Slovakia was a “dream opponent” in the EC Round of 16. In any case, in advance.
But as they say: No matches are decided on paper. Great nation England experienced that on Sunday evening. Because for 95 minutes it looked like it was going to be a giant ruckus at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen – before the giant came to life.
Let’s take it from the beginning.
Gareth Southgate, the national captain of the “Three Lions”, made a change to his starting eleven compared to last time: Kobbie Mainoo replaced Conor Callagher in central midfield. It was the 19-year-old Manchester United talent’s first start in a championship.
During the warm-up, disturbing images were leaked of England’s goalkeeper, Jordan Pickford. The 30-year-old appeared to be in pain in one hand and left the field, but the keeper came into play when it was time for kick-off.
The match was only minutes old when Marc Guéhi pulled down a Slovakian player and was cautioned. It was the centre-back’s second yellow card of the Championship, meaning he is suspended for England’s upcoming quarter-finals.
Slovakia otherwise opened the meeting energetically and was close to taking the lead right away. In the twelfth minute, outside forward Lukáš Haraslín ran free in deep, but at the last moment the mentioned Guéhi came jumping with a leg and blocked the subsequent shot.
“Marc Guéhi … wow!” wrote Manchester United icon Rio Ferdinand on X.
But in the 25th minute came the payoff. Ivan Schranz then got the ball right and broke through centrally before pushing it 1-0 to Slovakia.
And it was a deserved lead at the time.
“That is remarkably bad (by England),” wrote The Athletic journalist James Pearce at X.
Coaching icon Sam Allardyce on Sky Sports:
– It was in the air. You felt it. You can see the fear in this English team. It was bad defensive play.
The 1-0 result stood at the break. England’s players and manager were booed by their supporters as they walked down the players’ tunnel.
– England have reached a new low in Euro 2024. The first half was nothing short of terrible, said Rob Dorsett in Sky Sports.
Expert Roy Keane butchered the England national team on ITV:
– There must be changes now. No shots on goal, and I look at the players – are they a team? Do they play together? It doesn’t look like that. It looks so bad.
Colleague Gary Neville called following three substitutions: Cole Palmer, Anthony Gordon and Trent Alexander-Arnold entered.
– I would switch to Kyle Walker and bring in Alexander-Arnold. It is criminal that he is not playing for England today.
England got off to a flying start in the second half and had a ball in the net early on. Kieran Tripper got around on his left and played a low pass to Phil Foden, who poked the ball into the goal. But the full hit was ruled out for offside.
Shortly therefollowing, the “Three Lions” were close to taking a real cold shower.
Jude Bellingham played a short free-kick to John Stones, who was unprepared. The ball instead ended up at the feet of Slovakian forward David Strelec, who shot from the halfway line, but the finish – which went over Jordan Pickford – skimmed just wide of the post.
– Wow. That sums up England right now. Undisciplined, sloppy, said Nick Wright in Sky.
Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham once once more had a tough game, until the aforementioned situation.
“Bellingham is strutting around like a spoiled brat. He’s looking up at the sky and muttering. Terrible body language overall and it doesn’t look like the players in the team like each other,” wrote The Mirror reporter Simon Bird on X.
England pushed for an equalizer and came close to getting the reward with just over ten minutes to play. Harry Kane was then completely free in the penalty area, on a cross free kick, but did not get his header.
The finish went outside.
– Oh my God, exclaimed Rob Dorsett on Sky.
Just a minute later, Declan Rice had a hard shot hit the post. But it took extra time before the dividend finally came.
And it was following a long throw-in that the ball ended up with Jude Bellingham, who cycled in to make it 1-1 in the 95th minute of the match.
– I can’t believe it’s true. What a moment. He has looked “dead” but the execution (of the bicycle kick) is perfection, Matthew Upson said in the BBC.
Lee Dixon i ITV:
– I have been critical, and Bellingham has been a shadow of itself. But what a goal! That’s why he plays at Real Madrid, and that’s why Gareth Southgate kept him on the pitch. Bellingham pulled a rabbit out of his magic hat.
The round of 16 went to extra time. And there it narrowed immediately.
Ivan Toney headed a ball towards the far post, where Harry Kane appeared and in turn headed in 2-1. Wild joy broke out in the English team.
– How things can change in an instant. It’s crazy, said Matthew Upson in the BBC.
Lee Dixon i ITV:
– England have not been there, they have been bad. They don’t deserve to be in charge. But who cares? They are still in the tournament.
There were no more goals in extra time. England held on and won the meeting 2-1, and is thus through to the quarter-finals. There, Switzerland will stand for the resistance.
England captain Harry Kane is lyrical following the final whistle.
– This is the will and the attitude that the guys and the leaders, everyone involved, have. It looked tough for a second, but we continued. We have worked on so many details this week, including a long throw-in a couple of days ago. We said, “Maybe we need it?” You never know, and you have to be prepared for everything.
Furthermore, he pays tribute to teammate Bellingham – and that bicycle kick goal that saved the “Three Lions” from fiasco.
– What an incredible goal. It kept our tournament alive. What a victory!
– It is one of the best goals in our country’s history, I think. What a player he is. He works so hard for the team. There has been a lot of talk regarding him but today he shows what he can do. In big moments, he steps up. That’s what we need: players who step up and he did that,” Kane told ITV.
Bellingham himself, who shouted “Who else!?” in conjunction with the celebration, ranks the goal as his career best.
– Yes, probably.
Overall, he sees the moment at the goal itself as one of his best ever.
– It must be up there at the top. We were 30 seconds away from being eliminated and getting a lot of shit. And when you think regarding what this might mean for the team, it’s hard to deny that it’s one of my greatest moments.
– But it (the goal) will be very important if we win the EC. So we’ll see in a few weeks how important it was, says Bellingham.
Startelvor:
England: Pickford – Walker, Stones, Guéhi, Trippier – Mainoo, Rice – Saka, Bellingham, Foden – Kane.
Slovakia: Dúbravka – Pekarik, Vavro, Skriniar, Hancko – Kucka, Lobotka, Duda – Schranz, Strelec, Haraslin.
