What we saw in Slovenia’s first match at Euro 2024: A slow start, brave continuation, and a point that will ignite even more euphoria
Text: Rok Vodišek. Photo: UEFA
The baptism of fire is behind us. After a long wait of 14 years, Slovenia played again on the big stage. And remained undefeated! Against a team that, on paper, is stronger. Against a team that some even consider among the wider circle of favorites. But Slovenia survived and proved it belongs among the best. Drawing the line under Kek’s squad’s opening match for Planet Football was former young Slovenian international Rok Vodišek.
The Danes showed in the first half that they are a very quality and organized team. They pressed almost the entire first half and had control of the game. They pushed our players back to our half, but truth be told, they didn’t create clear chances despite that. Credit for this also goes to the compact Slovenian setup, led by Jaka Bijol, who in my opinion played an excellent first half.
Moments before conceding the goal, we saw how talented and dangerous Benjamin Šeško is. In a tight space, he stopped the ball and nearly scored from about 20 meters out, but unfortunately missed the Danish goal frame by a hair. I am convinced that even the caliber of goalkeeper like Kasper Schmeichel wouldn’t have had any chance if the attempt had been a few centimeters more precise. Sadly, it quickly became evident that in major tournaments, even a second of inattention can be punished. This is exactly what happened to our team in the 17th minute when a moment of inattention was seized upon by the Danish team from a quick throw-in, leading to the opening goal.
View this post on Instagram
Even the always excellent Jan Oblak had no chance with the goal. We must admit that we were quite lucky a few minutes later when after Eriksen’s cross and the ball bouncing off Šeško and Mlakar, it narrowly missed our right post. Slovenians mainly threatened with attempts from deep balls, but these did not result in any notable chances. It’s worth highlighting Eriksen’s attempt in the 43rd minute, when he found himself alone on the edge of the penalty area but, fortunately, shot too high. Without a doubt, the aforementioned Christian Eriksen was the standout player of the first half, causing plenty of trouble for our selected team with his accurate passes and clever solutions.
The start of the second half was much more promising. In the 50th minute, our boys created some excitement in front of the Danish goal. An even better chance came a minute later when after a long throw-in by Erik Janža, Danish goalkeeper Schmeichel punched the ball, only for it to land at the head of Peter Stojanović, who returned it in front of the Danish goal, where Andraž Šporar was close to finishing. From the footage, it seemed Slovenians could have been awarded a penalty, as Šporar may have been unfairly obstructed during his attempt. For a few moments, the main referee of the match, Swiss Sandro Scharer, even stopped the game as VAR reviewed the situation, but it quickly became clear that no penalty would be given.
Three minutes later, the Danes threatened when, after a new delivery from Eriksen’s free kick, they managed a shot that flew just centimeters past the Slovenian goal. A few quiet minutes followed until the 65th minute, when Oblak showcased all his skill. Rasmus Hojlund found himself just a few meters from Oblak’s goal, but the Slovenian goalkeeper positioned himself excellently, spreading out to significantly complicate the Danish attacker’s finish, who failed to beat the Slovenian goalkeeper. The excellent defense clearly injected some energy into our national team, as just a minute later, after Šporar’s delivery, Adam Gnezda Čerin threatened with a header that unfortunately went too high.
The same player executed a free kick from the side in the 74th minute and sent a great cross into the Danish penalty area. There, Šporar got to the ball but unfortunately did not strike it well. Just a minute later, Šeško came back into the scene, hitting the crossbar with a powerful shot. Right from the ensuing corner, Erik Janža brought all Slovenian fans to their feet. After the ball bounced off, he fired from the left side just outside the penalty area and sent the ball into the net after it deflected off one of the Danish players.
This sparked immense joy among all our players, fans, and coaching staff. This goal lifted the spirits of our players, who threatened again in the 82nd minute when Šporar outpaced the Danish defender and finished excellently from a quite difficult position. To our disappointment, Schmeichel made a superb save with his fingertips, redirecting the ball for a corner. Until the end, the Danes managed two more shots on target, but on both occasions, Oblak had no trouble handling them.
View this post on Instagram
When all is said and done, we can say that the draw is a fair result based on what we’ve seen. The Danes were the better side in the first half, but the Slovenians showed a much better face in the continuation and deservedly equalized in the second half. Certainly, Slovenia’s performance in the second half can inspire optimism moving forward in the European Championship. A point against the favored Denmark is undoubtedly a positive step and will give our boys additional motivation in the battle to potentially advance to the knockout stages. The next battle awaits on Thursday at 15:00 when our heroes will face Serbia.
This text was automatically translated using AI.
Author: editorial Football Planet
Euro2024
National Team
#euro2024
#rokvodišek
Share