Bijol’s Slovenia exit the Euros with heads held high

The centre-back impressed against Ronaldo’s Portugal

Jaka Bijol and Slovenia will always remember Euro 2024 as the tournament where they were a penalty shoot-out away from knocking Portugal out of the competition in the round of 16.

The dream of reaching the last eight disappeared for Slovenia only after 120 minutes of battling, bravery and the ability to make Portugal’s most gifted players struggle to perform at anywhere near their best.

Once again, as he has done throughout the tournament, Bijol impressed at centre-back and helped Slovenia exit the tournament having conceded just two goals in their four games, including shut-outs against England and Portugal.

Cristiano Ronaldo struggled to break down the Slovenian rearguard, while Portugal’s other stars were equally stumped by Bijol and co’s defensive solidity.

Technical quality, strength and leadership skills were all on display by Jaka on the biggest European stage, while club team-mate Sandi Lovric was also in the squad that got knocked out on German soil on Monday evening.

Congratulations to both players on a wonderful tournament!