Vijay Singh 
Thrill of EURO CUP 2020 returns with more promises of high pitch games after two days break. The clashes for Quarterfinal’s berth began Saturday. In the first two encounters of Round 16, Denmark comfortably beat Wales 4-0 and marched through to the Quarterfinals while Italy scrambled past doughty Austria 2-1 in extra times to enter the rounds of 8. Kasper Dolberg’s double gave a very solid start to the Danes against Wales in the first encounter of Round 16 yesterday. Although Wales led by Captain Gareth Bales posed tough fight and tried their best to come back in the game but fumbled at the bar and missed the opportunities. In the second half, two more goals from Joakim Maehle and Martin Braithwaite finally sealed the game 4-0 for the Danes. In quarterfinals, Denmark will clash with the winner from Netherlands vs Czech Republic bout.
Another encounter… Italy vs Austria on Sunday morning… was full of see-saws. Italy beat resolute Austria 2-1 in extra time play. First timer in the knock stage of any major tournament, Austria displayed spirited game and fought till the end of the game. The first half ended without any goal. After the break the Italians paced their game seeking to net the ball. Austria also counter attacked the rival’s goal post without success. After a goalless 90 minutes of regular time, Italy’s substitute Federico Chiesa finally got the target amidst stiff Austrian defense in extra time and gave lead to his team in 95th minute. The other substitute Matteo Pessina also shined and added second goal in 105th minute giving the Italians 2-0 lead which appears healthy enough. But Austrian forwards bounced back when Sasa Kalajdzic found the net in 114th minute. Buoyed with this goal, they tried to level the game but without success. Austria’s dream run in the Euro Cup came to an end at the pre-quarter final stage. This was Austria’s first appearance in the knock stage of Euro Cup. And with this hard-fought win, Italy got a spot in the Group of 8.
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