On Sunday, the final game of the 2024 European Football Championship will take place in Berlin, which has been attracting the attention of football fans for a whole month, Liter.kz reports.
Spain – England. The representatives of this pair did not have the worst time for themselves. However, we dare to assume that the degree of disappointment of the loser in tomorrow’s final will be incomparably higher than that of the same Germans, who dropped out halfway to their goal, or the Ukrainians, who scored the same number of points as the Romanians, who advanced to the playoffs from the first place in their group.
Every time before a major tournament we make predictions, figure out the “dark horses”, assume, calculate, wait, hope. But all our expectations are either realized or dispelled by football, bringing to the surface the best of the best. Yes, there are miraculous transformations, when a registered outsider suddenly rises to the top. This happened in 1992, when Denmark, “pulled” from vacation, became champions. A repeat of the fairy-tale transformation of a middling team into a representative of the champion’s elite happened with Greece in 2004. And before the next dispute of the contenders, in the depths of our consciousness we keep the option of a surprise that can embellish everyday life and become an example for the one floundering at the foot of the podium: well, there are pleasant surprises in life. True, it often turns out that the main prize goes to the most worthy, leaving fans and experts the opportunity to rewind the film, examine beautiful goals and the combinations that lead to them.
One can only envy the foresight of the forecasters who “led England or Spain to the final” a month ago. It can be noted with a certain degree of confidence that both teams deservedly reached the final. The English, despite the wave of criticism that accompanied Gareth Southgate, fulfilled the minimum task, and the coach of the English team will be envied by any of his colleagues who participated in EURO. The Spaniards, however, impressed with their teamwork and coherence from the start of the tournament in Germany, demonstrating a variety of talents and options for approaching the final. Yes, of course, we also take into account the most important match against the hosts of the tournament in the quarterfinals, which the Spaniards played at a high level. Doubts about the fairness of the victory of the “Red Fury” may arise when one recalls the episode with the handball in the penalty area, which deserved a penalty. However, it remains largely on the conscience of the referees.
Yes, this EURO can undoubtedly go down in history as a kind of relay baton between generations. A number of players who brought joy to millions of fans have approached a critical age. This summer could have become a loud “demobilization chord” for Cristiano Ronaldo, but the presence of a star does not turn one national team into a star team, and the Portuguese have no one to blame but themselves. It is a pity that Müller and Kroos did not win the home tournament, but it will have to be repeated once again as an axiom: fortune favors the strongest, Bolivar cannot bear two, there is always one winner, or they can calm themselves down and rejoice for Georgia, which made a bright debut in the prestigious tournament and won a significant victory over the same Portugal.
Today, on the eve of the final, let’s recall the semi-finals that took place this week and became a lead-in to identifying the coolest team of mid-summer 2024.
Spain and France were the first to enter the fray. The banner of this duel is capable of becoming an adornment of any competition.
And Lamin Yamal set a record: he is the youngest player ever to participate in the semi-finals of the European or World Cup.
It was he who was to become one of the main figures and stand on the scale, trying to outweigh Kylian Mbappe. His goal from about twenty meters into the upper right corner from the goalkeeper is already considered a masterpiece in execution and a catalyst for the final victory over France. But before his strike, the opponents managed to open the scoring in the match. Mbappe picked up the ball on the left flank of the penalty area, and then crossed it to the head of Randal Kolo Muani, who gave hope to the fans of the three colors. However, just a quarter of an hour later, Spain not only restored parity, but also recorded a winning result. Having picked up the ball outside the penalty area of France, Yamal equalized the score with Spain, scoring a magnificent goal with a curling ball and becoming the youngest scorer in the history of EURO. Dani Olmo, who scored one goal and gave an assist in the match against Germany in the quarterfinals, distinguished himself again, scoring the winning goal, and all this events fit into 25 minutes of the first half!
There were few other openings for the EURO 2016 finalists. Theo Hernandez missed his best chance to level the scores with a quarter of an hour remaining, firing over the bar after contact in the penalty area. Mbappe also went close, firing a shot wide of the post, and Spain were the better side and waited for their England-Netherlands opponents.
The best player of this semi-final, Lamin Yamal (he turned 17 today), did not hide his happiness when he said after the victory: “I am delighted that we have reached the final, but we have not yet done the most important thing – we have not won. We had difficult moments. None of us expected to lose so early, before the final. As for my goal, I aimed right at the top corner, where my shot landed. It was a feeling of pure delight.”
Having established a great connection over the years, veteran Spanish international Nacho also paid tribute to his young teammate: “We knew that the French team had brilliant players, but we knew that we were no worse than them. So when we were losing and looking for a solution, the youngest man in our team came along with a fantastic goal.”
Facts from statisticians:
Yamal (16 years and 362 days) not only became the youngest scorer at EURO, but also broke Pele’s record (17 years and 244 days) as the youngest player to play in a World Cup or EURO semi-final.
Olmo became the first Spain player to score in three consecutive EURO matches.
Jesus Navas (38 years and 231 days) became the oldest outfield player ever to reach the semi-finals of a major final tournament.
Spain became the first team to win six consecutive EURO finals without going to penalties.
La Roja have lost only two of their last 13 EURO knockout matches.
The very next day, England and the Netherlands entered the fight for a place in the final.
Again, while the veterans were watching and feeling out their opponents, the youth got down to business. The midfielder of the “orange” Xavi Simons in the 7th minute from about twenty meters hit the goal of Jordan Pickford! But already in the 18th minute Harry Kane equalized the score after a controversial penalty was appointed against the Netherlands. The score remained almost until the end of the regular time, and many were already mentally preparing for extra time, Ollie Watkins came to the forefront. Having taken the game upon himself, he hits the corner of the Netherlands goal, sending them home and presenting Southgate with a ticket to the final, as if in gratitude for the trust of the coach, who released him as a substitute at a decisive time for the national team – 2:1, and England will try to justify its presence in the final.
Aston Villa and England forward Ollie Watkins said after the match that he knew he would score: “I had been waiting for this moment for weeks. The opportunity came and I grabbed it with both hands. I said to my substitute teammate Cole Palmer: ‘We’re going to go on and you’re going to give me the assist’. I knew that as soon as he got the ball he would put me in a scoring position. When the ball landed in the bottom corner of the net, it was the best feeling.
England have reached the EURO final for the second time, just three years after their first, when they lost on penalties to Italy.
The final will take place tomorrow at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin.
Kim Raline
#England #win #Euro #final
2024-07-15 17:28:10