Co-favourites France and Switzerland were the last teams to reach the quarter-finals of the U21 European Championship 2023 in Georgia and Romania.
The French won their third win in three games by beating the Swiss 4-1 (1-1).
Because Italy lost 0-1 (0-0) against Norway in the parallel game, Switzerland took second place in Group D with only three points despite the heavy defeat.
For the French, where Manu Kone from Borussia Mönchengladbach had to be replaced injured after 18 minutes, Amine Gouiri (16th penalty), Bradley Barcola (65th), Rayan Cherki (76th) and Maxence Caqueret (81st) scored in Cluj. . Dan Ndoye (35th) equalized for Switzerland in the meantime.
France are in the quarter-finals for the third time in a row against Ukraine on Sunday. Switzerland, who made it through the group stage for the first time since 2011, are already up against Spain on Saturday.
U21 European Championship 2023: Italy surprisingly eliminated
Italy, on the other hand, was surprisingly eliminated. A draw would have been enough for the five-time title holder, but Norway won thanks to a goal from Erik Botheim (65th).
In the final phase it got strange: Both teams were missing a goal to progress – but neither wanted to fall.
In the end, Switzerland won the three-way comparison with the teams tied on points by a very narrow margin.
The quarter-finals at the U21 European Championship 2023 at a glance:
July 1
Georgia v Israel in Tbilisi (18:00)
Spain – Switzerland in Bucharest (20.00)
2nd July
England – Portugal in Kutaisi (18.00)
France – Ukraine in Cluj-Napoca (20.00)