Croatia 2-2 Albania: Gjasula nets stoppage time leveller to stun careless Croatia
Albania snatched an equaliser in added time to earn a stunning 2-2 draw against Croatia in a thrilling European Championship match on Wednesday, but the result left both countries with a difficult task if they are to advance to the last 16.
Klaus Gjasula played both hero and villain, scoring the added-time equaliser after Croatia had gone ahead 2-1 in the Group B match at the Volksparkstadion thanks to his own goal.
Both countries now have a single point after their first two matches and will need to win their final group games on Monday to advance to the knockout stage.
Since the Euro finals expanded to 24 teams in 2016, no team has advanced with only two draws, with the four best third-place finishers earning a spot in the last 16.
Albania had taken an early lead, but the Croats scored twice in two minutes to restore their hopes in a game full of twists and turns and played against an ear-splitting noise.
Andrej Kramaric equalised in the 74th minute, followed by an own goal from Gjasula 120 seconds later, as an increasingly dominant Croatia clawed their way back after losing 3-0 to Spain in their opener.
They pounded away at Albania's goal in the second half after appearing anxious and frustrated at halftime as their underdog opponents led at the break.
Albania took an early lead with Qazim Laci's 11th-minute header, just as they did against Italy in their opening game when they scored after only 23 seconds.
This time, they were a little late, weathering early pressure before Jasir Asani whipped in a cross from the right that Laci glanced at before slipping under custodian Dominik Livakovic.
The Croat keeper could have done better, but he made up for it with two crucial saves later in the first half, denying Kristjan Asllani and then stopping Rey Manaj's diving header as Albania came close to doubling their advantage.
Albania's tenacity and speed in seizing counterattacking opportunities belied their low ranking, which was 56 places lower than 10th-placed Croatia.
Croatia made two substitutions at halftime and applied intense pressure on Albania's goal, with Thomas Strakosha saving from Luka Sucic and Mateo Kovacic to keep the lead until the 74th minute, when Kramaric, on his 33rd birthday, scored from close range.
He shot through Elseid Hysaj's legs while wrongfooting Strakosha.
Then came the own goal: Ante Budimir's shot, set up by Mario Pasalic's pull back from the byline, was blocked by Berat Djimsiti, but the rebound hit Gjasula and went into his own net.
But Albania were not to be outdone, and Gjasula sidefooted into the net five minutes into added time for a dramatic finish to the match.
"This is why everyone loves football. In the last seconds, sometimes you score a goal to win, sometimes you concede," said Kramaric.
Albania's group stage schedule concludes on Monday with a match against Spain in Duesseldorf, and Gjasula expressed optimism.
"We know that the game with Spain is very difficult but in football everything is possible. If we will play like today everything can happen,” he told reporters.
Croatia will face Italy in Leipzig at the same time, with odds stacked against them.
"The first half was very bad but the second much better, which is encouraging for the match with Italy," added Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic. "We are still in the game, we shall prepare and do all in our power to go on."
SportsLigue