in 2016, when Slovakia also advanced via a play-off and stopped in the first knockout round, losing 0-3 to Germany. Will history repeat itself? It seems that in this year's tournament, Slovakia has improved compared to itself. They shot on goal 37 times (13 accurately). At EURO 2020, Slovakia only shot exactly 2 times. Slovakia has never beaten England (drawn 1, lost 5).

Match schedule

11pm June 30: England - Slovakia (VTV3, TV360 live)

2am July 1: Spain - Georgia (VTV3, TV360 live)

WHAT MIRACLE FOR GEORGIA?

The remaining knockout match tonight is also very different. Of course, Spain is completely superior to the "newcomer" Georgia. In the group stage, Georgia was the team that had the most shots on goal (71 times), had the most accurate shots (25 times) and had the highest "expected goals" index in the tournament. In the qualifying round of this EURO, Georgia lost 1-7 to Spain right at home in Tbilisi. It should also be said: Georgia was able to play in the play-off with Greece and get a ticket to the EURO finals thanks to their achievements in the UEFA Nations League, but they only finished second to last (above Cyprus) in the qualifying round.

After winning all the matches without conceding a goal in the group stage, Spain have now overtaken Germany and France in the betting market, becoming the second favorite to win the tournament right now. Compared to the glorious period of tiki-taka, Spain is now even better in terms of flexibility in playing and being difficult to predict. The young star pair on the two wings of the attack, Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams, are still eager to show themselves. They successfully debuted in the group stage, meaning they have overcome the pressure of waiting.

Anyway, this is still the EURO field, the most balanced of all the major tournaments. Who knows, there might be a "miracle" for Georgia! As always, Georgia's hopes are placed at both ends of the field: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in attack and Giorgi Mamardashvili in goal. Their individual quality is not bad. Kvaratskhelia (Napoli) is a star in Serie A while Mamardashvili is the main goalkeeper for Valencia in La Liga. Before the last 17 shots in the group stage, Mamardashvili saved 16 times. Tonight, he will have to work hard again, facing many shots on goal, after a dense defense in front tried to limit Spain's shots.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hai-tran-knock-out-kha-chenh-lech-nhung-ke-manh-hon-chua-chac-da-chien-thang-185240629205209104.htm