Khvicha Kvaratskhelia shows off the jersey he received from his idol Cristiano Ronaldo, after winning 2-0 with Georgia against Portugal to enter the 1/8 round of Euro 2024.Kvaratskhelia took a photo of Ronaldo’s jersey and posted it on Instagram Story with the message “Dreams” and a heart emoji.
“I have Ronaldo’s shirt. And Georgia also passed the group stage,” the 23-year-old striker said after the match at Schalke Stadium on the evening of June 26. “This is the best day in the lives of Georgians. Everyone is very happy, we just made history. No one could believe that we could beаt Portugal, but we just saw This proves that this is a strong team.”
Kvaratskhelia showed off Ronaldo’s jersey and the Best Player of the Match award on Instagram Story right after Georgia won 2-0 against Portugal in the final round of Group F Euro 2024 on June 26. Screenshots
Georgia has only one point after the first two matches and must beаt Portugal – the team that is sure to go through as the leader of Group F – to get a ticket to the round of 16.
It was Kvaratskhelia who shot cross-angle to put Georgia ahead in the 2nd minute, thanks to a bad pass mistake by midfielder Antonio Silva. In the second half, Georges Mikautadze scored a penalty kιck, sealing a 2-0 victory and sending Georgia into the 1/8 round for its first appearance at the Euro.
After the final whistle, Kvaratskhelia shook hands with her idol Ronaldo before running onto the field to share the joy with her teammates. 11 years ago, Ronaldo was present at the groundbreaking ceremony of Dinamo Tbilisi Academy, and took photos with young players, including Kvaratskhelia and many other current Georgian players.
11 years after standing next to Ronaldo at the opening ceremony of the Portuguese superstar’s football academy in Tbilisi, Georgia in 2013, Kvaratskhelia (circle, photo above) shook his idol’s hand during the match at Veltins Arenal on September 26. 6. Photo: The 44
Kvaratskhelia revealed that she received words of encouragement from Ronaldo before the match. “When Ronaldo comes to you before the match and wishes you success, it’s great,” the Napoli star said. “That gives us a lot of motivation and we won.”
Kvaratskhelia, nicknamed “Kvaradona” by fans after the legendary Maradona, assessed that it would be more difficult for Georgia to pass the Euro 2024 group stage than for Napoli to win the Serie A championship in the 2022-2023 season. “This is the best day of my life, because this achievement with Georgia is better than what I did with Napoli,” he said.
Kvaratskhelia affirmed that collective effort is the key for Georgia to pass the group stage and aim for another shоck against Spain in the 1/8 round. “There is no individual best player,” he said. “It was a team spirit and we proved that Georgia can compete fairly.”