Spain's David Villa scores past Swedish goalie Andreas Isaksson during the Group D match between Sweden and Spain in Innsbruck, Austria, yesterday at the 2008 European Soccer Championships. Spain defeated Sweden 2-1. - AP VIENNA, Austria (AP):
It took the exit of the defending champions to put Spain through at the European Championship yesterday.
David Villa scored in the second minute of injury time to give Spain a 2-1 win over Sweden at Innsbruck that, along with Greece's 1-0 loss to Russia in Salzburg, ensured the 1964 champions topped Group D and advanced to the quarter-finals.
The Spaniards join Portugal, Croatia and the Netherlands from the other three groups as through to the final eight at Euro 2008.
Villa scored his fourth goal of the tournament - and 18th in 33 matches for Spain - when a long clearance from left back Joan Capdevila eluded Sweden defender Petter Hansson, allowing the striker to angle his shot past goalkeeper Andreas Isaksson, who hit the turf with his fist in frustration.
"I'm prouder of this goal than I was of the three that I scored the other day," Villa said of his hat trick against Russia on Tuesday. "It's good for me to be able to be there and bring three points for Spain."
Fernando Torres had given Spain a 1-0 lead in the 15th minute, reaching at full stretch with his right foot to steer David Silva's cross beyond Isaksson and bring coach Luis Aragones out of his dugout and pumping his fists in celebration at Tivoli Neu stadium.
That looked a little premature when Zlatan Ibrahimovic equalised for Sweden. The striker managed to get goal side of defender Sergio Ramos to collect a cross from Fredrik Stoor, before pivoting to beat his marker and sliding a low shot under the gloves of goalkeeper Iker Casillas in the 34th.
Sweden sat back in the second half, denying Spain's attacking trio of Villa, Torres and Cesc Fabregas any space, and looked to have sealed a draw that its obdurate defence just about deserved until Villa's late, dramatic intervention.
no place in the final eight
Spain's victory wasn't enough to secure a place in the final eight, however. That required the Euro 2004 champions to fail to beat the Swedes - and the Greeks duly obliged.
Having lost 2-0 to Sweden in its opening match, Greece needed goals at Wals-Siezenheim stadium. Coach Otto Rehhagel ditched his five-man defence to opt for a 4-3-3 formation, playing Nikos Lymberopoulos and Angelos Charisteas up front, with Giorgos Karagounis coming on in the 40th.
But just like the second goal the Greeks conceded against Sweden - an ugly scramble across the line by Hansson despite two opponents on him - Russia took advantage of a glaring defensive error.
Sergei Semak acrobatically hooked an errant cross from Diniyar Bilyaletdinov back into the middle of the box and over Antonis Nikopolidis after the goalkeeper had rushed off his line, allowing Konstantin Zyryanov to side-foot the ball into an unguarded net in the 34th.
