England overturned the shootout curse to beat Switzerland and reach the semifinals after netting five penalties on five.
England reach the semifinals of Euro 2024 after a tense game that saw the Three Lions qualify on penalties after drawing 1-1 with Switzerland.
Trent Alexander-Arnold scored the decisive 5-3 shootout for England, while Switzerland paid Manuel Akanji’s miss.
The game was extremely balanced and could have ended either way. Switzerland proved once again to be a tough and well-organised opponent.
England’s man of the game was without a doubt Bukayo Saka. He kept the team alive by scoring the 1-1 but also was the only English player to remain dangerous and at the centre of the game throughout the whole 120 minutes.
The first forty-five minutes were intense but tight, with no huge chance for either team and no shot fired on target.
England relied heavily on right-winger Bukayo Saka.
The Arsenal player was his side’s most dangerous element, with rapid incursions on the right wing towards the box, and a few marvellous first touches. But Switzerland fended him off effectively.
Murat Yakin’s side left very limited pockets of space to the opponent, appearing once again as one of the best-organised teams of the whole tournament.
Switzerland’s first real chance arrived in the 56th minute with an Embolo header from close range, which wasn’t however strong enough to worry England’s Pickford.
A few minutes later, a long ball from Switzerland’s defence caught England completely off guard, forcing the Three Lions to a last-gasp tackle to set up a corner kick for Switzerland.
Switzerland kept growing till they found the 1-0 with Embolo in the 75th minute. The Monaco striker managed to sneak in between England’s defence to convert a slow, low cross, nudging the ball past Pickford while being off balance.
But England reacted only five minutes later to find the equaliser with Saka thanks to a skipping and perfectly slotted shot from distance into the low left corner.
Switzerland had the best opportunity before going into extra time with a cross from the right wing, but neither Embolo nor Ndoye could quite reach the ball.
Five minutes into extra time, England went close to take the lead with a sudden powerful shot from Rice from long distance, but Switzerland’s Sommer was ready at the right post.
Bellingham tried his luck a few minutes later. His shot was well-directed towards the top left corner but not powerful enough to surprise the Swiss goalie.
In the second half of extra time, Switzerland took charge with three chances in rapid succession. The best one saw substitute Xherdan Shaqiri hitting the post directly from the corner kick!
England however complained over a potential penalty in the last minute of extra-time.
