Goal.com sums it up – shivers down the spine for English penalty shootouts in the Euros as, coming into this match, the last time England won a Euros match on a penalty shootout was their 1996 quarters, 28 years ago. Since then they’ve been knocked out on penalties in 1996 (semis), 2004, 2012, 2020. BTW – don’t mention the 1996 semis to Gareth Southgate, England’s manager – we all know why.
As is traditional England lets a late goal in to go behind 0-1 (at 75 minutes) and then came back to equalise with a truly fine goal by Bukayo Saka (just 5 minutes later). From outside the penalty area on the right side of the pitch he powered the ball at the left post and got it to nudge it in for him for a nice assist.
Unlike against Slovakia there was no magic in the first minute of extra time for England, or in the rest of it for that matter, so the score stayed 1-1 and the match went to sudden death-by-penalty.
Options available for those at home included hiding behind the sofa, going to make a cup of tea, taking the dog for a short walk or for only the bravest or the most foolhardy chewing the finger nails off while watching the inevitable.
Except there was no inevitable. Five England players took penalties and scored goals against four taking and three scoring for Switzerland.
England were through 1-1 after extra time and 5-3 on penalties.
Let the record show … the last time England won a penalty shootout in the Euros was 6th July 2024, 28 years since the time before.
Pre-match
As the BBC’s Chris Bevan asks: are Switzerland dark horses of the Euros? (link opens in new tab). What he doesn’t ask is what type of ‘horses’ England are based on their Euros performance to date.
Maybe there’s some comfort in the past record of encounters with England having beaten Switzerland 18 times out the 27 matches played with 6 drawn and 3 lost.
Or maybe there isn’t given that ‘all’ Switzerland had to do to get into the Quarter Finals was beat the current Euros Cup holders, Italy which they emphatically did.
Where they’re similar is that both teams arrived at the quarter final match after they scored an individually brilliant goal as well as, lets say, a regulation one.
And where they’re different is that Switzerland scored their goals either side of half time and let their fans relax and England rather foolishly did it either side of full time and put their fans through the wringer (again).