“Will I ask Cristiano for his jersey after the game? Maybe. Probably. OK, yes. Why not? He is my idol. I will tell him that. But that does not mean we can’t win,” This was what Georgia’s No.7 Khvicha Kvaratskhelia had written in the Players Tribune last week. Ten days later, Georgia outplayed Portugal and notched up a historic 2-0 win.
The two number 7s have a connection. Recently an old picture of the two started making rounds on the internet. It was from 2013 when Cristiano Ronaldo, a certified Real Madrid superstar then, visited the Dinamo Tbilisi Academy in Georgia.
In that picture, Kvaratskhelia, a 12-year-old boy then, was poking his head from over the crowd standing around Ronaldo. On Thursday night, the boy, now a 23-year-old, made sure that the picture was back in circulation as he helped Georgia advance to the Last-16 in their first appearance in a major tournament.
The Veltins-Arena witnessed history on the night when Kvaratskhelia not only outshone his much more decorated Portuguese counterpart, he ensured that his country, the lowest ranked team in this tournament, can dream big.
Goal that started it
93 seconds. That was all it took for Kvaratskhelia to stun Portugal. Portugal looked shell shocked as the Georgia players wheeled off in celebrations with the match not even 2 minutes old. Portugal’s Antonio Silva, playing his first match of the Euro, saw Kvaratskhelia bearing down on him a few yards away from the centre circle. With the nerves getting the best of him, he tried to pass it to a nearby teammate but ended up giving the ball away to an advancing Georges Mikautadze.
Kvaratskhelia, one of the most in demand wingers in the world right now after his 2022/23 Serie A title winning season with Napoli, started ramping up the speed from the left, running past the flabbergasted Silva who was unable to keep up with the Georgian’s pace. Mikautadze would see the run and threaded a pass through to him which he slotted cooly to the left of the keeper.
The move for the goal was simple and straightforward, a classic counter attack, something of a rarity in this era. It perfectly encapsulated how Georgia have played this tournament, an uncomplicated, kamikaze style of attack.
Becoming Kvaradona
Hailing from the Georgian town of Batumi, Kvaratskhelia made his senior debut with Dinamo Tbilisi before moving on to FC Rustavi. But with his skill and flair, he would soon outgrow the Georgian League and move on to bigger things. He would join the Russian teams Lokomotiv Moscow in 2019 on loan, around the same time he made his debut for the national side. In the same year, he would move to Rubin Kazan.
But fate would bring him back to Georgia. After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, FIFA decreed that foreign players in Russia could unilaterally suspend their contracts and sign for clubs outside of Russia. This led to Rubin suspending Kvaratskhelia’s contract which led to him joining Dinamo Batumi, which was a Georgian club.
“But in 2022, the war in Ukraine starts. The war is a big shame. For me, when we live in the same world, nobody should kill each other. It is simple. The world should be in peace. So when the war starts, I say, “I cannot stay here. Because of my country, and our history, I tell the club that I have to leave,” Kvaratskhelia recalled the uncertain time in Russia in the Players’ Tribune.
In July of 2022, Kvaratskhelia would sign for the club in which he would become a legend. Spurred on by his father, a Diego Maradona fan, Kvaratskhelia had no second thoughts saying yes to Napoli. “You cannot say no to Napoli! You cannot say no to Maradona’s club!” was his father’s reaction.
The stint in Napoli is what made Kvaratskhelia a household name. He scored 12 goals and assisted 13 times in the 2022/23 season as Napoli went on to win the Serie A title for the first time since 1990, the last time Maradona had played for the club.
The Georgian winger, a vastly different player than the Argentine legend in his playing style, was thus given the nickname of Kvaradona, a sign of ultimate respect from the adoring Napoli fans. Even though he has failed to replicate his 2022/23 form last season, Kvaratskhelia made an indelible mark at this Euro, steering the Georgians to an unlikely Round of 16 finish from a group that consisted Portugal, Turkey and Czech Republic.
Georgia next play Spain on Sunday night, a team they haven’t beaten since 2016. But after the display on Thursday, all bets are off. Why? “Because football is football. Nobody knows. Nobody thought we would even qualify. Now they don’t believe again. They say Georgia has no chance. But do you know what I say? I say…. They didn’t ask any Georgians,” as Kvaratskhelia so articulately put it last week in the Tribune article.
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo shakes hand with Georgia's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as he after leaves the pitch during a Group F match between Georgia and Portugal at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. (AP Photo) 
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