Euro Wrap: England and Wales Enter Knockout Stages, Russia Ousted

England and Wales booked their spots in the round of 16 as Russia got eliminated from Euro 2016.

Gareth Bale celebrates with his teammates after Wales beat Russia on Monday. (Photo: AP)

England and Wales booked their spots in the round of 16 after their respective matches against Slovakia and Russia at the European Championship on Monday. The Three Lions played out a goalless draw against Slovakia and Russia were thumped 3-0 by Wales.

Following the loss to Wales, Russia were left at the bottom of the group with only one point and hence were eliminated from the competition on Monday.

Leonid Slutski decided to step down as the coach of the Russian team after their disastrous Euro 2016 campaign.

I think after a tournament like this, you need someone else to take charge of the national side at major tournaments. I have to take full responsibility. I had time to prepare and find players and if we weren’t able to succeed, it’s definitely my mistake.

Leonid Slutski

Russia 0 - 3 Wales

Wales’ Gareth Bale celebrates after scoring his side’s third goal against Russia. (Photo: AP)

Wales outplayed Russia 3-0, scoring twice in the opening 20 minutes, as they topped Group B with six points on Monday.

Aaron Ramsey lobbed the ball over Igor Akinfeev to finish off a counter-attack in the 11th minute and Neil Taylor added a second, also from a counter-attack nine minutes later as Wales took control early in the match.

Russia had no answer to the fast, incisive Welsh breaks and survived several more chances before Gareth Bale scored his third goal of the tournament to become Euro 2016’s top marksman, flicking the third past Akinfeev in the 67th minute.

Slovakia 0 - 0 England

England’s Jamie Vardy, left, and Adam Lallana run with the ball. (Photo: AP) 

England drew 0-0 with Slovakia on Monday to finish second in Euro 2016 Group B with five points, one ahead of Slovakia (four points) who should also reach the last 16 as one of the best third-placed teams.

England, who made six changes from the side that started their 2-1 win over Wales, dominated the first half and Jamie Vardy missed a good chance to put them ahead.

Vardy and full back Nathaniel Clyne, replacing Kyle Walker, regularly troubled the Slovak defence with probing runs down the right wing in the first half.

Jamie Vardy fired just over the bar in the opening minutes, and then flicked on a header that set up a chance for strike partner Daniel Sturridge, who failed to score.

The Three Lions continued to enjoy the lion’s share of possession after half-time but there were few clear opportunities and they were unable to convert them.

(With inputs from Reuters)