Slovakia pulled off a stunning upset, defeating Belgium 1-0 in their Group E match at the Frankfurt Arena on Monday. The match was a tale of two halves, with Slovakia taking an early lead and then holding on for dear life against a relentless Belgian assault.
Ivan Schranz was the hero for Slovakia, scoring the only goal of the game in the seventh minute. The goal came after a quick counter-attack, with Schranz receiving a precise pass from his teammate and calmly slotting the ball past the Belgian goalkeeper.
Belgium, on the other hand, were left to rue their missed opportunities. They dominated possession throughout the match, creating a plethora of chances, but were unable to find the back of the net. Romelu Lukaku, in particular, had a frustrating evening, missing several gilt-edged scoring opportunities.
Lukaku looked to have finally broken the deadlock in the 55th minute, but his goal was ruled out by VAR for offside. A minute later, Lukaku found the net again, only for the goal to be overturned once more after a handball offense by Luis Openda in the build-up to the goal, as determined by VAR and the Snickometer technology.
The result leaves Belgium in a precarious position in Group E, while Slovakia are now in a strong position to qualify for the knockout stages. The match was a testament to the unpredictable nature of football, with Slovakia proving that anything is possible on any given day.
