If you had told me a month ago that Georgia would make it into the play-offs, defeating Portugal on the way, I’d have called you mad – which, much like in English, isn’t a word in Georgian that necessarily carries a negative connotation. Over these last two weeks, especially after the historic 2-0 win against Portugal, we Georgians all went a little bit mad. With Georgia being the cradle of wine (we invented it), it’s perhaps unsurprising that copious amounts were consumed.
Come Sunday, however, after the utter demolition inflicted by a ruthless and vastly superior Spanish team, the mood was somewhat subdued. Georgians are like that. We believe we can always win, even when all the evidence points to the contrary. We get upset when things don’t happen exactly the way we envisioned in our feverish dreams. But still our boys wrote history.
The man who masterminded it all was former Bayern Munich and France stalwart Willy Sagnol
Our team did better than anyone expected. Take Georges Mikautadze, deemed surplus to requirements at the decidedly mediocre Ajax team in the Netherlands: he proved his doubters wrong. Take the rock in the defence, captain Guram Kashia, who (at the twilight of his career) marshalled the defences as if they were going into battle. Or take Watford’s darling, Giorgi Chakvetadze, who mounted an unlikely comeback (twice!) from career-threatening injuries, to reinvent himself from a fleet-footed winger into a maestro of midfield.
Giorgi Kochorashvili, from the Spanish team Levante, will be one of the biggest discoveries of Euro 2024 – and is unlikely to remain in Spain’s second tier for long. Otar Kiteishvili, the best player in the Austrian Bundesliga last season, was the team’s backbone and engine (he played a role not dissimilar to that which Didier Deshamps played for the French team that were crowned world champions in 1998) and it is no coincidence that his injury against Spain proved to be the beginning of the end for our side. With him in full fitness, we withstood relentless pressure from the Spaniards for 42 minutes.
And what can you say about the goalkeeper, Giorgi Mamardashvili? He already enjoys a semi-mythical stature in Georgia. Every time he made an improbable save, our nation let out a collective sigh of relief. After his Euro performances, his transfer into one of the top European clubs seems to be a foregone conclusion and a question of when, not if. Less obvious is the contribution of the teams biggest star and talisman, Napoli’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, on whom all Georgian hopes rested prior to the Euros. He scored the all-important opener against Portugal, but this run was a group effort first and foremost. If his much-talked about move to Paris Saint-Germain materialises, it will be intriguing to see whether he proves himself a worthy heir to Kylian Mbappe’s throne.
The man who masterminded it all was former Bayern Munich and France stalwart Willy Sagnol. Already he is a national treasure: ‘Veni, Vidi, Willy’ was the headline one paper opted for after our group stage upset against Portugal. Sagnol instilled discipline and turned the team into a closely-knit group, but still he has his doubters. Many question his tactical acumen and flexibility, while some accuse him of arrogance and favouritism. There is much talk about him leaving Georgia for greener pastures as Ireland’s top man. Will the Irish press accept the way he speaks to journalists?
Finally, on geopolitics. For a country and people so divided, this championship proved to be a soothing balm – a healing that brought people together. For those that don’t know, Georgia is ‘at the crossroads’. While its people yearn for Europe, and have done so ever since regaining independence 34 years ago, its government, with a shadowy oligarch pulling the strings, seems determined to drag the country back onto Russia’s orbit with an array of laws aimed at curtailing civil liberties. (By the way, the oligarch in question, Bidzina Ivanishvili, the nation’s richest man and former prime minister, pledged a hefty sum of £8.4 million if Georgia were to advance from the group stage. Defender Luka Lochoshvili, quizzed over whether the money provided additional motivation for the team, said: ‘It’s a nice gesture, but we play for the country, not for the money.’)
With Georgia heading towards a crucial, winner-takes-all election in October, the national team’s heroics gave the nation some needed respite. They showed, too, where we belong: in Europe.
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