England broke their bag and are in the European final for the first time, after beating Denmark 2-1 this Wednesday at Wembley Stadium, in the second semi-final overtime, and they will play on Sunday the title with Italy.
The English, who have not yet reached the UEFA European Championship final, participated strongly in the match, pressing near the Danish area, and Sterling shot far, after a cross from Harry Kane from the right flank.
But if there was one thing the Nordic nations showed during the competition, it was a great ability to respond to adversity, and at Wembley, this was seen again. They resisted the first few minutes of suffocation and at the first opportunity advanced and caused the British to shiver.
Damsgaard gave the first warning, with an arc from the left post, and shortly thereafter, over the course of the 30th minute, a direct free kick put the team ahead with a superb goal. The first goal that the team received coach Gareth Southgate in the competition.
Watch Damsgaard’s goal (0-1):
Eight minutes later, goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel rejected Sterling’s equalizer.
However, England equalized in the next step. From the midfield, Ken Saka fired up in the attack, who crossed in the area to Sterling’s entrance, with midfielder Keir trying to cut the ball into his own goal.
Watch Kajir’s own goal (1-1):
The halftime showdown was more than fair, given the spectacle of the two teams, which gave nearly 60,000 fans in the stands the emotion of qb and quality football.
In the second half, the pace of the match remained high. After the 51st minute, Dolberg fired a superb defense by Pickford, but the Dane canceled the move for offside.
The “Three Lions” was quick to respond, as Maguire jumped higher than the opponent’s defense and headed his head, forcing Schmeichel to stretch to clear the ball off the goal.
Over time, both teams began to take more risks, the ball rolled with more danger in each area and the goal was increasingly imminent.
The coaches changed some pieces of the puzzle to try to surprise the opponent. English Mount, in a cross in the area, almost scored, and deserved to turn into the corner of the Danish regent.
In the final 10 minutes, fatigue took over the players, though the hosts pressed a bit more, but they lacked imagination in the face of a defense that is rarely disarmed. For their part, the Danes were putting up with the attack waiting for the counterattack to fail.
The home team tried everything to solve the 90 minutes, but the score did not move again and the match went into overtime.
The extra time began with a good save from Schmeichel and Kane’s shot, followed by several dangerous situations for the English, who did not go far from the north midfield in search of the desired goal.
In the 102nd minute, the referee awarded a penalty for Maehle’s foul on Sterling, who used the touch to drop and the VAR recognized the referee’s decision. Kane called for the maximum penalty, and saw Schmeichel save the ball, but the goalkeeper did not catch the ball and did not miss 9 for England in the rebound and hit the ball into the goal 2-1. A goal that the British had already justified a few minutes ago.
Watch Kane’s goal (2-1):
With the second goal, the English fell to the ground and gave Denmark room to grow and do what they had yet to achieve in extra time: creating a danger in Braithwaite’s shot, which Pickford’s goalkeeper veered into the corner.
With fear, the British tried to hold the ball more to avoid new defensive chills. Up front, Sterling had the opportunity to double the advantage, but Schmeichel blocked the shot.
The final match between Italy, winners in 1968 and final in 2000 and 2012, and newcomers England is scheduled to take place on Sunday 11, at 8pm, at Wembley Stadium, in London.
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