Spain’s men have won their record fourth European Championship title after Mikel Oyarzabal’s late goal gave his side a narrow 2-1 victory over England in Berlin on Sunday night.
After a cagey opening 45 minutes, Luis de la Fuente’s side took the lead seconds after the restart when teenage star Lamine Yamal set up winger Nico Williams, who headed the ball past Jordan Pickford.
It was the fourth consecutive Euro 2024 knockout game in which England had trailed, but substitute Cole Palmer pulled his team level in the 73rd minute to the delight of a packed Olympic Stadium.
However, with just four minutes remaining, Mikel Oyarzabal stretched to meet Marc Cucurella’s low cross into the box, much to the delight of the Spanish players and fans.
“I did my job and what I had to do and I was lucky enough to score the winning goal. When you are one of the 26 names selected, it is already something special, but then, to be able to help the team like I did, that is the most important thing,” said Oyarzabal, a substitute, after the match.
Spain wins third Euro in five attempts
It was almost thought that Spain would be crowned champions, given that Spanish teams, both internationally and domestically, have won the last 22 major finals in which they have participated.
While Spain had been the star attraction at Euro 2024, with their free-flowing, attacking football making them a joy to watch, England’s dour, defensive play had also caught the eye at home and abroad.
Yet both teams looked nervous and unable to make progress in the opening exchanges of the match, with poor decisions on the ball and a lack of precision in the final pass characteristic of the first half.
Although Spain lost defensive stalwart Rodri, who was named player of the tournament at half-time, to injury, Spain came back strongly when play resumed.
Teenager Yamal was released down the right, before cutting into the box and sliding in a precise cross to collect his fourth assist of the competition as Williams kept his head to head past Pickford.
But it was an unlikely hero, substitute Oyarzabal, who helped Spain win their first major men’s title since 2012, and their third European Championship in the last five, surpassing Germany’s tally of three.
“I couldn’t be happier. Today was a magnificent day, a team deserved to be crowned European champions. Today I am even prouder and I hope this momentum can bring even better days,” Spain coach Luis de la Fuente said after the match.
England’s wait for trophy to reach 60 years
Unlike their opponents, England struggled to find their feet throughout the tournament, relying more on individual moments of brilliance such as Jude Bellingham’s overhead kicks and Bukayo Saka’s long-range shots to reach a second successive Euro final.
Captain Harry Kane, so often the team’s talisman up top, failed to inspire throughout the competition – although he did end up being one of six players to score three goals and share the tournament’s Golden Boot.
“It’s a missed opportunity,” Kane admitted. “These finals are not easy to get to. You have to grab them when they come and we haven’t done that yet. It’s extremely painful and it’s going to hurt for a long time.”
The lack of attacking threat that England’s all-time leading goalscorer offered his side was indicative of the team’s struggles, with Gareth Southgate’s side looking much more threatening once Kane was replaced by Ollie Watkins just after the hour mark.
For much of Euro 2024, the substitutes have shown pace and tenacity to get England out of difficult situations.
In Sunday’s final, it was Cole Palmer who made an almost instant impact with his long-range shot deflected into the bottom corner just three minutes after coming on as a substitute.
It briefly gave the thousands of England fans, who vastly outnumbered their Spanish rivals in Berlin, reason to hope for at least extra time and perhaps another penalty shootout.
But in the end they faced the all too familiar spectacle of distraught England players, narrowly failing to win the grand prize.
“We came from behind all the way through the tournament, we won,” Kane said. “We didn’t take the next step and win. We got caught with a cross and it’s the final.”
No title but a rehabilitation for Germany, host country of the tournament
Deutsche Bahn may have had more than it could handle, stranding fans from Gelsenkirchen to Hamburg after late finishes, but the month-long football festival was also often celebrated in Germany.
The colourful and spirited competition has produced young talents like Yamal and Bellingham, who have proven themselves on the international stage, as well as passionate fans from the Netherlands and the large German diaspora in Turkey. It has also helped to cheer up German fans after three unusually poor major tournaments.
Although hosts Germany were knocked out in the quarter-finals by eventual winners Spain, it did not dampen the festive mood inside and outside the stadium – even if some German fans were still booing Spaniard Marc Cucurella during the final, angry over a handball that had gone against the hosts more than a week ago.
Despite all the joy, there were also moments of political controversy. Albanian player Mirlind Daku was banned for two matches for singing a nationalist song and Turkish player Merih Demiral received the same sanction for making a controversial political gesture.
Edited by: Mark Hallam
News Source : amp.dw.com
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