Fighting spirit propels Ukraine as Israel out
Ukraine star’s goal keeps side in battle to make Euro 2024
Israel crashed out of the European Championship qualifying playoffs against Iceland on Thursday, as Ukraine found two late goals for a stunning win at Bosnia-herzegovina.
A missed penalty in the 80th minute by Israel’s record scorer Eran Zahavi that would have levelled the score led to a late collapse in a 4-1 rout for Iceland. Israel had led when Zahavi scored a first-half penalty.
Ukraine’s new star forward Artem Dovbyk rose in the 88th to head the decisive goal in a 2-1 win just three minutes after Roman Yaremchuk had cancelled Bosnia’s lead taken in the 56th.
Ukraine will now face Iceland — the surprise quarter-finalists at Euro 2016 — on Tuesday with a place at Euro 2024 in Germany at stake.
It was an evening of big wins and no extra time needed in the six playoff semifinals.
Poland pushed aside overmatched Estonia 5-1 and Wales won 4-1 to deny Finland a return to the finals after making their tournament debut at Euro 2020.
Greece, the shocking champions at Euro 2004, scored four in the first half of an easy 5-0 win over Kazakhstan, after Georgia had beaten Luxembourg 2-0.
The winners now play single-leg knockout bracket finals on Wednesday that will go to penalty shootouts if needed to complete the 24-nation Euro 2024 lineup.
It will be: Wales v Poland in Cardiff; Ukraine v Iceland in Wroclaw, Poland; Georgia v Greece in Tbilisi.
Ukraine must host international games in neutral countries and have not played on their own territory since the Russian military invasion started in February 2022.
Though Israel were seeded as the home team, they hosted Iceland in neutral Budapest, Hungary, for security reasons during the conflict in Gaza.
Home advantage was key elsewhere with Bosnia the only one of five teams playing in their home stadiums that lost.
Euro 2024 is being played in 10 German cities from June 14 to July 14.