Portugal Colonial - Kvaratskhelia hails Euros miracle as 'best day of my life'

Forward Kvaratskhelia netted with less than two minutes on the clock in Gelsenkirchen to set Georgia, who have never previously played in a major tournament, on the way to a 2-0 win over Portugal which sent his country through to a daunting knockout clash with Spain.

Speaking after the match, Kvaratskhelia said that Wednesday's win was even better than winning the Serie A title with Napoli last year -- another historic triumph with an unfancied team.

"The Scudetto was great but today I'm so happy because you're playing for your country," Kvaratskhelia told reporters.

"This is the best day in my life because it was more difficult to do this with Georgian team than win the Scudetto with Napoli.

"It was always a dream of mine to play for national team and we made it through to next round, it's difficult to describe my emotions."

Georgia face Spain, one of the tournament favourites after winning Group B with a perfect nine points, in Cologne on Monday.

J.Pereira--PC