England have reached the semi-finals of the European Championship. England won 5-3 on penalties against Switzerland on Saturday (July 6, 2024). Trent Alexander-Arnold scored the decisive try.
Before this it was 1:1 (0:0) after 120 minutes. Switzerland took the lead in the 75th minute when Breel Embolo finished from close range. England’s Bukayo Saka equalized a little later (80′). In extra time, Swiss joker Xherdan Shaqiri only hit the crossbar with a corner (117th).
So it came to a penalty shootout, in which England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford pared the first attempt of the Swiss player. He saved Manuel Akanji’s shot.
Punishment tips on a Pickford water bottle
Odd: As a reminder during the penalty, Pickford had information about the Swiss penalty takers on his drinking bottle. Photos of the bottle were shared thousands of times on social media after the win. For Akanji, the clue on the note was: “dive left”, bottom left. In fact, the former Dortmund player shot down the left. And Pickford was on.
All England players scored – Alexander-Arnold, who was recently replaced, scored the fifth penalty. Alexander-Arnold said afterwards that they had practiced the penalty before the game. He said: “I knew I could do it. I just had to do it.” He implemented it.
“We pushed the limits today, but so did the English,” Switzerland captain Granit Xhaka said after the match. “England are now in the semi-finals and we have to go home.” England will then meet the Netherlands on Wednesday (July 10, 2024), who prevailed against Turkey.
New tactics, more risk: Southgate has thought of something
This is how the European Championship quarter-final, which started a little slow almost three hours earlier, came to a dramatic end. Gareth Southgate had something to remember for his 100th international game as England coach. Against Switzerland, Southgate, often accused of avoiding risk, initially took at least a little risk. His team played defensively with a chain of three when they had the ball; the usual four-man chain was only used against the ball. This is how Southgate surprised Switzerland.
England dominated the game in the first half. When referee Daniele Orsato blew the whistle at half-time, England had more ball possession (56 percent), won more duels (63) and more shots than their opponents. What England lacked were scoring chances. There was a scene that showed it all: the excellence of English football and their lack of ideas in front of goal.
England without degrees
It was the 21st minute when Phil Foden played a fine pass down the right. Saka prevailed in the sprint duel against Michel Aebischer, then briefly raised his head. There was no Englishman in the middle, not even Harry Kane. There were four Swiss. Saka played the ball straight into the middle again. After all: After that there was a corner. After the corner, Kane headed the ball. It went two meters over the goal, it might have been three.
That was fitting for a game that had been weak for a long time. That was down to the English, but of course it was also down to the Swiss.
The first performance was a goal in the 51st minute
They often impressed at this European Championship. They closed the spaces intelligently against the ball and had good ideas with the ball. This also happened due to the work of their coach Murat Yakin. But in the quarter-final against England there wasn’t much to see at first. The Swiss often trailed just in the first half, also because their organizer Granit Xhaka was a good barrier at the midfield of England.
Switzerland played a little better in the second half. This was observed around the 51st minute: Xhaka sent Breel Embolo, who turned around the opponent Ezri Konsa and then finished. Embolo shot straight into Pickford’s hands. It was the shot on goal in this game.
Shot Embolo, Switzerland lead
From then on it was a different game, even if it still wasn’t exciting. Now the English often ran behind him. And Switzerland really took the lead: Fabian Schär passed to Dan Ndoye, who went flat in the middle. England defender John Stones deflected – so the ball fell to Embolo, who finished without any problems.
Saka hits England from afar
The Swiss could only celebrate their goal for a short time, as the equalizer came just five minutes later: Declan Rice found Saka, who was only watched by the Swiss defenders but was not prevented from shooting. So Saka shot – and how he shot: He aimed for the far corner and his shot bounced off the post and into the goal. Saka became England’s first goal scorer in this tournament not named by Kane or Bellingham.
Parade when Rice shoots – Sommer saves Switzerland
So it went into extra time, where England strategist Rice had the first chance. With a shot from more than 20 meters, Rice aimed for the right corner. He hit the ball full. But Yann Sommer, the Swiss goalkeeper, was already on his way there. He directed the shot around the post (95th).
It was the first excitement in the half-hour extension – and it remained the only one for a long time. Then came the 110th minute when England’s Kane was injured in a challenge with Akanji and had to be substituted. So Kane was sitting on the bench when the Swiss representative Xherdan Shaqiri took a corner right at the goal and hit the crossbar (117′).
He was also on the bench when the pint was decided in the quarter finals of the European Championship. When Pickford saved the first shot from a Swiss. When Alexander-Arnold converted the decisive penalty.