On the hoped-for way to the first European Championship round of 16, Ukraine has clinched a mandatory victory against outsiders North Macedonia.
In the 2: 1 (2: 0) tremendous victory in Bucharest on Thursday, the former Dortmund Andrei Jarmolenko (29th minute) and Roman Yaremtschuk (34th) shot coach Andrei Shevchenko's team for only the second victory at a European Championship finals.
Ruslan Malinowski missed the chance for the calming third goal in the closing stages when he failed with a hand penalty to goalkeeper Stole Dimitriesvski (84th).
For EM newcomer North Macedonia, however, the tournament is almost certainly over again despite the subsequent goal by Ezgjan Alioski (57th).
The third group C game against the Netherlands on Monday should already be meaningless for the team around old star Goran Pandev.
Ukraine, on the other hand, can make it into the knockout round for the first time at the same time against Austria in their third participation in the European Championship in a row.
The decisive factor for this was once again the successful storm duo Yarmolenko and Yaremchuk.
Both had already met in the unlucky 3-2 at the start in Holland.
Within five minutes they converted their dominance in the game into goals again on Thursday.
It has never been before that two strikers from one country score each in the first two games at a euro.
Only Ukraine idol Shevchenko had previously scored two goals in two games in a row at a major tournament.
The now 31-year-old Jarmolenko, who now plays for West Ham United in England, also scored for the first time in three consecutive competitive games.
The limited North Macedonians did not have such power to offer, at least in the first half.
Only the now 37-year-old Pandev hinted at goal danger in between.
A remarkable goal of the Champions League winner from 2010 in the first half was rightly denied because of offside by the Argentine referee team.
In Fernando Andres Rapallini, for the first time ever, a non-European headed a game at a European Championship finals.
This came about as a result of an exchange of referees between UEFA and the South American association CONMEBOL.
A whistle from Rapallini in the second half brought the 62nd in the world rankings back into play. The North Macedonians had long run after the Ukrainian footballers. The favorite acted much safer on the ball and more tactically savvy. Before the break, North Macedonia's head coach Angelosvki made tactical changes and brought two new players after the break. Darko Churlinov from VfB Stuttgart also made his EM debut. In Aleksandar Trajkovski, only a second striker was deployed.
Whose flick on the crossbar initiated the situation that led to the penalty for North Macedonia. Pandev pursued and was hit in the foot by Alexander Karavaev. The following penalty shot Alioski still unplaced in the arms of the Ukrainian goalkeeper Georgi Buschtschan. The Leeds United professional was only successful in the margin. From now on there was not much left of the dominance of the Ukraine from the first round. North Macedonia fought doggedly, but ultimately had no luck, while Malinowski on the other side missed the 3-1.