Georgia star says something special in home team's historic victory

Highlight Georgia 2-0 Portugal

"I asked for Ronaldo's shirt. And our team qualified for the round of 16. This is the best day of my life as a Georgian," said 23-year-old striker Khvicha Kvaratskhelia after the shocking 2-0 victory over Portugal in the final match of Group F of Euro 2024 in the early morning of June 27 (Vietnam time).

Kvaratskhelia opened the scoring for Georgia after just two minutes and stunned the Portuguese players, then produced an emotional display of football, before he was withdrawn to a standing ovation from the fans at the end of the match.

Ngôi sao Georgia nói điều đặc biệt trong chiến thắng lịch sử của đội nhà - 1 — Khvicha Kvaratskhelia shined with the opening goal against Portugal (Photo: Getty).

Before the match against Portugal, Kvaratskhelia said that his dream was to ask for Cristiano Ronaldo's shirt. A photo that went viral on social media before the Georgia match was of Ronaldo visiting the football academy in Tbilisi in 2013, surrounded by excited young players, including Kvaratskhelia.

The 2001-born striker's wish was finally granted when Ronaldo agreed to give him his shirt right before the match, although the Portuguese team later disappointed when they lost 0-2 to Georgia.

"Everyone is very happy, we have just made history. No one could believe that we would do it by beating Portugal. But I think this is why we are a strong team," Kvaratskhelia said after the win.

The Napoli striker also added that Ronaldo agreed to give him his shirt right before the match: "When he came to see me before the match and wished me success, it was great.

I realised that I can actually do it and we can do a lot today because the win gave us a lot of motivation. This is the best day of my life because doing it with Georgia is harder than with Napoli."

Georgia's next opponent in the round of 16 is another team that is no less strong than Portugal, Spain.