This archive report was first published on 2 July 2021.
On a sweltering summer evening in Saint Petersburg, Russia, Spain secured their spot in the Euro 2020 semi-finals with a thrilling 3-1 penalty shootout victory over Switzerland on July 2, 2021.
Published on July 2, 2021, the match saw Spain take an early lead when Jordi Alba's shot from outside the box was deflected into his own net by Denis Zakaria. However, Switzerland's Xherdan Shaqiri capitalized on a defensive error to level the score at 1-1.
Switzerland's Remo Freuler was given a straight red card on 77 minutes, leaving his team with a numerical disadvantage. Despite this, Switzerland played a cautious game, mindful of Spain's poor penalty record, having missed their last five penalties, including two against them in a Nations League game in November.
Spain dominated extra time, creating numerous chances, and ultimately secured their semi-final spot with a 3-1 penalty shootout win.
They will face the winner of the Belgium-Italy quarter-final match in Munich on Friday in the semi-finals in London on Tuesday.
