Kickoff chronicles

After a cracking semi final tie between Spain and France yesterday, the crowd in Dortmund were ready to witness another Euro classic. The two teams going at it for a place in the final were the Netherlands, who had beaten Romania and Turkey on route to the final 4, and England who had taken down both Slovakia and Switzerland. It was the Netherlands who found an early advantage in the tie, with the goal coming totally against the run of play in the 7th minute when young star Xavi Simons found the back of the English net. Declan Rice was dispossessed outside the penalty area by the PSG man. Simons took a few touches before smashing the ball into the top left corner, slipping as he struck the ball which helped it fly past English keeper Jordan Pickford. After going a goal down for the 3rd time in a row, England knew they needed another quick response. They found the perfect opportunity in the 18th minute when referee Felix Zwayer pointed to the spot. Bukayo Saka cut in from the right wing with the ball and fired a shot which deflected into the path of skipper Harry Kane. Kane hit the ball first time on the volley, with his shot just grazing over the bar. Unfortunately for the Dutch, Denzel Dumfires left his foot in, making clear and clean contact with the outstretched boot of Kane resulting in VAR looking at the incident and recommending Zwayer to check the on field monitor. After Zwayer pointed to the spot, Kane dispatched the penalty perfectly, drilling it into the bottom left corner, redeeming himself from the 2022 World Cup when Kane missed a penalty to send England’s quarter final tie against France into extra time. There were then big chances for both teams with  Phil Foden having his solo effort stopped on the line by Dumfries. Dumfries then hit the woodwork when he attempted to head Simons’ corner into Pickford’s net. The English fans then had to watch agonisingly as Foden came so very close again, hitting the frame of the goal with a lovely curled effort from 25 yards out. At the interval neither team could find the crucial 2nd goal meaning they were still locked together at 1-1.

Netherlands came out much stronger in the second period, testing Pickford on multiple occasions. Their best chance to find a potential 2nd goal occurred when Joey Veerman floated in a free kick from the right wing. It found its way to the back post where Virgil Van Dijk managed to make strong contact with the ball, forcing a brilliant diving save from Pickford. England thought they had found the lead in the 80th minute when Saka tapped the ball in from close range after Kyle Walker cut the ball across the 6 yard area. Unfortunately for the Three Lions, the assistants flag was up, cutting the English celebrations short. Finally in the 80th minute, Gareth Soutgate was forced to make some substitutions, taking off Harry Kane and Phil Foden and replacing them with Ollie Watkins and Cole Palmer. His changes paid off, with the two subs combining to score a goal that will go down in English history for decades to come. Palmer played an intelligent and dangerous ball into the penalty area to Watkins who had his back to goal, looking for support. With no viable options, Watkins took it on himself, spinning around Stefan De Vrij and tucking the ball into the far corner, sending the English end into a state of disbelief. England then made a few more changes to help them see out the final minutes in the tie. In the 5th minute of stoppage time, they won a free kick deep in the Dutch half, with just seconds left to play. Finally, Zwayer blew his whistle bringing an end to a classic semi final tie. England make back to back Euros finals for the first time in their history and continue their spectacular major competition form under Gareth Southgate. After 22 years without making a semi final, Southgate has now taken England to 3 from a possible 4 in major competitions and he has also taken them to 2 of their 3 major finals in their entire history. It ends in heartbreak for the Dutch, who have come so far with their new look, young, and positive side, but there will be an element of hope for them going into the 2026 World Cup.