New Delhi: The Netherlands and England battled it out in the semi-finals at the BVB Stadion Dortmund to find out which of the two teams would take on Spain in the finals in Berlin. A closely contested affair ultimately went in favour of the Dutch/English as they came out on top in Dortmund.
A fast start to the game saw the Netherlands lead just seven minutes into the game. Xavi Simons knicked the ball off Declan Rice and unleashed a powerful shot from outside the box towards goal. The shot was hit fiercely and beat Jordan Pickford in goal who could only get his fingertips to the ball and failed to keep it out. The early goal set the tone for the rest of the half as we saw a high-intensity game throughout the half.
England looked much more of an attacking side than they did in the past with Phil Foden looking like a legit threat. Harry Kane went close to equalizing for the English but his shot flew above the bar. However, there were calls for a penalty as the English players felt Kane was fouled inside the box. The decision went to VAR who asked the referee to check it himself via the pitch-side monitor.
The referee deemed Dumfries’ challenge to be a foul and controversially awarded England a penalty. Harry Kane stepped up and dispatched his perfect penalty to bring his side level. Both teams had gotten themselves on the scoresheet within the first 20 minutes. Both sides would go on to hit the post once each before the whistle for extra time was blown.
The Netherlands were forced to take off Memphis Depay in the first half due to injury and brought on Wout Werghost at halftime while England introduced Luke Shaw into the mix. However, after impressing in the first half, Gareth Southgate was back to his old tactics and decided to sit back and try to take the game to penalties.
Bukayao Saka managed to get the ball in the back of the net for the second successive game but the goal was adjudged to be offside as things remained level. The match seemed to be headed to extra time but up stepped Ollie Watkins. The Aston Villa striker controlled the ball beautifully inside the box and scored beautifully past Verbruggen in the first minute of added time to give England the win and book their place in the finals.
Turning Point: The introduction of Ollie Watkins and Cole Palmer
Cole Palmer and Ollie Watkins proved to be the game-changers for England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
Both Watkins and Palmer are coming off the back of exceptional seasons for their clubs. Watkins powered Aston Villa into the top four last season, ensuring UEFA Champions League football for the Villans as he scored 27 and assisted 13 in 53 games in all competitions.
Cole Palmer, on the other hand, was single-handedly responsible for a top-six finish for Chelsea, after they struggled for the majority of the season, by scoring 27 and assisting 15 in just 48 games. Both players had shown incredible form in the domestic season but weren’t given many chances by Southgate at UEFA Euro 2024.
While Palmer had featured more than Watkins in Germany, neither had gotten enough minutes to showcase their talents on such a grand stage. Before tonight’s appearance, Watkins had only been given 20 minutes of playtime throughout the tournament, in the second game against Denmark. Both Palmer and Watkins were thrown on with just nine minutes remaining and they proved to be the game-changers for Gareth Southgate.
Palmer collected the ball from Declan Rice before running towards the opposition penalty area. He slots a through ball towards Watkins, who turns well inside the box to get away from De Vrij. He took a quick shot that went between De Vrij’s legs and past Verbruggen before flying into the bottom corner.
Southgate’s late changes seemed to be ones made keeping penalties in mind as both are solid penalty-takers but they ultimately proved to be the match-winners for him. Watkins and Palmer combined to give England the lead, something no one else could do for them throughout a drab second-half performance from the Three Lions.
Both the substitutes proved they have the capability to start for their side in important matches and should be the ones making Southgate’s lineup regularly instead of the sporadic appearances they’ve been given till now. If not for these two, we’d be seeing another set of extra-time in an England game.
Gareth Southgate has led his team to a second successive UEFA Euro final as a last minute winner by Ollie Watkins ensured a comeback win for England over the Netherlands in the semi-finals of UEFA Euro 2024. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
