England’s quest to end 58 years of pain and disappointment ended in failure as they were beaten by Spain in the Euro 2024 final at Berlin’s Olympiastadion.
Gareth Southgate’s side were sunk by Mikel Oyarzabal’s late winner to leave England heartbroken again in a second successive European Championship final and unable to end the long wait for success for the men’s team.
Spain’s young star wingers combined to give them the lead two minutes after the break as Lamine Yamal’s pass opened up space for Nico Williams to beat England keeper Jordan Pickford with a powerful low finish.
England captain Harry Kane was out of sorts once more and was substituted on the hour and it was Cole Palmer – on for Kobbie Mainoo – who raised hopes of another dramatic comeback with a composed left-foot strike after 73 minutes.
It was Spain, however, who snatched the win four minutes from time as Oyarzabal slid home Marc Cucurella’s cross to leave England the nearly men once more.
England’s hopes of crossing the great divide that has separated them from the major prizes were snatched away by a superior Spain side on a tough night in the German capital.
The iconic stadium was a sea of white as the massed ranks of England supporters vastly outnumbered their Spain counterparts, in the belief that the near misses of previous years were about to end.
And when Palmer’s smooth finish against the run of play 17 minutes from time drew England level, confidence surged. Many will have felt that Southgate’s side were about to mount the sort of comeback that rescued them against Slovakia, Switzerland and the Netherlands earlier in Euro 2024.
This time there was to be no escape, with England being opened up clinically for Oyarzabal’s decisive strike that gave Spain the success their performances throughout the tournament merited.
And just to compound England’s agony, Declan Rice and Marc Guehi both saw headers cleared off the line in the closing moments, firstly by keeper Unai Simon and then Dani Olmo, who celebrated like it was a trophy-winning moment – which it effectively was.
England’s misery was confirmed seconds later, meaning that for all the progress and optimism of Southgate’s eight-year reign, tangible success has escaped them. They have lost successive European Championship finals – to Italy three years ago and now an excellent Spain side – plus a World Cup semi-final in 2018 and a World Cup quarter-final in Qatar in 2022.
It remains to be seen whether Southgate stays in charge for the next World Cup, but it may well be that this proves to be one disappointment too far for England’s manager.
Skipper Kane earned a share of the Euro 2024 Golden Boot by scoring three goals, but in every other respect the tournament was a major disappointment for England’s captain.
Kane has looked short of fitness and match sharpness, a shadow of the world-class striker who has delivered so often in the past and become England’s record goalscorer.
England’s supporters were loudly demanding the introduction of semi-final match-winner Ollie Watkins early in the second half – and there was little doubt who they wanted him to replace, voicing their frustration when Kane was slow to react to a loose ball in the penalty area.
Manager Southgate gave them their wish as Kane was taken off, cutting a desolate figure as he departed. He continues to wait for the first major trophy of his career, another opportunity on the big stage passing him by.
Watkins could not do the trick this time as he remained on the margins, although Palmer showed his class and made a big impact once more with his equaliser.
Southgate made the bold change of selecting Luke Shaw at left-back instead of Kieran Trippier as he reverted to a back four. It was the Manchester United defender’s first start in 148 days and his first England start since June 2023, and he responded with an excellent display.
England could not exert influence in other areas, with Phil Foden ineffective and Jude Bellingham kept quiet apart from one late effort, although the pair worked tirelessly.
Southgate and his players simply found, yet again, that they were playing a better side and now they must wait until the 2026 World Cup to have another tilt at success.
