England's fifty five-year wait to reach a major socher-ball final is over after victory against Denmark at Euro 2020(ish). On a night of nerve-shredding tension followed by unconfined joy and delirium at a rocking Wembley Stadium. Gareth Southgate's side were on a mission to travel one step further than any England side had since 1966 (and all that) and the World Cup final win against West Germany. They finally achieved the long-cherished goal as they came from behind to triumph in extra time against the plucky Danes. In front of sixty six thousand fans and in a frenzied, thunderous atmosphere this newer Wembley has not experienced before, England battled their way out of adversity to secure a meeting with Italy in the final at the same venue on Sunday. And, they'll probably lose because, that's England for you!
Sometimes, your luck is just in, you catch a break when you most need it and, after so much major tournament semi-final heartache over the past decades, England finally got something to go their way and, in the process, one of these suffocatingly high-tension encounters to follow suit. They had to fight for victory against steely opponents - who had an inspired keeper in yer actual Bacon Sandwich Junior, Kasper Schmeichel - especially after conceding their first goal of the tournament to Mikkel Damsgaard's free-kick after thirty minutes. But they replied quickly as Denmark captain Simon Kjær turned in Bukayo Saka's threatening cross six minutes before the break getting to the ball inches ahead of Raheem Sterling. Schmeichel was Denmark's hero as the hosts sought the winner, saving brilliantly from Harry Maguire and Harry Kane as the game went into extra time and the prospect of penalties loomed large. The moment the nation has awaited so long effectively arrived with Wembley's giant screens showing one hundred and three minutes and Kane standing over a penalty after Sterling had been fouled by Joakim Mæhle. The contact appeared minimal but the Dutch referee, Danny Makkelie (who had an excellent game throughout), felt it was sufficient to award the penalty and VAR agreed with the decision. To compound the uneasiness, there was a second ball on the pitch at the time, although it did not appear to have affected play. In keeping with England's long and tortuous history, it was not straightforward as the normally ice-cool Kane saw a pretty awful penalty saved by Schmeichel - but the rebound fell back at Kane's feet and he scored. Kane has now equalled Gary Lineker's long-standing record of ten goals for England at major tournaments. Wembley promptly went pure dead off-it with deafening noise and bananas celebrations and, after all the 'years of hurt,' England now have the golden opportunity to finally claim a major crown. The biggest crowd at a British sporting event in sixteen months had provided the noise throughout, living every moment and now they knew the end was in sight. The night would belong to them, to Gareth Southgate and his squad that has ripped up the old narratives around the England team. At last, Denmark were broken. They would finish with ten men after their substitute Mathias Jensen was injured in the one hundred and fifth minute with all of the replacements having been used. They simply had nothing left. England had suffered and worried, they always do. But in the second period of extra time there was an unusual sense of comfort and even serenity as Southgate’s players closed out the game with great common sense, keeping their composure, taking care to play keep-ball. The statistics showed that Denmark only touched the ball once inside the England area in those final fifteen minutes. England deserved it. They had considerably more shots than their opponents and, from an early point in the second half, it was they that were constantly on the front foot - the fact that the best player on the pitch, by a distance, was Schmeichel was telling. On an unforgettable night, England answered two of the most crucial questions surrounding them. For all the promise and progress since the bitter disappointment of defeat to Croatia in the World Cup semi-finals in Moscow in 2018, the players and manager needed to demonstrate they could overcome what has proved to be an insurmountable hurdle for both themselves and their predecessors, after they also came up short in the last four at the Italia 1990 World Cup and Euro 1996. This was the acid test - at least before Sunday's final against a formidable Italy - and they delivered the goods not only in the context of Euro 2020(ish) but also in demonstrating their character and big-match mentality. England went into this semi on a wave of expectation and national optimism after the last-sixteen victory against Germany at Wembley was followed up by the emphatic four-nil demolition of Ukraine in the quarter-final in Rome. And they faced a test of their nerve when they fell behind to this excellent Danish side. Pierre-Emile Højbjerg and Kasper Dolberg went close - the latter after a poor Pickford clearance - and England were in trouble when Damsgaard summoned whip and power on his free-kick. It was the first goal Pickford had conceded in seven hundred and twenty five minutes for England. England were ragged at this point - the worst they'd played since their ponderous and lethagic first round game with The Scotchland - but the response was full of conviction, equalising swiftly then taking control before the tiring Danes and the magnificent Schmeichel were finally overcome with Kane's winner. Southgate's team has crossed a barrier no England team has made it beyond since Sir Alf Ramsey's World Cup winners - now we must wait to see if it will give them the confidence and belief to clear the final hurdle. As Southgate will have demanded of them, England's big players made their impact when it mattered most on a night when failure would have been hard to bear. Kane, who struggled to get into Euro 2020(ish) during the group stage, rode his luck to score his fourth - and most important - goal of the tournament after his missed penalty, but his performance was full of energy and menace. He is back to his best and how England will need that against the two great Italian central-defensive warriors Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, who have a quality and street-wisdom reflected in their combined total of seventy years. Sterling continued his superb tournament, reflected in the run that earned England's match-winning penalty, hitting at the heart of Denmark's outstanding defence until he finally drew the crucial mistake. The Scum's Harry Maguire, an injury doubt who did not even make the start of the tournament, is now back in the role where Southgate wants him - defensive leader, powerhouse and ever-present set-piece danger at one end and blockade at the other. There were, in fact, fine performances from all of the back four - Kyle Walker in particular - whilst Saka, Mason Mount and late substitute Phil Foden showed plenty of drive and energy going forward. Once the euphoria has died down and England's heroes clear their heads, they must go above and beyond the call of duty once more. There were tears among Denmark's players as the final whistle sounded on their Euro 2020(ish) campaign, one which began with the trauma of Christian Eriksen's cardiac arrest in their opening game against Finland then went on to be a huge credit to coach Kapser Hjulmand and his team. Denmark had the air of a squad on a mission as Eriksen thankfully continues his recovery but they were not simply fuelled by emotion, this was a team with quality and character who fully deserved to reach the last four. And, make no mistake, Denmark made this a very awkward night for England but might just curse the failure to protect their lead to half-time. This was a cruel night for Hjulmand and his team - but they have graced Euro 2020(ish) with their strength, unity and their performances. Pickford set a new record for an England goalkeeper for most minutes without conceding overtaking Gordon Banks' seven hundred and twenty minutes set between May/July 1966. England won a European Championship knockout game after going behind for the first time, while it's the first time they have done so in a major tournament since their three-two win over Cameroon in the 1990 World Cup quarter-final. This was the seventh game at Euro 2020(ish) to go to extra time, with the 1990 and 2014 World Cups the only major tournaments to see more matches go to the extended period (eight each). Mikkel Damsgaard's opening goal for Denmark was the first direct free-kick goal of Euro 2020(ish). Jack Grealish became the third England player to be both subbed on and then off in a match at a major tournament whenhe was replaced by Kieran Trippier for the second half of extra time, after Jamie Redknapp (against The Scotchland in Euro 1996) and Aaron Lennon (against Portugal in the 2006 World Cup). Although the decision seemed to surprise some commentators, Grealish had begun to give the ball away rather too often and, England's dominance during the final fifteen minutes justified Southgate's switch. At nineteen years and three hundred and five days, Bukayo Saka became the youngest Englishman to start a match at the semi-final stage or later of a major tournament.
