Euro 2024; Germany's Late Escape from Defeat Against Neighbor

The final round of the group stage of the European Championship began with two simultaneous matches. Germany escaped defeat with a late goal to return to the top of Group A. The Euro 2024 host faced Switzerland in Frankfurt, a stubborn neighbor that has not lost to Germany since 2008, and was leading until the last moments. Germany scored in the 17th minute with a shot from Robert Andrich from outside the penalty area. However, after review, a foul that occurred moments before the goal in the penalty area led to the cancellation of the host's goal. In the 28th minute, Dan Ndoye, a Bologna striker, opened the scoring against Neuer. This was his first goal for his national team, assisted by Remo Freuler, who provided his second assist in this tournament. The 38-year-old Manuel Neuer surpassed Gianluigi Buffon in this match to become the record holder for the most appearances by a European goalkeeper in the Nations Cup with 18 games. As Germany desperately sought to equalize, several counter-attack opportunities arose for Switzerland, including in the 84th minute when Ruben Vargas, a newly introduced Swiss player, scored but had his goal disallowed for offside. Finally, as the game was nearing its end, the host's efforts paid off. In the 92nd minute, a cross from David Raum and a header from Niclas Füllkrug, both of whom entered the field in the second half, broke the deadlock against Yann Sommer, allowing Julian Nagelsmann to escape a home defeat. Füllkrug has only played 73 minutes in this tournament but is tied for the top of the scoring chart with two goals alongside three other players. With this goal, Germany reclaimed the top spot in their group from Switzerland, placing them in the upper half of the knockout table alongside Spain and Portugal. Jonathan Tah, Germany's central defender, received a yellow card in the first half, causing him to miss the Round of 16 match. In the concurrent match, Hungary defeated Scotland with a goal in the 100th minute to secure third place. The reason for the three-digit minutes of play was the severe injury of Barnabás Varga, a Hungarian striker. He was seriously injured in a collision with Scotland's goalkeeper Angus Gunn and was unconscious for a few moments. The game was paused for several minutes. During initial treatment, a tent was set up around Barnabás. He was later transferred to the hospital. After a heavy 5-1 defeat against Germany, Scotland had drawn with Switzerland and defended fiercely against Hungary for 100 minutes. However, Kevin Schaubus eventually scored the winning goal, eliminating Scotland and potentially allowing Hungary to advance as one of the third-placed teams. In the margins of the matches, UEFA suspended Albanian striker Myrto Uzuni for two games. He had joined in nationalist chants against Serbia from Albanian fans over the loudspeakers during the match against Croatia.