DEFEAT IN BERLIN AND SOUTHGATE RESIGNS
Picture credit: CNN/Getty
Spain have won their fourth European Championship after defeating Gareth Southgate’s England in Berlin.
Mikel Oyarzabal’s 86th minute winner finally broke the English resilience after controlling most of the second half and squandering several chances.
As English legs tired, Fabian Ruiz and Dani Olmo found themselves in acres of space. Two quick passes cut through the English defence before reaching Oyarzabal.
His movement caused confusion amongst the English centre-backs before passing the ball out to the left to Marc Cucurella.
Oyarzabal’s clever movement had left Marc Guéhi out of position and John Stones was unaware of the Real Sociedad man’s run behind him.
For a moment, it looked like Kyle Walker was going to prevent Cucurella’s excellent pass into the box.
However, he was a fraction too late.
Oyarzabal slid in and knocked the ball past a helpless Jordan Pickford to win Euro 2024 and damn England to their second straight final defeat.
As expected, Spain dominated possession in this final.
Nico Williams and Yamine Lamal were dangerous in the first half but superb defending from Luke Shaw and John Stones kept them at bay.
England’s opportunities were limited.
Harry Kane had a shot charged down and Phil Foden’s effort from a free kick was straight at the keeper.
England would have been quietly happy with their first half performance despite being made to work hard by the slick passing and movement of Luis de la Fuente’s side.
There was hope that Rodri coming off injured at half time would help Gareth Southgate’s team.
That was short lived.
Spain broke the deadlock two minutes into the second half after they had considerably quickened the pace of the game.
Lamal finally broke free from Shaw’s attentions and dribbled to the edge of England’s 18-yard-box.
Declan Rice and Guéhi couldn’t keep up with the 17-year-old. His pass found the oncoming Williams who was completely unmarked.
Williams smashed the ball past Pickford and into the bottom right corner to give Spain a 1-0 lead.
Then, with full control of the midfield, Spain launched wave after wave of attacks that England couldn’t cope with.
Olmo and Alvaro Morata should have extended the lead before Williams had a long-range effort fly just past Pickford’s post.
Yamal should have also topped off a sensational tournament but was denied by an excellent save by the England goalkeeper.
Spain should have been out of sight and Southgate needed to make changes before the inevitable happened.
Cole Palmer came on for England in the 70th minute and his impact was immediate. His pass found Bukayo Saka.
Saka’s run down the wing finally forced the Spanish to retreat into their own half. He got the better of Aymeric Laporte before finding Jude Bellingham.
Bellingham nudged the ball back to Palmer, whose side footed shot from the edge of the area beat Unai Simón to equalise.
The majority of the Olympiastadion in Berlin erupted and for a short time, it felt like England were in the ascendency.
But Spain wrestled back control and outplayed England before Oyarzabal’s strike to make it 2-1.
Southgate’s team would get one more chance at salvation.
A corner from Palmer was met by a powerful header from Stones. It was saved by Simón but Guéhi reacted quickly with another header to send the ball back towards the goal.
Olmo cleared the ball off the line but only into the path of Rice. His header went agonisingly wide, and with it ended the hope of a fairytale ending for Southgate and England.
Gareth Southgate officially resigned on Tuesday afternoon.
History will look kindly on a manager who had re-galvanised the love and desire for the national team.
Who takes over in still uncertain. However, Southgate leaves behind a legacy and platform in which the new manager can build.
For Spain, it was a deserved victory.
They beat Croatia, Italy, Germany and France on route to Berlin, and in truth, they should have won this final more convincingly.
Having now won the Nations League and European Championships; they stand on the edge of another era of dominance.
They will be the favourites – along with Argentina – at the 2026 World Cup.
Spain Starting X1: U. Simon, D. Carvajal, R. Le Normand, Aymeric Laporte, M. Cucurella, R. Rodri, R. Fabian, L. Yamal, D. Olmo, N. Williams, A. Morata.
Subs: M. Zubimendi (46), M. Oyarzabal (68), F. Nacho (83), M. Merino (89).
England Starting X1: J. Pickford, K. Walker, J. Stones, M. Guehi, L. Shaw, K. Mainoo, D. Rice, B. Saka, P. Foden, J. Bellingham, H. Kane.
Subs: O. Watkins (61), C. Palmer (71), I. Toney (89).
