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England fought back in the dying seconds of the game to beat Switzerland 5-3 on penalties to advance to the semi-finals of Euro 2024, where they remain on course to win their first major tournament in 58 years.
After 120 minutes of play, the two sides were tied 1-1, with goalkeeper Jordan Pickford becoming the Three Lions’ hero in the penalty shootout as he saved the first penalty from Switzerland’s Manuel Akanji.
Cole Palmer, Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka, Ivan Toney and Trent Alexander-Arnold scored penalties to send England into the semi-final against Turkey or the Netherlands in Dortmund on Wednesday.
In the round of 16, England equalized with Bellingham’s goal in the 95th minute and then defeated Slovakia in extra time, but faced defeat again with 10 minutes left.
After Breel Embolo opened the scoring to give Switzerland the lead, the first 75 minutes were dull.
Five minutes later, Saka equalised with a shot from outside the box, England’s first shot on target.
Manchester City defender Akanji was unlucky to be the enemy of the penalty kick as Switzerland’s poor record in the quarter-finals of major tournaments continued.
They have now lost five games and have never made it past the semi-finals.
England, by contrast, have continued to push forward despite a poor performance from Gareth Southgate’s side.
In his 100th match in charge of his country, Southgate once again rejected calls for wholesale personnel changes but did alter his system.
Ezri Konsa made his first international start as England switched to a back three, replacing the suspended Marc Guehi.
However, contrary to expectations, Saka remained on the right, which proved to be a wise decision by Southgate.
The Arsenal winger was the biggest threat for both sides in the first half, but neither side was able to get a shot on target.
Saka created the best chance of the half by sliding past Michel Aebischer at will, but Kobbie Mainoo’s shot was blocked off the line just before half-time.
As the game entered the second half, both sides still maintained a slow pace.
Embolo finally got his first shot, but his effort was weak and was easily blocked by Jordan Pickford.
Southgate has been criticised on several occasions for making substitutions too slowly to impact the game.
England make belated change
Although England is one of the most talented teams in the tournament, it was not until they fell behind that Southgate broke free.
England looked set to go out with an easy win when Dan Ndoye’s cross was cleared off the line and Embolo pounced at the far post to tap the ball home at the back post.
Southgate responded immediately by sending on Palmer, Eberechi Eze and Luke Shaw, the latter making his first appearance since February.
Within five minutes, England equalised when Saka cut inside and fired a low shot against the far post.
Early in extra time, Switzerland prevented Declan Rice from scoring for England thanks to a fine save from Jan Sommer.
Harry Kane then took a bad fall in the England dugout and was forced off injured.
Switzerland came closest to scoring in the second half of extra time when Shaqiri’s corner hit the woodwork before Pickford parried a powerful shot from distance from Zeki Amdouni.
England had previously won just one of five penalty shootouts at the European Championships, including a loss to Italy in the final three years ago.
But Saka’s penalty was perfect, making up for the pain of the decisive mistake in the 2020 European Championship final.
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