Before the match, Albania had only scored one goal at a European Championship. Against Italy, the team needed just 23 seconds – and set a new record.
Albania has only managed to score one goal at a European Championship so far. At the 2024 European Championship, it didn’t take long for the bell to ring: Nedim Bajrami scored after just 23 seconds in the group match against Italy – and scored the fastest goal in the history of European Championship finals. The 25-year-old Albanian international knows his opponent well: he is under contract with Italian first division relegated team Sassuolo Calcio. The only Albanian goal at a European Championship up to that point was scored by Armando Sadiku in 2016, when he scored in a 1-0 victory over Romania.
The fastest goal at a European Championship to date was scored by Russian Dmitri Kiritschenko in the preliminary round of 2004 against Greece after 67 seconds. Russia won 2-1 against the eventual European champions.
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The Albanians, however, could not enjoy their lead for long: Alessandro Bastoni equalized for the Azzurri with a header in the 11th minute, and five minutes later Nicolo Barella put the Italians in the lead. The score remained the same at half-time.
In the first match of Group B, Spain had outclassed Croatia earlier in the evening. The Iberians clearly defeated the World Cup third-place team 3-0 and made their first mark in the tournament. Morata, Fabian and Carvajal scored for the Spaniards, who lived up to their nickname “La Furia Roja” (the Red Fury).
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The first game of the day also had a clear winner: In the duel between the two German group opponents, Switzerland beat Hungary 3-1. Duah and Aebischer had put the Swiss in the lead. Varga was able to bring the Hungarians back within a goal, but Breel Embolo’s goal to make it 3-1 in injury time made everything clear.
Source: Stern
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