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A penalty rebound converted by Harry Kane gave England a deserved 2-1 win over Denmark in their Euro 2020 semi-final to set up a home showpiece against Italy on Monday (AEST).
Kane saw his 104th-minute penalty – controversially not overturned by video review despite Raheem Sterling going down under minimal contact from Joakim Maehle – saved by Kasper Schmeichel but made no mistake with his second attempt.
The decision divided the football world but was enough to see England end a 55-year wait to reach a major final, and end decades of hurt. One more win will end the same drought since their one and only trophy, the 1966 World Cup – also lifted at Wembley.
Denmark’s fairytale run since the collapse of Christen Eriksen with cardiac arrest in their opening game ended despite Mikkel Damsgaard’s brilliant free kick giving them a 30th-minute lead.
But Simon Kjaer’s own goal levelled matters before the break and with England dominant, the winner was a matter of time in coming even if Denmark survived the initial 90 minutes.
The vast majority of the 65,000 crowd inside Wembley – the biggest attendance at a UK sporting event since the coronavirus pandemic began – could not hide their delight at seeing England continue their progress which was fully merited despite the disputed nature of the winning goal.
The delirious fans sang the now well-worn song claiming “football’s coming home”, to the birthplace of the game. They will return to Wembley against an Italian lineup that beat Spain on penalties a day earlier.
The influential Sterling cut in from the right and tumbled but was well on the way to the ground even before he was grazed by Maehle.
Contact, however slight, was enough to convince the review the decision was not clearly mistaken and Kane took full advantage for his fourth goal of the tournament.
Denmark, playing on a wave of emotion since Eriksen’s collapse, started slowly but gradually turned matters. Young talent Damsgaard had already curled wide before finding the net with a beautiful free-kick over the wall.
It was England’s first goal conceded in the tournament and in a total of 691 minute – though by then keeper Jordan Pickford had narrowly broken England’s personal clean sheet record by six minutes of World Cup-winning goalkeeper Gordon Banks, who didn’t concede for 720 minutes in May-July 1966.
Sterling was denied an equaliser by a point-blank Schmeichel save but his presence awaiting Bukayo Saka’s cross forced Kjaer into a 39th-minute own goal.
It was the 11th own goal of the tournament with only nine having been recorded combined at every previous edition since 1960.
Denmark’s tiring legs conceded possession and territory to England, who did however struggle to create.
Defender Harry Maguire’s header was superbly clawed out by Schmeichel – whose father Peter was a Denmark hero in their Euro title win of 199 – and extra-time loomed.
Schmeichel denied captain Kane and substitute Jack Grealish while Sterling fired over from the edge of the box.
Eventually the pressure told though and England’s Wembley exploded with equal measure of joy and relief.
HOW THE FOOTBALL WORLD REACTED
“England were tested; they went a goal down but they showed their character,” Socceroos icon John Aloisi said on Optus Sport. “They showed what they’re made of. They were the better team over the 120 minutes.
“Sterling was outstanding from start to finish. He got stronger. And Kane, that is what you want your leader to do. He led from the front. He got a bit fortunate from the penalty but he was outstanding.”
Aloisi said he couldn’t see why the penalty stood.
“We looked at 10 replays and that is why they keep showing it because no one knows who gave away the penalty,” Aloisi said.
“Was there enough contact? I don’t think there was. Let’s not take away from Sterling being positive. But, in my opinion, it wasn’t a penalty.”
Michael Bridges, also on Optus Sport, hailed England’s resolve after conceding to Daamsgard’s brilliant freekick.
“It was an unbelievable comeback (from England),” the former Premier League striker said.
“It is the first time England have gone behind in this tournament so far, so the resolve was there, they showed the intent, got the goal and then started to dominate.
“That was crucial, to get back before halftime.”
While England enjoyed some fortune, they’ve had plenty go against them in the past.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said former England striker Gary Lineker on the BBC.
“It’s finally happened. I was doubting I’d ever see it again in my lifetime at one point.
“The longer the game went on, the more England looked likely to score, even though you have those self-doubts.
“There was about two or three minutes at the end where England were passing it around and keeping the ball. They were singing “ole” at Wembley Stadium in the semi-final of a major tournament!
“I’ve been around, watched tournaments and played in tournaments over the years and so many things have gone wrong – the ‘Hand of God’, Frank Lampard’s goal, Chris Waddle hitting the inside of the post, it being a quarter of an inch away from Gazza’s studs.
“We have seen big injuries to big players prior to tournaments but in this one, England just seem to have had a bit of luck for once! You need that to win a tournament.”
Metro Scotland summed up the feeling for many fans outside of the UK, showing an image of Sterling going to ground with the headline They Think It’s Fall Over – a nod to the famous commentary of Kenneth Wolstenholme at the end of England’s 1966 final victory when fans started to invade the pitch and he said: “They think it’s all over… it is now.”
Sterling has a habit of going to ground easily, but that will barely be remembered in future years if England can get past a massive test against Italy.
That matchup will see the tricky Manchester City wide player and Kane taking on Italy’s defensive rocks Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini.
“Harry Kane needs to rest up, he has got Chiellini and Bonucci all night, he is the type of player they will fancy playing against, a physical contest,” said former England defender Gary Neville on ITV. “It will be a really tough test, you are not going to get an easy match in the final.
“Italy have grown into the tournament better than I thought they would. We have seen a lot over the years about possession football, but two teams who have been more methodical has made the final.
“England have been a good team, one goal conceded in six matches is outstanding, Southgate set his stall out at the start of this tournament. The only way we was going to get to a final was keeping clean sheets.”
England manager Gareth Southgate is blessed with some incredible attacking talent, but also showed a ruthless streak, replacing substitute Jack Grealish after the second goal to shore up his defence.
“You don’t achieve what Southgate has achieved in his career without having a tough streak, without being able to make big decisions,” said England legend Alan Shearer. “He has been a captain in every dressing room he has been in.
“He had to take off Jack Grealish today because it is clear he doesn’t trust Grealish defensively.
“That worked, because then Denmark couldn’t get the ball, England passed the ball. I lost count of the number of passes.”
© AAP
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