Euro 2024: Ukraine Secures Crucial Victory Over Slovakia, Puts Belgium at Bottom of Group E

In the second match at Euro 2024, which took place in Düsseldorf the day before, the Ukrainian national football team defeated Slovakia 2-1. 

At the start of the championship, the teams showed opposite results in the first round: the Ukrainians lost to Romania 0-3, while the Slovaks sensationally beat the nominal favourites from Belgium 1-0.

After Ukraine's crushing defeat by Romania in the first round, Ukrainian head coach Serhiy Rebrov changed the starting line-up.

Anatoliy Trubin, the goalkeeper of Portuguese side Benfica, took the place of Andriy Lunin, who made several significant mistakes in the previous match.

Instead of Girona's Victor Tsygankov, the experienced Dynamo player Andriy Yarmolenko took his place on the right wing of the attack. Another Dynamo player, Volodymyr Brazhko, replaced Taras Stepanenko in the central defence. And in defence, Yukhym Konoplya was replaced by Oleksandr Tymchyk.

Otherwise, the starting line-up remained unchanged. 

After losing 1-0 at half-time, Ukraine won an impressive 2-1 victory over Slovakia and earned its first points in Group E of EURO 2024.

Second-half goals by Mykola Shaparenko and Roman Yaremchuk gave Ukraine a great win and its first points in Group E against Slovakia, which did not qualify for the last 16.

Group E. Standings

Romania - 3 points (1 match), 3: 0 (goal difference)

Ukraine - 3 (2), 2:4

Slovakia - 3 (2), 2:2

Belgium - 0 (1), 0: 1

The third round match between Ukraine and Belgium will take place on Wednesday, 26 June, and will start at 19:00 Kyiv time.