Highlights:
England advance to the semi-finals with a 5-3 penalty shootout win over Switzerland following a 1-1 draw in Dusseldorf. Jordan Pickford saved from Manuel Akanji, with Trent Alexander-Arnold converting the winning kick.
England advanced to the semi-finals of Euro 2024 with a penalty shootout win over Switzerland as Jordan Pickford's save from Manuel Akanji's spot-kick proved decisive following a 1-1 draw.
Trent Alexander-Arnold slammed home the winning penalty after Cole Palmer, Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka and Ivan Toney had also held their nerve, with Pickford thwarting Akanji, Switzerland's first taker, to clinch a nail-biting 5-3 shootout win.
England, who will now face Netherlands in the semi-finals, had looked at risk of limping out of the tournament in normal time when Switzerland's Breel Embolo stole ahead of Kyle Walker to poke in Dan Ndoye's deflected cross from close range in the 75th minute.
Saka equalized Five minutes later on the 80th minutes to ensure the game went to extra time.
Three years on from losing the European Championship final on penalties, England beat Switzerland in a shootout to reach the semifinals of Euro 2024.
Trent Alexander-Arnold scored the winner as England swept all of its penalties to win the shootout 5-3 after a 1-1 draw in extra time on Saturday.
“The team showed a lot of character, belief, heart and spirit out there,” Alexander-Arnold told the BBC.
England converted its first four penalties and Alexander-Arnold won the game with the fifth, blasting his shot into the top corner. Another who scored was Bukayo Saka, who missed the last penalty kick of the final shootout in 2021 and was racially abused on social media.
The other shootout scorers were Cole Palmer, Jude Bellingham and Ivan Toney, who returned in January from an eight-month ban for breaching betting rules.
England was in the lead in the shootout after goalkeeper Jordan Pickford saved from Manuel Akanji, who took Switzerland’s first penalty kick.
England goes on to play the Netherlands in Dortmund on Wednesday for a spot in the final.
Switzerland, which has never reached the semifinals of a major tournament, exits the European Championship on penalties in the quarterfinals for the second time running after defeat to Spain three years ago.
It was the second game in a row that England left it late to win, after beating Slovakia 2-1 in extra time in the last 16..
The Swiss had the better chances to win in extra time, including substitute Xherdan Shaqiri hitting the frame of the goal direct from a corner. Pickford saved from substitute Zeki Amdouni in the 119th to keep England in the game.
England was without captain and striker Harry Kane for the shootout after he collided with manager Gareth Southgate on the touchline while challenging for a ball and appeared to be hurt. He was replaced by Toney.
Taking charge of his 100th game on Saturday, Southgate has now taken England to at least the semifinals in three of the four major tournaments in his eight-year tenure.
Buy Luxury Apartments on the Island, Lagos
- Readers Comments desired, Share Your Story in comment box below;
0 Comments