Meet Ruben Vargas, Switzerland star who got redemption with goal against Italy at Euro 2024 Round of 16 after emotional breakdown at Euro 2020
Switzerland winger Ruben Vargas made headlines during their EURO 2020 loss to Spain, where he missed the penalty that saw the Swiss knocked out. Now, the 25-year-old has gotten his redemption, leading his country to a 2-0 win over holders Italy in EURO 2024.
In 2021, the then 22-year-old was visibly inconsolable as he sent his effort over the bar, pushing Spain into the semifinal, while the Swiss went home. The game had ended in a 1-1 draw after 90 minutes and extra time after a brilliant effort from Xherdan Shaqiri and a Denis Zakaria own goal.
A win over Spain would have seen Switzerland reach their first semifinal at a major tournament. However, Ruben Vargas' miss from 12 yards saw those dreams shatter and fall in a heap.
Three years on, though, Vargas has vinidicated himself with a beautiful goal to cement a 2-0 lead in their EURO 2024 win over Italy.
The Swiss have driven themselves into the Round of 16, where they were widely seen as underdogs against the EURO 2020 winners. However, they took their 'dark horse' tag seriously and stunned the Italians.
Early in the second half, as Italy lost the ball immediately after kick-off, Switzerland found their way into the final third. Michel Aebischer laid the ball on for an unmarked Vargas just outside the box with plenty of space around him.
With only 27 seconds from the second half restart, the 25-year-old winger fired in a beautiful curler into the top corner and put the Swiss two goals up.
With a seat in the quarterfinals now guaranteed, Vargas will hole to continue providing vital goals for the Rossocrociati. Switzerland face Slovakia or England in the quarterfinal on July 6.
How Ruben Vargas started his career in Switzerland
As a 17-year-old, Ruben Vargas began to shine for Luzern's reserve team in the Swiss 1. Liga, where he spent three seasons. He scored 17 goals in 25 games for them before getting promoted into Luzern's first team.
The winger spent only two seasons there, playing an impressive 57 games and scoring 11 goals before his eventual move to the Bundesliga in 2019. He has since spent five seasons in Germany with FC Augsburg.
In this period, Ruben Vargas has enjoyed regular playing time, appearing in a minimum of 30 games every season except one. He has played 151 games for the Bundesliga club, scoring 22 goals.