A late winner from England substitute Ollie Watkins against Netherlands put Gareth Southgate’s team into the final of Euro 2024, where they will face Spain.
The Aston Villa striker replaced Harry Kane, the England captain, with nine minutes of normal time remaining and made it 2-1 in the first minute of added time.
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Xavi Simons put the Netherlands ahead in the first half with a long-range strike after dispossessing Declan Rice, and Kane equalised from the spot after being fouled by Denzel Dumfries.
It is their second consecutive European Championship final, and the first time England have reached a major tournament final abroad.
Our writers Tim Spiers, Mark Carey, Jacob Whitehead and Seb Stafford-Bloor discuss the main talking points…
Spain are favourites, but don’t underestimate England
So it’ll be England v Spain in Berlin on Sunday to decide the European Championship.
For a start, it’s a rare meeting between the two in a major tournament — they last met way back in Euro 1996 when England won on penalties after a 0-0 draw at Wembley in the quarter-finals.
Who are the favourites? Clearly Spain, they are without doubt the most complete team we’ve seen at the tournament; a vibrant, exciting side with width, creativity, attacking brilliance, a formation and system that works for the players they’ve got and a number of match winners all over the pitch.
But what of England’s chances? Spain will be by some distance the best side they have faced in the competition, but Southgate’s side have improved in every game during the knockout stage, from the inhibited, dull performance when creeping through against Slovakia, to the balanced, functional performance against Switzerland to a very good first-half display against the Dutch and then positive late subs to come on and win the game.
They have momentum, they arguably have just as many match winners in their ranks as Spain, they have players like Phil Foden, Kobbie Mainoo and Luke Shaw coming into form, they now have a formation that works for them and, for their players and their manager, they have belief.
Spain will be favourites, but this improving England team should not be underestimated.
Tim Spiers
Southgate’s bold substitution pays off
Kane was labouring, but that was forgivable. He has laboured under England’s weight for a long time, and in all-round play, this was his best performance of the competition.
Ivan Toney was the obvious substitute, fresh from his box-crashing against Slovakia and ice-cool penalty against Switzerland, but Southgate decided something else was needed.
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Many of his gambits tonight answered his critics — he got Foden involved, he brought on Cole Palmer, he found a system that worked, he was willing to change its shape.
But this is the change this game will be remembered for. Watkins has been a stranger to these Euros, and when he was called onto the sideline, his introduction looked like a move to press the Netherlands’ rock-solid defensive build-up. He was so much more.
Palmer played through Watkins, and with his back to goal, he took a touch away from Stefan de Vrij and shot. De Doink. It flicked off the corner to send England into their second successive Euros final.
Jacob Whitehead
The England penalty — and why it was given
Naturally, given how much focus there was before the game on Felix Zwayer because of his run-in with Jude Bellingham in 2021, the first half hinged on a hugely contentious decision.
Denzel Dumfries catching Kane was deemed a penalty, despite the Netherlands defender having little choice but to attempt a block. Even at half-speed it was inconclusive.
Opprobrium will fall on Zwayer, but the German referee had little alternative. Before the competition, UEFA stressed that player safety would be an emphasis at Euro 2024, meaning that there would be special attention paid to any tackle made with a straight leg and with studs showing — particularly if that challenge was high.
There was still room for interpretation within that — “It was nowhere near a penalty,” said the former England defender Gary Neville at half-time — but that context does make it easier to understand why it was a penalty. Should it be, philosophically? That’s not a referee’s job to decide.
Seb Stafford-Bloor
Rice helped set the tempo after costly mistake
After just seven minutes, Rice was pickpocketed by Simons — losing out on a 50-50 duel as the Dutchman nicked the ball away before thundering a finish past Jordan Pickford.
Most players might let their head drop after being caught out for a goal in the semi-final of a major tournament. Not Rice. He shrugged off the disappointment and proceeded to have his best performance of the summer, with his front-foot passing setting the tone for England.
Rice has been frustrating in possession during a lot of this tournament. His job is to protect England’s back line, but his decision-making has often been far too cautious, closing his body off as he receives the ball which prevents him from facing those ahead of him and forces him into safe passes.
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As a team, England have been laboured all summer but risk-averse passes so early in the attacking sequence can see opportunities break down before they have started. After all, you can’t start a fire without a spark.
Against the Netherlands, Rice dropped into similar positions but was far more willing to punch balls forward and look for those ahead of him. His head was up, his body position was open, he was looking… forward. He even showcased his passing range with some delicious diagonals to the right flank to find Bukayo Saka or Kyle Walker.
It was so much more positive from the 25-year-old. England lost control after the break but this was still a positive evening for Rice, and a performance we have been waiting for all summer.
Mark Carey
How the control of the game shifted
The bar was set rather low, but England’s first-half performance on Wednesday evening was their best of the tournament.
We saw one-touch passing in build-up, there was aggression in and out of possession, and every player was looking for a forward, progressive pass rather than a sideways or backwards one.
The tempo of the game was dictated by the contest and the opposition. The Netherlands were more willing to go toe-to-toe with England and Southgate’s side were comfortably the dominant side in the opening 45 minutes.
In the second half, things looked frustratingly familiar.
England did not pick up where they left off, and there was a staleness for long periods where neither side regained a foothold in the contest. In mitigation for Southgate, this felt different to previous games. Where before it felt like the stodgy play was of England’s own doing, this time it was largely due to Dutch tweaks at half-time, which saw them match-up against England’s midfield box with more bodies — condensing the space in the centre of the pitch.
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The timing of the substitutions felt similarly frustrating. Surely it was too late to bring on Watkins and Palmer for Kane and Foden with just 10 minutes remaining? What do we know? Watkins’ stunning winner — set up by Palmer — validated Southgate’s decision yet again, with a goal worthy of winning any game.
The performance might have differed between the first and second half, but overall England showed a real maturity across the whole game.
Mark Carey
The Denzel Dumfries Show
Dumfries and involvement have never been strangers. The full-backs of 50 years ago might recognise him in the same way that an ancient Egyptian tablet carver might recognise an iPad. Overlapper does not quite seem to describe what he does, ultralapper might be a better turn.
The 28-year-old is adventure made human, half-resembling the child hero of a Pixar film, half-resembling a Red Bull-sponsored extreme skier, tossing themselves down a mountain.
But after 15 minutes, Dumfries proceeded to toss himself into Kane. The VAR recommended that referee Zwayer awarded a penalty — and despite it appearing harsh, UEFA guidelines dictated that he intervened. An England equaliser, and a Dumfries yellow card. Even by the Netherlands wing-back’s dynamic standards, his first half against England was busier than most.
England were flowing for the first time all tournament — and when Phil Foden’s feet moved quicker than a ball inside a rattle, his dink over Bart Verbruggen looked to be heading goalwards. The full-backs of yesteryear might have recognised this though — Dumfries hammering a clearance off the line.
Minutes later, Foden broke again down the inside right. He went down under a tug from Dumfries. No foul — and a foul would have meant yellow, and then red.
Dumfries lived on — and almost restored the Netherlands’ lead. Hardly known for his aerial ability, Jordan Pickford was beaten, Dumfries’ header from a corner caroming off the bar. This was the cliche of ‘a game that had everything’, within one player, within 30 minutes.
Jacob Whitehead
Recommended reading
- Perfection, by Lamine Yamal
- Spain take risks and reap the rewards – it’s what makes them so different at Euro 2024
(Alex Grimm/Getty Images)