Mykola shaparenko

Merkur Spiel Arena: Ukraine had to dig deep in their second game of the Euro 2024 Group Stage as the side fought back from being 1-0 down in the first half and went on to win 2-1 at the Merkur Spiel Arena here on Friday. Slovakia continued their impressive performance which saw them defeat Belgium in their opening fixtures and came close to scoring in the 10th minute of the game had it not been for a quick reflex save made by Anatoliy Trubin.

A continuous flurry of Slovakian attacks saw Ukraine having to play a majority of the first half on the back foot. Slovakia opened the deadlock in the 17th minute of the game when a cross by Haskalin saw the ball reach Ivan Schranz who scored with a header in what was a mismatch with left back and captain Zinchenko. This was Schranz's second goal of the tournament, tying him as the top scorer alongside Jamal Musiala with two to his name.

Ukraine did manage to trouble Martin Dubravka in the first half when Tmychyk’s attempt rattled the left goal-post in the 35th minute. The first half ended with a slender 1-0 advantage to Slovakia.