Euro 2016 Playoffs: Winners and Losers from Tuesday's Games
The 24-team field for Euro 2016 is complete after Sweden and Ukraine booked places on Tuesday night to next summer's showcase event.
In Copenhagen, Denmark, Sweden took a two-goal lead through a Zlatan Ibrahimovic double before holding on for a 2-2 draw with hosts Denmark. The result gave Sweden a 4-3 aggregate victory over two legs.
Meanwhile, Ukraine drew 1-1 with Slovenia in Maribor to complete a 3-1 aggregate win.
Here, Bleacher Report selects winners and losers from the night's action.
Winner: Zlatan Ibrahimovic
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It had to be him.
If Sweden were going to qualify for Euro 2016, it seemed inevitable that Ibrahimovic would need to make a massive contribution. At 34, the Paris Saint-Germain striker is still his country's best player by miles, and he showed it on Tuesday night.
In the 19th minute, with the tie balanced precariously, Ibrahimovic bounced in a scuffed finish from a corner to give Sweden a 3-1 aggregate lead. But if that goal put the visitors in the driver's seat, his second, a wonderfully curled free-kick in the 76th minute, sent them to France.
After the second strike, Sweden held a 4-1 aggregate lead that felt all but unassailable. Denmark scored twice on Sweden's suspect defense in the latter stages to make the tie interesting, but Ibrahimovic's goals were enough.
At this point, to say that Ibrahimovic is carrying Sweden would be an understatement. According to Opta Jean, the PSG striker has netted 11 of his country's last 15 goals in qualifying. Ibrahimovic isn't just carrying Sweden. At the moment, he is Sweden.
And now, we all will have the chance to watch the tall Swede play on Europe's biggest international stage at least once more. Because of his age, Ibrahimovic is unlikely to feature in another major tournament after Euro 2016, which potentially makes next summer his international swan song.
Admit it: You're looking forward to watching him. Not only is Ibrahimovic one of the world's top footballers, he's also one of the most entertaining.
Euro 2016 will be better with him around.
Loser: Nicklas Bendtner
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If any ego on the pitch in Copenhagen matched Ibrahimovic's, it belonged to Denmark striker Nicklas Bendtner. But while Bendtner told the Daily Mail that he thinks the world of himself, he was decidedly less effective than his Swedish counterpart in producing the goods.
In fact, the former Arsenal man was almost entirely anonymous during his hour on the pitch. When he left the game, Denmark needed two goals to level the tie on aggregate and force extra time. That manager Morten Olsen elected to take off his starting striker at that moment spoke volumes.
As for Denmark, the same issues that plagued the side in qualifying were apparent Tuesday night. To put it simply, the Danes dominated possession but failed to take enough of their many chances.
By the time Yussuf Poulsen and Jannik Vestergaard scored late in the second half, Denmark were already too far behind to make a real run at a comeback. Even if they had scored another goal to win the match 3-2, the Danes would have needed a fourth to force extra time.
Perhaps one simple statistic summed up Denmark's story. In 10 qualifying matches, including the play-offs, Olsen's side won just three times.
Loser: Morten Olsen's Send-Off
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Denmark manager Olsen announced in March that he would leave his post after Euro 2016, ending a 16-year tenure in charge after guiding his country to a fifth major tournament, per UEFA.com.
That was the plan, at least. After failing to qualify, however, Olsen's time in charge will finish in disappointment. Olsen, who has been associated with the national team for 35 years, deserved better.
Winner: Ukraine Against History
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Before Tuesday night, Ukraine had participated in, and lost, five different play-offs for major tournaments. Besides losing to Slovenia in 1999 for the right to go to Euro 2000, Ukraine had fallen in World Cup play-offs to Croatia, Germany, Greece and France.
That dismal record ended in Maribor, where the visitors fell behind to Bostjan Cesar's first-half opener but held firm the rest of the way. In second-half stoppage time, Andriy Yarmolenko finished off a breakaway to cap a deserved 3-1 aggregate victory.
Over two legs, Ukraine played the better football, created the more dangerous attacks and generally looked the superior side. This triumph, which ended a depressing run in play-offs, was fully deserved.
Winner: Bookings
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If the Slovenia-Ukraine match had a theme, it was probably bookings. With the stakes so high, both teams showed full commitment from the opening whistle, but that commitment often bubbled over.
Referee Cuneyt Cakir handed out five yellow cards in a bad-tempered first half. Though he showed only one yellow card after half-time, the teams genuinely appeared ready to brawl at times in the second half.
Finally, the tension reached a tipping point in stoppage time as Slovenia's Miso Brecko saw red for a terrible challenge on Yevhen Konoplyanka. Ukraine later scored a goal with the final kick, but the dismissal felt like the real climax of the action.
