A rampant Ukraine side romped to their first quarter-final in a European Championship on June 29 after beating Sweden 2-1 in a thriller that went right to the wire.
Artem Dovbyk’s 121st-minute winning goal in Glasgow knocked out a Sweden side whose prior victory against Poland ensured Ukraine’s qualification to the round of 16.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky wished the Yellow and Blues luck in a video call on the morning of the match.
“Today, some 40 million Ukrainians will be on the football pitch with them,” Zelensky said of the team on Twitter after the call.
Ukraine came out of the starting gates firing on all cylinders, and got their reward in the 27th minute. Andriy Yarmolenko crossed the ball across the six-yard box for Oleksandr Zinchenko to volley into the Swedish net at close range, goalkeeper Robin Olsen unable to stop the powerful drive despite getting a glove to it.
However, Ukraine’s shaky defense meant they were unable to hold their advantage for long, and their lead evaporated thanks to Emil Forsberg’s 43rd minute shot from 20 meters out, which took a big deflection off young defender Illia Zabarnyi on the way in.
After a thrilling first half, the game settled into a stable, even contest. Both sides created dangerous moments and hit the frame of the goal three times between them.
With nothing to separate the teams after 90 minutes, the game went into extra time.
Marcus Danielson received a straight red card in the 99th minute for a horrific studs-up tackle on Artem Besedin, which forced the attacker off the pitch with a seemingly serious injury.
After the sending off, Ukraine dominated possession, but despite the Yellow and Blues creating several chances, the game seemed to be heading towards a penalty shootout.
That was until the 121st minute, two minutes before the end of added time at the conclusion of extra time. Dovbyk, having come on as a substitute 15 minutes earlier, majestically rose to meet Zinchenko’s cross from the left and head it into the gaping Swedish goal.
The 24-year-old could scarcely have picked a better time to score his first senior goal for Ukraine.
Shortly after, the final whistle blew, marking the Yellow and Blues’ fist progression to a quarter-final of a major tournament since the 2006 World Cup.
They will now play England, who knocked out their rivals Germany earlier in the evening, in Rome on July 3.
