Jeremy Doku (R) of Belgium breaks through during the UEFA EURO 2024 Group F qualification match between Belgium and Azerbaijan in Brussels, Belgium, on Nov. 19, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)
BERLIN, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Srdjan Babic's dramatic late 2-2 equalizer against Bulgaria secured Serbia a berth in the European Championship in Germany following the 10th matchday of the qualifying round on Sunday.
In front of a home crowd, the hosts started strongly as Bulgaria's Daniel Naumov tipped Nemanja Gudelj's shot onto the bar before Milos Veljkovic headed in the rebound to score his first goal for Serbia, 17 minutes into the game.
Aleksandar Mitrovic had a chance to double the lead four minutes later, but the striker missed the target.
With a comfortable lead, Serbia reduced offensive efforts while Bulgaria gained momentum, with Kiril Despodov's shot from the edge of the box hitting the woodwork at the half-hour mark.
After halftime, Bulgaria remained assertive, with Ilia Gruev testing Serbia's goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic 53 minutes into the match.
Bulgaria's persistence paid off at the hour mark when Serbia's defence failed to clear the ball, allowing Georgi Rusev to find the back of the net, bringing the score to 1-1.
The Serbian side was visibly shaken, and Bulgaria capitalized, taking the lead nine minutes later as Filip Krastev intercepted a pass and set up Kiril Despodov, who outplayed Milinkovic-Savic in a one-on-one, making it 2-1.
Needing only a draw to qualify, Serbia responded in the 82nd minute when Babic headed in a corner from Dusan Tadic, securing its spot in Euro 2024.
Following these results in Group G, Serbia maintained second place, while Bulgaria remained fifth. Group leader Hungary concluded the qualifying round unbeaten after a 3-1 victory over Montenegro.
In Group F, Belgium took the top spot with a dominant 5-0 win over Azerbaijan, while Sweden secured a 2-0 victory against Estonia.
Spain continued to lead Group A after a 3-1 win over Georgia, with runner-up Scotland ending in a draw with Norway in a six-goal thriller.
In Group J, Portugal defeated Iceland 2-0, Bosnia and Herzegovina suffered a 2-1 loss to Slovakia, and ten-man Luxembourg overcame Liechtenstein 1-0. ■
Jeremy Doku (R, front) of Belgium breaks through during the UEFA EURO 2024 Group F qualification match between Belgium and Azerbaijan in Brussels, Belgium, on Nov. 19, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)
Romelu Lukaku (C) of Belgium breaks through during the UEFA EURO 2024 Group F qualification match between Belgium and Azerbaijan in Brussels, Belgium, on Nov. 19, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)
Romelu Lukaku (front) of Belgium celebrates his goal during the UEFA EURO 2024 Group F qualification match between Belgium and Azerbaijan in Brussels, Belgium, on Nov. 19, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)
Jeremy Doku (C) of Belgium breaks through during the UEFA EURO 2024 Group F qualification match between Belgium and Azerbaijan in Brussels, Belgium, on Nov. 19, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)
Dominik Szoboszlai (L) of Hungary vies with Marko Vesovic of Montenegro during the UEFA Euro 2024 Group G qualification match between Hungary and Montenegro in Budapest, Hungary on Nov. 19, 2023. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)
Slobodan Rubezic (L) of Montenegro vies with Zsolt Nagy of Hungary during the UEFA Euro 2024 Group G qualification match between Hungary and Montenegro in Budapest, Hungary on Nov. 19, 2023. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)
Marko Jankovic (L) and Slobodan Rubezic (R) of Montenegro vie with Dominik Szoboszlai (C) of Hungary during the UEFA Euro 2024 Group G qualification match between Hungary and Montenegro in Budapest, Hungary on Nov. 19, 2023. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)
Milan Mijatovic (Top) of Montenegro saves during the UEFA Euro 2024 Group G qualification match between Hungary and Montenegro in Budapest, Hungary on Nov. 19, 2023. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)
Krisztofer Horvath (L) of Hungary vies with Stevan Jovetic (C) of Montenegro during the UEFA Euro 2024 Group G qualification match between Hungary and Montenegro in Budapest, Hungary on Nov. 19, 2023. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)
Serbia's Milos Veljkovic (R, front) celebrates a goal during the Group G UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying football match between Serbia and Bulgaria in Leskovac, Serbia on Nov. 19, 2023. (Photo by Predrag Milosavljevic/Xinhua)
Serbia's Dusan Vlahovic (R) vies with Bulgaria's Alex Petkov during the Group G UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying football match between Serbia and Bulgaria in Leskovac, Serbia on Nov. 19, 2023. (Photo by Predrag Milosavljevic/Xinhua)
Serbia's Dusan Tadic (R) controls the ball during the Group G UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying football match between Serbia and Bulgaria in Leskovac, Serbia on Nov. 19, 2023. (Photo by Predrag Milosavljevic/Xinhua)
