The English had to deal with an early setback, Xavi Simons scored in the seventh minute with a perfect shot into the top left corner to give the Dutch the lead. The “Three Lions” struck back shortly afterwards, however, and equalized thanks to a penalty converted by Harry Kane (18th minute). Both teams continued to play with open visors before the break and had several chances to make it 2-1. After the break, the pace dropped significantly. As the spectators in Dortmund were already preparing for extra time, Watkins struck after a fine pirouette (91st minute).

England will be aiming for their second major title on Sunday (9 p.m.) against Spain at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium after their triumph at the 1966 World Cup on home soil, when they beat Germany 4-2 in extra time in the final. At the last European Championship in London in 2021, they lost to Italy on penalties. The “Elftal”, meanwhile, must continue to wait for the second major title in the association’s history. At the 1988 European Championship in Germany, they were crowned European champions for the only time to date with a 2-0 win over the Soviet Union.

Simons scores a dream goal to make it 1-0

With a dream goal into the left corner, Xavi Simons puts the “Elftal” in the lead.

“Oranje” state of emergency in Dortmund

Hours before kick-off, Dortmund was transformed into an orange sea. Around 100,000 Dutch fans marched through the city center, singing and jumping, toward the stadium and public viewing area in Westfalenpark. There were also 25,000 English fans on the move. According to police, this was the largest fan march the city had ever seen. The public was asked to be considerate. “The ‘Oranje’ don’t run straight, they hop from left to right,” said the police spokesman. This takes a long time: “Those who hop get more out of the way.” Apart from a collision that left five people injured, the preliminary skirmish was largely peaceful.

Unsurprisingly, the color orange dominated the BVB stadium, which was sold out with 60,926 spectators. And the “Elftal” could not only rely on the support from the stands, they also had a special connection with the stadium. Fifty years ago, “Oranje” defeated Brazil 2-0 at the 1974 World Cup thanks to goals from Johan Neeskens and Johan Cruyff and booked their ticket for the final. There, however, they lost 1-2 to hosts Germany.

debate

Who will be European champion?

“Three Lions” strike back after lightning goal

Both Bondscoch Ronald Koeman and England team manager Southgate avoided any major surprises in their fourth direct duel at a major tournament (one win, one draw and one loss each), the first in the knockout phase. For the “Three Lions”, central defender Marc Guehi from Oliver Glasner’s club Crystal Palace, who was suspended against Switzerland, returned to the starting line-up. Koeman only preferred Dortmund local hero Donyell Malen to Steven Bergwijn. Memphis Depay remained the central striker in the 4-3-3 system. Wout Weghorst, who made a big impact in the 2-1 win against Turkey after coming on as a substitute, was once again left with only the “joker” role.

In the opening minutes, England tried to maintain control of the game, the Dutch were waiting for quick counterattacks and relied on high, steep passes. The English defense managed to intercept one of them with a header. Declan Rice then let Simons steal the ball, who headed towards the penalty area and sank the ball into the top left corner for an early lead (7th minute). The “Three Lions” only shook themselves briefly and hit back immediately. Of all people, Harry Kane, who had been under criticism, was responsible for the turnaround.

Kane scores from the penalty spot to equalise

After a foul on him, Harry Kane takes the penalty himself and scores safely to make it 1-1 (18th).

The Bayern star first tried from just under 30 meters, but Bart Verbruggen was able to parry (13th minute). Shortly afterwards, Bukayo Saka dribbled through the penalty area, his blocked shot landed at Kane, who immediately shot but missed the goal (14th minute). However, the 30-year-old was hit on the instep by Denzel Dumfries’ outstretched leg. After studying the video, the German referee Felix Zwayer awarded a penalty, which Kane converted safely into the bottom left corner to equalize with his third goal of the European Championships (18th minute).

Dumfries and Foden hit the crossbar

And the “Three Lions” almost added to their lead. After a through ball from Kobbie Mainoo, Phil Foden danced through the penalty area and laid the ball flat past Verbruggen towards the goal, but Dumfries was just able to scrape the ball off the line (23′). The Dutch seemed a little shaken, but in a varied match they had the next big chance after a corner. A header from Dumfries hit the crossbar (30′).

Foden circles ball to post

In the 32nd minute, the English team was just centimeters away from taking the lead. But Foden only hit the crossbar.

Things continued to get turbulent on the other side: First, Foden curled the ball into the top left corner from 20 meters (32′), and Verbruggen buried a hidden shot from the 24-year-old Manchester City star under his arms (39′). For Depay, the game was already over; the Atletico striker had to leave the field with a thigh problem and Joey Veerman came in for him. England continued to dominate the game and surprised everyone with an offensive approach. Meanwhile, the Dutch continued to struggle to pick up the pace again. With a 1-1 draw and after a fast-paced first 45 minutes, they went to the dressing room.

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Stalemate after the break

Both team bosses reacted during the break. Southgate brought on left-footer Luke Shaw for Kieran Trippier, Koeman took out Malen and hoped to bring more power to the attack by substituting the 1.97-meter giant Weghorst. After the intense first half, the “Elftal” and the “Three Lions” took things a little more calmly. Both teams hardly found any gaps for a counterattack and made the spaces tighter than before the break. READ FULL STORY HERE>>>CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING>>>

The fans had to wait until the 66th minute for the first big chance, but then things were ablaze in front of the English goal. “Oranje” captain Virgil van Dijk volleyed a cross with his foot, but Jordan Pickford was able to excel when the shot was too central. Dumfries rose highest from the resulting corner, but his header clearly missed the target. The Dutch now started to play a little more offensively, while England continued to concentrate on a secure defense.

“Joker” strikes in injury time

But chances were still in short supply. A volley from Simons was far too weak after a header was cleared too short (78th minute), and on the other side a goal from Bukayo Saka was disallowed. The passer Kyle Walker had just been offside (79th minute). For Kane and Foden, who had been inconspicuous after the break, the game was soon over, and Southgate wanted to breathe new life into the last ten minutes of normal time by substituting Cole Palmer and Ollie Watkins. And the English team manager proved to have a golden touch. After Palmer’s through ball, Watkins took over in the penalty area, turned around his opponent and scored the decisive goal into the far corner.

Voices about the game:

Gareth Southgate (England team manager): “We played so well, especially defensively. We always had to adapt and the players made so many good decisions. The ending is special for this team and the reward for everything they put into it. We felt like we were losing a bit of energy and Harry (Kane, ed.) took a bit of a hit. Ollie (Watkins, ed.) is good at pressing and making those deep runs. We felt like it was a good moment to try that.”

Ronald Koeman (Netherlands team manager): “England caused problems for our midfield in the first half. We didn’t control how they played with Bellingham and Foden between the lines. We brought on an extra midfielder after that and it was more balanced. My feeling in the last 20 or 25 minutes was that we were fresher, but they scored a great goal and that’s football. We can be proud of our players and our national team because we had a great tournament.”

Harry Kane (England captain, scorer of the 1-0 goal): “We are making history. We are incredibly happy, everyone in the team. It has been a difficult tournament so far, a tough journey. Now we have one game left. Each of us is ready, each of us can make the difference every minute. We deserved to win both halves because we controlled the game. Sometimes you get a penalty like that, sometimes you don’t. I’m just happy that we are in the final. We will give it our all.”

Ollie Watkins (England’s 2-1 goal scorer, “Man of the Match”): “I’ve been waiting for this moment for weeks. I’ve been given the opportunity and now I’m just happy. I told Cole Palmer to pass to me. That’s the best feeling. There’s been a lot of criticism, but in the end we’re in the final. The noises from outside will now die down. The deficit has woken us up. Now we have one more game, we’re ready.”

Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands captain): “When you lose in the last minute, it hurts. It’s pure pain, but you still have to accept it. We were better in the second half, we thought that a goal was in the air.”

EM-Semifinale

Wednesday:

Netherlands – England 1:2 (1:1)

Dortmund, 60,926 spectators, SR Zwayer (GER)

Torfolge:
1:0 Simons (7.)
1:1 Kane (18./penalty)
1:2 Watkins (91.)

Netherlands: : Verbruggen – Dumfries (93./Zirkzee), de Vrij, Van Dijk, Ake – Schouten, Reijnders – Malen (46./Weghorst), Simons (93./Brobbey), Gakpo – Depay (35./Veerman)

England: Pickford – Walker, Stones, Guehi, Trippier (46./Shaw) – Mainoo (93./Gallagher), Rice – Saka (93./Konsa), Bellingham, Foden (81./Palmer) – Kane (81./Watkins)

Yellow cards: Dumfries, Van Dijk, Simons or Bellingham, Saka, Trippier

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