Euro 2024 - live: England news and analysis with Gareth Southgate’s side preparing for semi-finals
The Three Lions are through to the last four in Germany and a tie against Netherlands awaits
Euro 2024 is entering its final week and only four nations remain involved - with England still one of them following a dramatic penalty shootout victory over Switzerland in Dusseldorf. Gareth Southgate had to turn to his substitutes and squad players to get them a late equaliser and subsequent win from 12 yards, with Trent Alexander-Arnold drilling in the decisive effort.
Now they’ll face Netherlands in the last four after their comeback win over Turkey - while Spain and France will meet in the other semi-final.
Gareth Southgate spoke after the game about his pride in the squad overcoming challenges and pointed out this side has overcome the demons of previous tournaments when it comes to penalties: “We’ve been in four and we won three. We got crucified for the one we lost but it’s outcome based,” he said after knocking out the Swiss. “We have more regular penaly takers now than then [against Italy] and more who have been in shootouts. We have a calm process but the players still have to deal with it the way they did.”
Now it’s all about recovery ahead of Wednesday’s meeting in Dortmund, and honing the tactics to help them reach a second men’s European Championship final in three years. Follow all the latest news and England analysis and reaction below:
Highs and lows of Gareth Southgate’s reign
High: Taking the knee
Southgate was always strong on the need for his players to take the knee against discrimination ahead of kick-off for a number of matches.
The pre-match gesture was booed by England fans in Euro 2020 warm-up friendlies at the Riverside Stadium but Southgate always defended the need to show support.
“It’s what we stand for as a team and have done for a long period of time,” he said after it was confirmed England would continue to take the knee at the 2022 World Cup.
The situation was one of several issues Southgate faced during his reign that did not relate to on-pitch detail but which he addressed in a level-headed way.
Highs and lows of Gareth Southgate’s reign
Low: ‘You don’t know what you’re doing’
The first time Southgate faced mass criticism inside a stadium came at Molineux as Hungary doled out a shock thrashing in June 2022.
A Roland Sallai brace had the visitors deservedly ahead and a long-range Zsolt Nagy effort secured the win before John Stones was sent off in the second half and Daniel Gazdag’s goal added the gloss.
The 4-0 reverse was a second loss to Hungary in 10 days and was England’s worst home defeat since 1928 with Southgate jeered for much of the second half as chants of “you don’t know what you’re doing” rang around the stands.
England would go on to be relegated to League B of the Nations League, failing to win any of their six games in a group that also contained Italy and Germany.
Southgate labelled it a “chastening night” as the nations’ backing he had largely enjoyed since the 2018 World Cup wavered in the West Midlands.
Highs and lows of Gareth Southgate’s reign
High: Southgate you’re the one…
After a number of disappointing tournament performances, culminating in the Euro 2016 last-16 exit at the hands of Iceland, the relationship between the England team and their supporters was at a low ebb.
Gareth Southgate came in to replace Sam Allardyce in November 2016 and as well as improving things on the pitch, the former England defender set about repairing relations off of it.
The players and staff were serenaded during the 2018 World Cup in Russia as they went on a run to the semi-finals, with the nation once again embracing the national team.
Switzerland hailed as heroes after Euro 2024 exit
For a country that has become a permanent fixture in football’s major tournaments, Switzerland leave Euro 2024 anguished over what could have been, but with a new air of confidence over what the future holds.
While some top teams erred or muddled through the tournament, the underrated Swiss were among a handful of sides truly at their best in Euro 2024, exiting on penalties to an England team they could have beaten, and were once again denied their historic semi-final place.
In a unjust twist of fate, it was ever-dependable stalwart Manuel Akanji whose shootout miss cost the Swiss, but there was no blame on the Manchester City centre-back, whose leadership, composure and calming influence was pivotal in their march to their second-successive quarter-finals.
“Giant but defeated, Switzerland leaves the Euros”, said the French-language Tribune de Geneve, while an analysis in the Corriere del Ticino said “Close, once again: and yet we cry again”.
The Neue Zurcher Zeitung headlined with: “Switzerland misses its goal at the European Championships - but it’s a joy”.
The Swiss team won the hearts of the public back home and coach Murat Yakin expressed deep pride over the performances and mindset of a gritty team he said played as a collective and has much to look forward to.
“The market value of our team in comparison to the others is massive,” Yakin said. “Eventually, we are eliminated, and it hurts.”
“We can be very proud about our tournament... from the first minute to the end, how we stood as one and the joy we gave to the nation.”
(Reuters)
Gareth Southgate reveals the ‘fuel’ behind England progress and hails ‘resilience’ of Three Lions’ squad
Gareth Southgate says he has used being “ridiculed” as “fuel”, in an extraordinarily reflective moment after guiding England to the third semi-finals of his tenure. The manager spoke about how it’s not “normal to have beer thrown at you” or to have “your professional capability” questioned “beyond belief”, but that this served in setting an example about resolve. Southgate spoke proudly about the “resilience” his players showed, stating that is as important as performance in “navigating tournaments.
England again walked a fine line in a gruelling penalty shoot-out Euro 2024 quarter-final victory over Switzerland in a 1-1 draw, but it resulted in Southgate making it three semi-finals out of four major tournaments. That has come despite a more intense debate than usual about his capability for the job, which culminated in fans throwing beer cups at him after the 0-0 draw with Slovenia. Southgate was asked whether he has been hardened to all of this, after eliminating the Swiss.
Southgate reveals personal ‘fuel’ behind England progress at Euro 2024
The manager had beer thrown at him after a group-stage draw - but says he must show his squad what strength is
Can England win Euro 2024?
The win over Switzerland on penalties was Gareth Southgate’s 100th match in charge of England - if he’s celebrating after No.102 in a week’s time, the whole nation will be having a party.
He has won 60 of his games in charge, with 24 draws and only 16 defeats.
In major tournaments he has taken England to the semi-finals of World Cup 2018, the final of Euro 2020, the quarter-finals of World Cup 2022 and now the semis again at Euro 2024 so far.
England’s run at the Euros this summer:
Group stage
1-0 vs Serbia
1-1 vs Denmark
0-0 vs Slovenia
Last-16
2-1 vs Slovakia, AET
Quarter-final
1-1 vs Switzerland, 5-3 on pens
Semi-final
England vs Netherlands, (Wed 8pm)
16.8 million people tune in to England vs Switzerland
BBC Sport coverage of England at Euro 2024 drew in more than three quarters of the nation’s TV viewers as the Three Lions took on Switzerland in their quarter final match last night. England’s reward for their dramatic penalty shootout win is a place in the last four with the semi-final against Netherlands on Wednesday against.
BBC Sport brought the nation together in huge numbers across BBC TV and iPlayer with a peak audience of 16.8 million people watching coverage live on BBC One.
The match was also streamed 8.9 million times across BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and app and there was an average match audience of 13.6 million, resulting in a 77% share. The expectation and build up to the game pulled in a huge audience on the BBC Sport website with 10.5 million visitors throughout the day, and 5.3 million following the match online with the page being viewed 16.6 million times during the nail-biting game.
‘You did it for me and Marcus’: Sancho delights in Saka penalty redemption
Jadon Sancho has praised Bukayo Saka for his redemptive penalty for England football team at the European Championship that went some way to banishing the memories of their high-profile shootout misses at the previous tournament in 2021.
Sancho, Marcus Rashford and Saka either missed or had their spot kicks saved in the shootout won by Italy at the Euro 2020 final at Wembley Stadium. They are all Black players and they received vicious racist abuse on social media afterward.
Saka was one of the five England players to score in the shootout win over Switzerland in the Euro 2024 quarterfinals on Saturday and Sancho sent a heartwarming message to his friend.
The duo - along with Marcus Rashford - missed spot-kicks in the Euro 2020 final.
Bellingham revels in helping to banish ‘awful memories’ of England penalty shootouts
“It’s a first for me to be involved in one, to take one,” said Jude Bellingham when recalling Saturday’s penalty shootout versus Switzerland.
“I have awful memories kind of growing up and I think the first Euro that I was really interested in was the one against Italy (Euro 2012) with the dink from (Andrea) Pirlo.
“It kind of stains your memory a little bit, you always think ‘England in penalty shoot-outs, I’m not sure’, but it’s really nice to have that experience to add to the locker now.”
Speaking to BBC Radio 5Live’s Football Daily he added: “I was really confident in my preparation, confident in the things I talked through with Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, he’s stepped up for us massively,
“It’s the work that he does behind closed doors, with the lads being willing to take on that information, that put us in those situations in order to be able to win. So this is a massive team effort. Another thing is Dean Henderson, Aaron Ramsdale, Tom Heaton, who have been with us this camp, they’ve been huge in helping us practice the penalties.
“Again, they won’t get the credit they deserve but essentially, if they don’t put in the right effort, you don’t have the right practice to go out and execute.
“So many people are involved in this win. It’s a massive team win.”
Trent Alexander-Arnold on scoring England’s winning penalty:
“Incredible, these are the goals that we set for ourselves. Difficult opponent going behind and the team showed a lot of character, belief, heart and spirit out there.
“We knew it was going to be tight. Whatever it takes and no matter what we win, that is all that matters to us.
“It is what we have practiced. When the gaffer said I was taking one, I enjoy it and I practice it, I knew I had to just execute it. All five penalties from us were great.”
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