England will play in their first major tournament final for 55 years after coming from behind to beat Denmark 2-1 after extra time in front of a delirious 65,000 crowd at Wembley in Wednesday’s Euro 2020 semi-final.

Mikkel Damsgaard’s stunning free-kick after 30 minutes threatened another semi-final disappointment for Gareth Southgate’s side, three years on from losing in the last four of the World Cup.

But Simon Kjaer’s own goal eight minutes later and Harry Kane’s extra-time winner on the rebound after his penalty was saved by Kasper Schmeichel means England will attempt to win the European Championship for the first time when they face Italy back at Wembley in Sunday’s final.

Defeat ends Denmark’s fairytale run to the semi-finals, the furthest they have been at a tournament since winning Euro 92.

The Danes’ tournament began in nearly-tragic circumstances when star midfielder Christian Eriksen suffered a cardiac arrest in their opening game against Finland.

Kasper Hjulmand’s men have since ridden an emotional wave and played plenty of slick football in sticking four goals past Russia and Wales on their way to the semi-finals.

However, England’s huge advantage in having six of their seven matches on home soil has paid off as they were the physically fresher side in the latter stages.

Roared on by the deafening noise created by the biggest crowd for an England game in nearly two years, the hosts came flying out of the traps.

Kane’s teasing cross just evaded Raheem Sterling as he burst in towards the far post.

Denmark settled after a shaky start and started to pose a threat themselves as Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg shot straight at Jordan Pickford before Martin Braithwaite and Damsgaard saw efforts fly off target.

Damsgaard stunner

England were on a national record run of seven consecutive clean sheets, but were finally breached in spectacular fashion by Damsgaard’s free-kick that flew into the top corner.

Any questions over how Southgate’s men would react to falling behind for the first time in the tournament were emphatically answered as England rapidly hit back.

Sterling should have equalised when he fired straight into Schmeichel’s midriff with just the ‘keeper to beat.

Moments later, the hosts were level when Kane freed Bukayo Saka down the right and Kjaer turned into his own net under pressure from Sterling.

Denmark’s exertions in being forced into a 9,000-kilometre (5,592 mile) round trip for their quarter-final win over the Czech Republic showed in the second half as they desperately tried to keep England at bay.

Penalty controversy

Schmeichel produced another stunning save from Harry Maguire’s header low to his right, while Kane could not get a telling connection in a goalmouth scramble in the 96th minute.

Hjulmand made all five of his allotted substitutions before the 90 minutes were up to give his side an extra boost of energy, but they could not get any forward momentum.

Schmeichel kept his side in the game in extra time with another agile low save to his right to deny Kane before repelling a Jack Grealish piledriver.

England’s pressure finally paid off in controversial circumstances when Sterling was awarded a soft penalty for a challenge by Joakim Maehle in the 104th minute.

Schmeichel even denied Kane from the spot but the ball fell kindly for the England captain to sweep home his fourth goal of the tournament.

Southgate was the fall guy when England last made it to a Euro semi-final 25 years ago as he missed the decisive penalty in a shoot-out defeat to Germany.

But he has the ultimate shot at redemption come Sunday as England have the chance to finally bring a major trophy home after so many years of hurt.

(AFP)

England can finally end 55 years of major tournament misery with a Euro 2020 semi-final victory against Denmark on Wednesday, after Italy beat Spain in a dramatic penalty shoot-out to book their place in the final.

Gareth Southgate’s side are bidding to reach the European Championship final for the first time as they try to banish the ghosts of England’s ill-fated past.

Since winning the 1966 World Cup, England have reached only four major semi-finals, losing at the 1990 and 2018 World Cups, as well as Euro 1968 and 1996, when Southgate infamously missed a crucial penalty in the shoot-out against Germany.

Those agonising defeats have been etched in the psyche of English football ever since.

But Southgate has overseen the emergence of a vibrant young team unconcerned by the trials and tribulations of their failed predecessors in the England shirt.

Yet to concede a goal in their five unbeaten matches in the tournament, England underlined their potential with a 2-0 last-16 win against old rivals Germany.

In the quarter-finals, a 4-0 rout of Ukraine in Rome fuelled dreams of Euro glory.

Now England are back at Wembley for the Denmark showdown and, with the final also being held in London, Southgate know the Three Lions have a golden opportunity to make history.

“We don’t have as a good a football history as we like to believe sometimes,” he said.

“These players are making massive strides and breaking barriers all the time, we have broken barriers in this tournament and we have another opportunity to do that tomorrow.

“We’ve never been to a European Championship final so we can be the first, which is really exciting for everybody.”

England has been gripped by Euro fever since the cathartic victory against Germany and, along with 60,000 lucky fans at Wembley, millions more in homes and pubs across the country will watch the semi-final on television.

British Prime Minister Johnson summed up the mood of an expectant nation as he said: “Gareth Southgate and the England squad have done the nation proud in the Euros, and tonight we will all be wishing them the best of luck in getting to the final. Bring it home!”

‘Has football ever come home?’

However, England’s ‘Football’s coming home’ anthem — roared by fans at Wembley after the Germany game — doesn’t sit well with everyone.

Denmark keeper Kasper Schmeichel took a cheeky swipe at the supposedly triumphalist song, saying: “Has it ever been home? I don’t know, have you ever won it?”

Surprise semi-finalists Denmark, who won the Euro in 1992, can count on the support of many outside England after their emotional campaign.

Rocked by the cardiac arrest suffered by their star midfielder Christian Eriksen during their first match against Finland, Denmark went into their last group game without a point.

But, with Eriksen on the mend after the shocking incident, Kasper Hjulmand’s team have embarked on a three-match winning run which has taken them to a first semi-final in 29 years.

Eriksen has been invited to the Wembley final by UEFA and Hjulmand has urged his underdogs to make it a date with their team-mate.

“We still play for and with him. There’s no doubt about that. That’s the only thing I can say about Christian,” he said.

“It’s really something that makes us do as much as we can. I hope that if he comes to the final that we’re going to be playing it. It would be amazing.”

Italy waiting in final

Italy will be waiting for England or Denmark in Sunday’s showpiece after beating Spain 4-2 on penalties following a thrilling 1-1 draw at Wembley.

Roberto Mancini’s men took the lead when Federico Chiesa curled a fine finish into the far corner in the 60th minute.

Spanish substitute Alvaro Morata equalised 10 minutes from full-time with a clinical strike from Dani Olmo’s pass.

Manuel Locatelli and Olmo exchanged misses to start the shoot-out before the much-maligned Morata’s effort was saved by Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Jorginho stepped up to convert Italy’s winner with his trademark hop-step.

“I cannot describe my emotion by words. It was a tough match. Spain were great but we come back here on July 11 for the final. We fought until the end and we did it,” Chiesa said.

Italy last reached the final in 2012, when they were beaten by Spain, and they also lost to France in the 2000 title match.

The Azzurri, four-time world champions, are unbeaten in 33 matches as they aim to win a first Euro title since 1968.

Source: AFP

Italy beat Belgium 2-1 in a pulsating Euro 2020 quarter-final in Munich on Friday to set up a last-four clash with Spain, who needed penalties to get the better of 10-man Switzerland.

Lorenzo Insigne’s brilliant strike proved to be the winner for Italy, who extended their national record unbeaten run to 32 matches.

Roberto Mancini’s men will face Spain in the first semi-final on Tuesday at Wembley.

“We deserved to win. The players were extraordinary,” Italy coach Mancini told Rai.

“It is clear that we suffered in the last 10 minutes because we were tired. They were good, we could have scored a few more goals.”

Belgium and Italy were the only sides to win all 10 games in qualifying and the only teams along with the Netherlands to win every match in the group stage.

The Azzurri, whose only European title came in 1968, started brightly and thought they had struck first when Leonardo Bonucci put the ball in the net, only for VAR to rule the goal out for offside.

Nicolo Barella did give Italy the lead in the 31st minute with a fine solo goal though, jinking between two defenders and hammering a shot into the far corner past Thibaut Courtois.

The Italians were in dreamland when Insigne curled home a wonderful long-range strike into the top corner shortly before half-time.

But Belgium gave themselves hope in first-half stoppage time through a Romelu Lukaku penalty after Jeremy Doku was shoved over in the box by Giovanni Di Lorenzo.

The Belgians had their moments in the second half, with Lukaku denied by some desperate last-ditch defending.

Doku fired over after a mazy run as the world’s top-ranked side piled on the pressure, but Italy held on to reach the semis for the sixth time.

Spain edge out valiant Swiss

Earlier on Friday, Spain, champions in 2008 and 2012, beat Switzerland 3-1 on penalties after their quarter-final tie in Saint Petersburg finished 1-1 at the end of extra time, with Mikel Oyarzabal scoring the winning kick.

Luis Enrique’s side appeared to be coasting as Jordi Alba’s shot deflected in off Denis Zakaria for an own goal to put Spain ahead in the eighth minute.

However, the Swiss had caused a sensation by eliminating world champions France in the last 16 and they battled back to equalise midway through the second half when a disastrous defensive mix-up between Spain centre-backs Aymeric Laporte and Pau Torres allowed Xherdan Shaqiri to score.

Switzerland then held on through extra time after midfielder Remo Freuler was sent off in the 77th minute for a challenge on Gerard Moreno.

They had converted all five of their penalties in the shoot-out against France and this time they were given a head-start when Sergio Busquets hit the post with Spain’s first effort.

Rodri also failed to score for Spain but Unai Simon saved from Fabian Schaer and Manuel Akanji before Ruben Vargas blazed over.

Virus concerns in Russia

Oyarzabal’s kick allowed Spain to go through and help banish the memory of their defeat on penalties in the last 16 of the 2018 World Cup against the hosts in Russia.

“Unai (Simon), I’ve seen him stop a lot of penalties with Athletic Bilbao, and I see him training with us… he’s a specialist,” said Spain boss Luis Enrique.

Friday’s game went ahead in Saint Petersburg despite major concerns about a surge in coronavirus cases in the Russian city, fuelled by the Delta variant.

Earlier on Friday, Russia reported 679 coronavirus deaths over the previous 24 hours, setting a pandemic high of fatalities for the fourth day in a row. Saint Petersburg recorded 101 deaths.

An attendance of almost 25,000 watched the game in the Krestovsky Stadium, which has welcomed some of the largest crowds permitted at this pandemic-affected European Championship.

The remaining quarter-finals will be played on Saturday, when England — fresh from beating Germany — play Ukraine in Rome.

England may not have many fans in the Stadio Olimpico due to Italian coronavirus rules which mean all arrivals from the United Kingdom have to quarantine for five days.

Denmark play the Czech Republic in Baku exactly three weeks on from Christian Eriksen’s cardiac arrest in the Danes’ first match at the tournament.

Eriksen was discharged from hospital less than a week after his collapse after having a defibrillator implanted to regulate his heart rate, and without him Kasper Hjulmand’s team have rallied to reach the last eight.

“We will play with the heart of Christian Eriksen. He is the heart of the team still and with that heart and without fear, we will try,” said Hjulmand.

(AFP)

Goalkeeper Unai Simon was the hero as Spain edged past 10-man Switzerland 3-1 on penalties on Friday to set up a Euro 2020 semi-final against either Belgium or Italy.

After a 1-1 draw in Saint Petersburg which saw the Swiss play for 43 minutes a man down, Simon made two saves in the shoot-out to help keep Spain’s bid for a record fourth European crown alive.

It was heartbreak for Switzerland, who were bidding for reach the semi-finals of a major tournament for the first time in their history.

Spain forged ahead early on when Denis Zakaria put through his own net, but Switzerland were the better side for long periods and Xherdan Shaqiri, standing in for the suspended Granit Xhaka as captain, equalised in the 68th minute.

The Swiss were reduced to 10 men with 13 minutes remaining, though, when midfielder Remo Freuler was controversially dismissed for a tackle on Gerard Moreno.

Switzerland goalkeeper Yann Sommer, the hero of the penalty shoot-out win over world champions France in the last 16, made a string of fine saves in extra time.

But Simon saved from Fabian Schaer and Manuel Akanji, while Ruben Vargas blazed over in a tense finale as Spain snuck through, with Mikel Oyarzabal smashing home the winning spot-kick.

Luis Enrique’s men will take on either Belgium or Italy, who meet in Munich later Friday, at Wembley on Tuesday.

After scoring 10 goals in their previous two matches, this was a return to the type of profligate performances which saw Spain draw their first two group games against Sweden and Poland.

But the 2008 and 2012 winners had made a dream start to this quarter-final, taking the lead in fortunate circumstances in only the eighth minute.

A corner was cleared only as far as Jordi Alba, whose left-footed volley was diverted past Sommer by Switzerland midfielder Zakaria, only playing in place of Xhaka.

It was the 10th own goal of Euro 2020, more than the other 15 editions combined.

Alvaro Morata wasted an excellent opportunity by heading too close to Sommer when unmarked, but then Switzerland started to grow into the game.

Silvan Widmer headed off target from a corner, before Steven Zuber thought he had won a penalty only to be flagged offside.

Spain coach Luis Enrique sent on Dani Olmo for Pablo Sarabia at half-time and the RB Leipzig man threatened inside 60 seconds, seeing his low volley well held by Sommer.

Zakaria came agonisingly close to making up for his earlier own goal when his header span narrowly wide.

Switzerland had an even better chance for a leveller in the 64th minute, as Shaqiri sparked a quick counter-attack which ended with Spain goalkeeper Unai Simon reacting well to keep out Zuber’s stabbed effort at his near post.

– Shaqiri strikes –

But the underdogs found the equaliser they deserved four minutes later, as Freuler latched onto a loose ball after a mix-up in the Spanish defence and squared for Shaqiri to slot into the far corner and score his third goal of the tournament.

The pattern of the game changed in the 77th minute though, when referee Michael Oliver gave Freuler his marching orders for a sliding challenge on Spanish substitute Moreno.

Switzerland managed to keep Spain at bay until the end of normal time with relative ease, but in the third minute of the additional half an hour Moreno should have put Spain back in front, only to miskick Alba’s cross wide from close range.

Switzerland were perhaps lucky not to have another man sent off shortly afterwards, when Widmer escaped a second yellow card for a cynical foul on Olmo.

Moreno somehow passed up another golden opportunity, denied at point-blank range by Sommer, before the Borussia Moenchengladbach stopper made an excellent diving save from Oyarzabal.

Sommer made eight saves in extra time alone, but his one in the shoot-out from Rodri was not enough, despite Sergio Busquets also hitting the post, as Switzerland missed three of their four penalties.

Source: AFP

The round of 16, which included two epic matches that went into extra time, ended on June 29. We now know who the eight quarter-finalists are – and world champions France are not among them.

It’s time for the Euro 2021 quarter-finals. While the round of 16 saw several favourites lose in shock defeats – France, Portugal and the Netherlands are all on their way home –eight teams remain in the running.

Belgium and Italy will be the big match of the final eight, while Switzerland will face Spain earlier on the same day. On Saturday, the Czech Republic will play against Denmark. The last knockout match will see England pitted against Ukraine.

Full schedule for the Euro 2021 quarter-finals

Friday 2 July:

Switzerland vs Spain, 6pm in St Petersburg.

Belgium vs Italy, 9pm in Munich.

Saturday 3 July:

Czech Republic vs Denmark, 6pm in Baku.

Ukraine vs England, 9pm in Rome.

Culled from France 24

Outgoing Germany head coach Joachim Loew admitted the 2-0 defeat to England in the last 16 of Euro 2020 was “hugely disappointing” after his side failed to take their chances.

Late goals by Raheem Sterling and Harry Kane at Wembley put England into the quarter-finals Tuesday and brought down the curtain on Loew’s 15-year reign as Germany coach.

The visitors only had themselves to blame as Thomas Mueller missed a clear late chance, nine minutes from the end, when he fired wide with the goal at his mercy and England 1-0 up.

Loew said the Germans simply came off second best.

“It’s a huge disappointment. The players are gutted. It’s very quiet in the dressing room,” said the 61-year-old, who steps down to be replaced by former assistant Hansi Flick.

“In games like this, it is crucial to convert all goal chances, which we didn’t do, neither through Timo Werner nor Thomas Mueller.

“I don’t blame anyone, normally Mueller would have put that away. It’s unusual that he didn’t, but these things happen.

“Many players are still young and I think many of them will be at the top of their game in 2024,” he added, with Germany to host the next European Championship.

Midfielder Toni Kroos said the loss was a “very, very bitter” pill to swallow.

“We weren’t effective enough and the 1-0 (when Sterling scored) changed everything, until then we had played a decent game.

“When you go out in the last 16, it’s disappointing, even though we came through a difficult group.”

Germany qualified from Group F alongside France and Portugal, but all three teams exited in the last 16.

Germany captain Manuel Neuer said England were more “greedy” in front of goal.

“The game was finely balanced, but England were more greedy in the situations where they scored their goals than we were,” said Neuer.

“The disappointment is huge.”

Neuer also paid tribute to the departing Loew, whose tenure brought the highs of the 2014 World Cup triumph in Brazil and the lows of finishing last in their group four years later in Russia.

“Joachim Loew has shaped a great era. It’s very sad that it ends like this for him.”

Source:  AFP

UEFA on Tuesday rejected plans by the city of Munich to light the Allianz Arena in rainbow colours for the Germany-Hungary Euro 2020 match in support of the LGBT community and to protest at a law passed by the Hungarian government.

“UEFA is a politically and religiously neutral organisation,” said European football’s governing body in a statement ahead of Wednesday’s match.

“Given the political context of this request — a message aimed at a decision taken by the Hungarian national parliament — UEFA must refuse.”

The mayor of Munich, Dieter Reiter, had wanted the stadium in rainbow colours for the crucial Group F match to “send a visible sign of solidarity” with Hungary’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

Hungary’s right-wing government last week passed a law banning the “promotion” of homosexuality to minors, outlawing any educational programmes or material in which homosexuality is mentioned.

On Monday, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto claimed that plans to light the Munich stadium in rainbow colours was “harmful and dangerous”.

While UEFA have rejected the request for the day of the match, it has suggested alternative dates for June 28, which is Christopher Street Liberation Day, or from July 3-9, the week of gay pride in Munich.

The last European Championship match in Munich takes place on July 2.

Tensions are running high on and off the pitch.

Hungary need a win to have a chance of reaching the last 16, while hosts Germany know just a draw would secure a spot in the knockout phase.

Source: AFP

Germany got their Euro 2020 campaign back on track — and blew Group F wide open — with a 4-2 romp against Portugal in Munich on Saturday.

France’s 1-1 draw with Hungary earlier in Budapest and Germany’s win mean there is all to play for in Wednesday’s final group games when the Germans host Hungary and the French meet holders Portugal.

After Cristiano Ronaldo claimed his 107th international goal, leaving him two short of Ali Daei’s all-time record, to give Portugal an early lead, the Germans roared back with four unanswered goals.

German pressure forced own goals by Ruben Dias and Raphael Guerreiro to put the hosts 2-1 up at half-time.

A Kai Havertz goal underlined Germany’s dominance before left-back Robin Gosens capped his man-of-the-match display by heading in Germany’s fourth goal to add to his two assists.

Portugal hit back when Diogo Jota tapped in Ronaldo’s hooked volley to make it 4-2 with 23 minutes left.

Germany continued their domination of Portugal, who they have now beaten five consecutive times at World Cup or European Championship finals since Euro 2000.

Germany created a huge amount of chances compared to Tuesday’s 1-0 defeat by France, while Portugal lacked the composure of their 3-0 win over Hungary the same day.

The match began at a frantic pace amid sweltering conditions in the Bavarian capital.

The Germans had a goal disallowed after five minutes when VAR spotted Serge Gnabry was offside as Gosens hit a spectacular volley.

However, sloppy Germany defending saw Portugal take the lead.

With only Gosens and Havertz defending at a German corner, Bernardo Silva started a counter-attack, then picked out Jota in the area with a world-class pass.

The Liverpool forward squared to Ronaldo, who sprinted into the box to slot the ball past Germany captain Manuel Neuer with less than 15 minutes gone.

It was Ronaldo’s first goal against Germany to extend his record tally to 12 goals at five European Championship finals.

However, two own goals inside four minutes turned the game.

Germany drew level when another Gosens volley was flicked towards the net by Havertz, with Dias getting the final touch as the ball flew past Rui Patricio on 35 minutes.

The second goal soon followed when Guerreiro turned Kimmich’s cross into his own net while trying to stop the ball reaching the on-rushing German forwards.

Gosens caused Portugal problems all afternoon on the left flank.

His low cross was tapped in by Havertz six minutes after the break.

The Atalanta player then capped a superb display by powering in a close-range header from Kimmich’s cross on the hour mark.

German fans sang their approval, with “Oh, wie ist das schoen” (oh, is that beautiful) echoing around the Allianz Arena.

Gosens was substituted soon after with his name being chanted.

Portugal pulled a goal back when Guerreiro’s free-kick was hooked back by Ronaldo and turned in by Jota.

Germany nearly claimed a late fifth goal when Havertz’s replacement Leon Goretzka fired over after another surging attack by the hosts.

This is the first time Portugal have conceded four goals since losing 4-0 to Germany at the 2014 World Cup.

Source: AFP