THERE are moments in time you have to catch because you don’t know whether you will get that chance again in your whole life.
A major final is one of those moments and, for England, the Euros final was another chapter of missed opportunity.
3
3
3
I wished they had surprised Spain on Sunday with high pressure, aggression and nastiness from the start.
We are talking about a very good side but it is not such an exceptional Spain team that you couldn’t put them under pressure and unbalance them.
Instead, the Three Lions went with a pragmatic approach rather than going out on the front foot and looking to score the first goal.
Can England play a high-tempo passing game? Absolutely.
We are talking about top players, most of whom play in the most competitive and high-tempo league in the world.
Then there’s Jude Bellingham, a star of Real Madrid, and Harry Kane, who scores 30 or 40 goals every season in the Premier League or Bundesliga.
England needed to play to their attacking strengths but with the quality of offensive players they have, we simply didn’t see enough from them.
Luis de la Fuente’s men had won every game all tournament, so you needed to get them on edge and unsettle them. If not, their confidence remains stable.
This felt like our time… but keep Gareth’s culture and we can win it in 2026 instead, writes Jack Wilshere
IT will take a while for me and every England fan to get over this, writes Jack Wilshere.
To come so close to winning that trophy, only to be beaten in a second Euros final in a row, is a huge disappointment.
Especially when it really felt like this was our time.
It seemed that everything was coming together for us to end the long wait for a major title.
But Spain deserved it. They were the better team in the final and the best team of the tournament.
We will all — supporters, players, coaches, the FA — have to move on and go again.
Because English football is still in a good position.
Gareth Southgate has taken us to two finals, a semi-final and a quarter-final in four tournaments. We have never produced a run like that before.
The challenge now is to maintain this level of competitiveness and make England even better.
Southgate and his staff have done a fantastic job in changing the whole environment and narrative around the national team.
Whether Gareth carries on or not, the wider culture he has put in place must be preserved.
This tournament was the biggest test of that culture the team had to go through.
They overcame the problems and went all the way, only to fall at the final hurdle.
But there is every reason to believe we can challenge at the World Cup in 2026 and beyond.
We’ve got a really good group of players, many of them young, who can go on playing and performing for England for years.
Jude Bellingham, Kobbie Mainoo, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden and Cole Palmer — to name just five — have plenty more tournaments in them.
This tournament will also be an inspiration for the next generations of players. Unfortunately there isn’t the trophy lift to take that to a completely different level.
But England have delivered moments in Germany that will be replayed forever.
The Bellingham overhead kick and Ollie Watkins’ semi-final winner will be recreated in playgrounds and cages up and down the country.
What I would like to see now is England continuing to develop, to become a team that can consistently dominate opponents and can give a real identity to English football.
We now have players who are comfortable on the ball and technically very good.
The biggest disappointment of the tournament was that we didn’t see that as often as we would have liked. That leaves us with a ‘what if?’ feeling.
England must not lose that old-school mentality of finding a way to win even when you’re not playing well — that never-say-die spirit which got us through this Euros more than once.
But the next step is to allow other qualities to shine through, to give the players that our system is creating the platform to show everything they can do.
The job for me and for other coaches is to keep producing players that are comfortable on the ball and understand how to perform under pressure at a high level.
English football is in a good place but we need to keep going. Then we will finally get over the line.
Real all of SunSport columnist Jack Wilshere’s Euro 2024 columns…
CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO WELCOME OFFERS
But when your mindset is not to concede then you never go into the next gear.
Your brain isn’t in the right place. You need the conviction to say, “We can beat them”.
Everyone knows England are one of the best sides in the world.
They can get to the last four of the World Cup but you cannot guarantee it.
This is another missed opportunity. Gareth Southgate and the team will have regrets.
As we walked out of the Olympic Stadium this weekend, I felt so sorry for the England fans.
They took over the entire stadium. After Cole Palmer’s equaliser it was rocking and those supporters literally rocked Berlin.
Everyone was amazed how loud, how wonderful, they were. After the equaliser everyone around me was saying, ‘This is it, it’s coming home!’
But the energy dropped again — England had spent so much energy in coming back into the match.
They didn’t create anything until those two headers right at the end.
Maybe Kane really is cursed as trophy drought goes on… he may never get a better chance with England
IT now seems as though he really is cursed. Along with the rest of us, writes Charlie Wyett.
Tragically, unbelievably, Harry Kane’s agonising search for a trophy still continues and you know have to wonder whether he will ever actually manage it.
Certainly for England, in any case.
Kane has now suffered defeat in three major club finals and two finals of the European Championships.
Last night, the Three Lions captain was so ineffective that he was replaced by Ollie Watkins just after the hour.
Like much of this tournament, he really struggled to make the impact when England needed him, not that he had much service.
He had one shot in the first half and that was Rodri, who subsequently injured himself and went off at the break.
When Cole Palmer struck that brilliant equaliser, Kane was off on his feet from the bench, only for the national team to get another kick in the bo**ocks at the end.
Kane was substituted in both the games against Switzerland and Holland which England went on to win but on this occasion, he could only witness a gut-wrenching twist just when it looked as though Gareth Southgate’s team had dug their way out of trouble.
The Bayern Munich striker suffered the World Cup 2018 semi-final loss against Croatia, endured heartbreak against Italy in the Euro2020 final and then missed from the spot in the World Cup 2022 quarter-final against France.
He really thought that this was his time, even though England did not play well in Germany.
Kane will know that he will have more opportunities with England. But not many more.
The World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico seems a long way away and it will surely be under a new manager. Will England be better than they are now? Probably not.
And we are all left to wonder how much better England would have been with a fit and firing Kane at his very best.
Read the full verdict on the curse of Harry Kane…
Or check out all of Charlie Wyett’s Euro 2024 stories…
I look back to the first half, when it was no-risk football, and that approach will so often come back to haunt you because a final is unique.
You don’t want to leave it until the last half an hour, when it gets really desperate, to push yourselves.
There was a huge opportunity to impose themselves on the Spanish and dominate.
Maybe the men in red and yellow had more technical tools but if you unsettle them you can steal their enthusiasm and confidence.
Spain were never challenged like that all tournament.
And when you go a goal down it costs you so brutally in terms of the energy.
I don’t think it was the system that mattered — whether England played with a back three or back four, it was the mindset that was wrong.
Gareth admitted that Kane was never 100 per cent fit at this tournament, but even at 80 or 90 per cent, he has to play.
‘This is going to be a tough one to swallow for Gareth’
As I’ve written before, I’d have liked to have seen him play with a strike partner — whether Ollie Watkins or Ivan Toney.
Whenever Kane touched the ball there were three guys around him but play him with either Toney or Watkins and it’s a completely different ball game.
You cannot fight the fight by yourself all the time.
I’d have kept Kane on and brought on another striker. That might be in the back of Harry’s mind — “maybe I wasn’t 100 per cent but could I have had more support?”
Bukayo Saka had a good tournament, Kobbie Mainoo, 19, is so gifted and had a good tournament for a young kid and England’s centre-backs were strong too.
Bellingham, despite some incredible moments, struggled to get into a higher gear.
He did very well to create a chance in the second half of the final with a beautiful turn but he shot wide.
His lay-off was fantastic for Palmer’s goal but in the first half Bellingham was out on the left and wasn’t in the game at all.
I’d go back to three subs and 23-man squads for tournaments
Jurgen Klinsmann
Southgate said that he was going to substitute Bellingham just before Mikel Oyarzabal’s winner.
The problem now for us coaches is, with five subs allowed, you always think you can bring on fresh legs.
I hate that because I want Bellingham to fight through it. If your mindset is right you can do that.
You can have tired legs and can still absolutely make the difference.
You have a feeling of tiredness at 60 or 70 minutes but on 95 minutes you do a 60-yard sprint and decide the game.
Players like Bellingham and Kane are capable of getting through those “tired” moments and winning big matches.
Big players have no problem fighting tiredness and heavy legs. They must keep their minds sharp, even if their legs are shaky.
England ratings: Palmer the super sub but captain Kane struggles yet again in Spain heartbreak
COLE PALMER came off the bench to be England’s star man – but his heroics were unable to stop heartbreak against Spain, writes Tom Barclay.
Mikel Oyarzabal struck a late dagger through the hearts of the Three Lions to seal a 2-1 Spanish victory.
And that ensured that 58 years of hurt will go on.
Here’s how SunSport’s Tom Barclay rated each England player in the crushing defeat:
Jordan Pickford: 8
Carefully controlled a blast of a backpass from John Stones on his line in the first half. Could do little to stop Williams’ opener but made two terrific stops to deny Yamal, only for Oyarzabal to poke home at the death.
Kyle Walker: 6
Had his hands full with Williams but managed the Spanish livewire pretty well but could not get near his powerful opener.
John Stones: 8
A colossus again as he played every single minute of this Euros, despite lack of Manchester City game-time. Superb block on early Williams shot, was often in the right place at the right time and at one point dribbled all the way up the pitch.
Marc Guehi: 6
Solid alongside Stones and overall it has been a brilliant first tournament for the Crystal Palace star. But Oyarzabal nicked in front of him for the winner.
Bukayo Saka: 7
Most consistent attacker for England across the tournament and had a good battle with pantomime villain Marc Cucurella here. It was his cross that Bellingham laid off for Palmer to work his magic.
Declan Rice: 7
Went past his boss Gareth Southgate’s cap haul by winning his 58th here and he is still only 25. Was in the thick of it in the midfield battle throughout.
Kobbie Mainoo: 5
Just 19 and starting a major final for England in the middle of midfield. Fewer bursts forward though than in recent games as his side struggled for possession and was subbed for Palmer as Southgate searched for a leveller.
Luke Shaw: 7
Looked so sharp for a player making his first start since Luton away on February 10, winning his battle against Lamine Yamal in the first half. But Yamal got the better of him after the break to tee up Williams’ opener.
Phil Foden: 6
Out of possession it was his job to man-mark Manchester City colleague Rodri, until the Spanish maestro went off injured at half-time. Had a half-chance just before the break but could not beat Unai Simon.
Jude Bellingham: 7
Shunted wide left when England did not have the ball – which was a lot of the time. Riskily flew into a few tackles, but it was his clever lay-off that teed up Palmer.
Harry Kane: 4
His lack of involvement was summed up by England fans calling for Ollie Watkins in the 57th minute. They got their wish on the hour.
SUBS:
Ollie Watkins: 6
Semi-final hero was introduced far earlier here to get some legs in behind, though he did not have too much impact this time.
Cole Palmer: 9
What an impact after emerging with just twenty minutes to go. Yet another of Southgate’s subs paid off handsomely as Palmer curled a peach of an equaliser with 17 minutes remaining, sending most of the Olympiastadion potty.
Ivan Toney: 6
Thrown on right at the end but could not make an impact.
Gareth Southgate: 7
The game was a chess match for the first half and Southgate was never going to go early with his bold moves.
His subs were excellent to be fair, with Palmer brilliantly getting his team back into it.
Critics will say England did not play attacking enough but Spain are one hell of a side – and Southgate’s men pushed them all the way.
Germany subbed Ilkay Gundogan after 60 minutes of their quarter-final against Spain and it sapped the heart and soul of the team.
You decided he’s your captain, then he’s your captain, no matter what.
The leadership of Bellingham and Kane is so huge, even if in a moment they are down to 80 per cent, who cares?
You want them out there for the decisive stuff at key moments.
If you ask a player after 70 minutes, “Are you tired?” then I’m sure he’s tired but it becomes a handy excuse now because of that five-subs rule.
It’s a Covid rule and Covid is finished. I’d go back to three subs and 23-man squads for tournaments.
All in all, this is going to be a tough one to swallow for Gareth.
He has been hugely successful and he has improved England significantly, consistently leading them into the latter stages of tournaments.
He is always classy, so good with the media and always has time for fans. He has represented the Three Lions fantastically well.
So you just wished for him, his players and those fans, that they had carried the trophy home.