Georgia stunned the former Euro winners by 2-0

The former Euro winners Portugal dominated the game, but couldn't score a goal, and ultimately lost to Georgia. If only Roberto Martinez's men had played more calmly, the result might have been different. The Portugal national team was defeated by the Georgia national team on the last matchday of Group F Euro 2024, Thursday (27/6/2024) at the Veltins-Arena with a score of 2-0.

Georgia took the lead quickly through a goal from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. Napoli's 23-year-old wing striker found the net in the 2nd minute, amd Mikautadze then doubled it with a penalty in the 57th minute. Portugal and Türkiye qualified as group winners and second place in Group F with a collection of six points each. Meanwhile, Georgia, which finished with four points, qualified as one of four best third-place teams.

The defeat against Georgia did not affect Portugal's position or qualification however, the defeat was a slap and a reminder for them to perform better in the next match. Based on UEFA statistics, Portugal dominated the game with 68% of ball possession, Ronaldo-led Portugal also recorded a total of 23 shots but only had five shots on target.

"We were too hasty, always trying to get into the final third of the field quickly, without making good decisions," said Portugal defender, Diogo Dalot, as reported by the official UEFA website. The second goal early in the second half also shook the team again. Overall, we didn't do what we planned. "That is the reason why we suffered this bitter defeat," he added. "We knew that if we didn't find the right defensive balance, we would suffer from counter-attacks, and that's what happened with the first goal," continued Dalot. "We needed to be a lot more calm, calm in our decision-making, pass more, tire them a little more with the ball and make better decisions. We didn't do that."

"However, we want to learn from this experience and take it into the next match," he stressed. Portugal had five shots on target against Georgia. However, opportunities through Diogo Dalot, Joao Palhinha, Joao Felix, Cristiano Ronaldo and Nelson Semedo were all blocked by Georgia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili. "We weren't calm enough in giving the final pass and when we were in front of goal, their goalkeeper performed extraordinarily. We tried to score, but couldn't, and that made Georgia even more confident. They deserved to win," said Portugal coach Roberto Martinez.

Portugal's next match is against Slovenia in the round of 16. The match will be held at the Frankfurt Arena, on Tuesday, July 2 2024.