England are in the final for the second successive European Championship as substitute Ollie Watkins' decisive 90th-minute winner helped the Three Lions prevail over a plucky Dutch side in the semi-final in Dortmund on Wednesday, July 10. England haven't really had a game where they could say that they dominated the proceedings, whether in the group stage or the knockouts prior to the semis but the Harry Kane-led side really turned it on when they needed it the most as the Three Lions are in touching distance of breaking the 58-year trophy hoodoo since winning the FIFA World Cup back in 1966.
It was the opposition again, which dictated the proceedings at the start as Xavi Simons put the Netherlands into an early lead in just the 7th minute. However, England weren't too far behind this time around with skipper Harry Kane converting the penalty 11 minutes later as maybe it was the sign of things to come.
Chances came and went for both sides, especially in the first half before things settled down a bit in the second half. England didn't look that desperate to get the lead as for the first time they looked in control despite the scoreline showing otherwise. The late drama just on the edge of the stoppage time was the cherry on the cake for England as Watkins, who played just 30 minutes in two appearances in Germany, received a pass from fellow sub Cole Palmer and nailed the strike to the right of the goalkeeper to send England players into a frenzy.
"History made - amazing achievement," said Captain Kane as England reached their first major final on foreign soil. "We talk about being ready - you might get five minutes, one minute, but you can make a difference, you can win a tournament, and Ollie’s been patient, and what he did out there was outstanding."
"I've been waiting for that moment for weeks, I'm delighted," he said. "I swear on my life that I said to Cole Palmer that he's going to set me up today and I'm going to score. It's the best feeling ever," said an ecstatic Watkins after scoring probably the most important goal of his playing career for England.
England take on consistent and rampant Spain in the final in Berlin as they look to go one better this time around after the heartbreak against Italy in 2021.
(With inputs from Reuters)
