Netherlands look on despondently. “Olé, Olé, Ollie!” is the headline.
Other newspapers opted for a play on words: “Oh, Wat a night!” and “Wat a finish!”
The mood back in the Netherlands is slightly more dampened. AD Sportwereld, a Dutch sporting newspaper, writes “This hurts”, with a photo of Xavi Simons commiserating as the final whistle is blown.
Catch up on all the papers here.
overhead kick against Slovakia and the nerveless penalty shootout against Switzerland, was a moment that will go stand the test of time – and, thanks to Ollie Watkins and Cole Palmer, will forever serve as the perfect riposte to those who have pinned the blame for every disappointment on on Southgate’s in-game management.
England’s manager has been derided, mocked and even showered with empty cups of beer. His tactics have been questioned and he has been told that he always get easy draws But when Southgate turned to his bench with 10 minutes left here, how satisfying it must have been for the two players he introduced for a tiring Harry Kane and Phil Foden to be the architects of the goal that carried England into their first ever final overseas.
There could be no better exhibition of the spirit instilled by Southgate when Watkins took a pass from Palmer in the 90th minute, held off Stefan de Vrij and then turned sharply before making it 2-1 with an angled shot into the far corner.
In a different environment, Watkins would never have been in the right frame of mind to make such a stunning impact. The Aston Villa striker has not played since England’s second game, the dispiriting draw with Denmark that heaped pressure on Southgate, and knows that few jobs in football are more thankless than being Kane’s back-up.
Read the full match report here.
European Championship final last night. That is now back-to-back Euro finals and a first ever major tournament final on foreign soil for the England men’s team.
There is so much to discuss. How good is Ollie Watkins? (Very) How decisive were Gareth Southgate’s substitutions? (Very!) Was VAR a talking point? (Obviously) Can the Three Lions get over the line on Sunday? (Maybe …)
Like I said, so much to discuss. No need to waste anymore time. Join me for all the latest news and reaction. And feel free to drop me a mail if you’d like to share your thoughts, questions, celebrations, complaints and musings.
Source: theguardian.com
