At the same time, 60,000 fans somehow managed to fill every seat in the 80,000 auditorium Wembley Stadium.
What kind of weird magic is this?
For those crazy, fanatical and fanatical opening times, it feels like everything is possible-just like the endless power of Gareth Southgate.
But this man who endured the pain of losing a penalty kick 25 years ago was forced to relive this horror again.
A penalty saved by Bukayo Saka handed the victory to Italy – the hero Donnarumma of the night, when Wembley Stadium emptied, approximately 8,000 blue fans cheered loudest.
Southgate has always been innovative-introducing Marcus Rashford and Jayden Sancho in the last few minutes of overtime to equip the team with forwards before the penalty shootout. But it was a gamble, and the result was counterproductive. Both players failed to lose on the spot.
United Kingdom Missed their last three penalties and took the lead when Andrea Belotti failed to convert Italy’s second. Jordan Pickford did his part-rejected Jorginho’s chance to win, but Saka couldn’t bring it to sudden death.
Therefore, the wait for England continues-although they have made great achievements in these European Cups, this is another heart-wrenching and heart-wrenching attempt.
But even after experiencing this kind of pain, it feels different. Southgate changed what it means to be an England fan.
In the past three years, he has made supporting the national team a whole new experience. He is not leading a country full of expectations, but a country that truly believes that England can achieve success.
This is Southgate’s greatest victory-he convinced us all of his abilities.
This can be seen within a few hours of entering the finals. The adult man sang the song of Atom Kittens—telling Southgate that he opened them. At the same time, you can see the manager’s cardboard tailoring surfing on Wembley Way, traveling through a sea of red, white, and blue shirts.
The trend of retro suits in these finals feels appropriate. Everyone told their own heartbreaking story that defined the national team. Every demon in the past was driven out on the way to this moment, until finally surpassed by another demon.
Wembley Drive feels like a festival, with thousands of fans throwing pints of beer into the air even before the ball is kicked, let alone a goal.
It sometimes crosses the line, and some people can’t get tickets, try to break through obstacles and forcibly break in. This is the despair that cannot be missed at this historic moment.
In the stadium, as time approaches the kick-off, the atmosphere and tension are increasing-and the lack of empty seats indicates that more than 60,000 people have successfully entered.
Southgate continues his policy of changing his team on a game-by-game basis. This goes back to the three-man central defender who was so effective against Germany, with Kieran Trippier as the right-wing defender and Mason Mount as the third attacker instead of Saka.
It feels very conservative-especially since Mount lacks the speed and dribbling ability of England’s other options.
However, it’s hard not to believe that a manager who got the right judgement in leading the team to this point, when his full-backs united to provide England with a fantastic start, he was immediately proven. is correct.
A quick break from the early Italian corner kick saw Shaw take the ball from the left, England passed the ball to the other side of the court, and Trippier sprinted on the right.
Shaw continued his run and was not marked, Trippier volleyed over Donnaruma from the near post and opened the roof from the top of Wembley Stadium.
At that moment, Italy was almost intimidated by the noise inside, and England seemed capable of blowing away opponents.
A gap has appeared in the defense of the Azzurri which usually resembles a fort, and with more accurate contacts, the lead may have expanded.
As expected, Italy settled down.
Although England does not have the control Southgate hopes for on a night like this, the destructive ability of his players is the key to maintaining the lead. But there are worrying signs, because Italy is forcing their opponents to get deeper and deeper under pressure.
Lorenzo Insigne’s influence grew-forcing Pickford to make a save, the goalkeeper soon pushed away Federico Chiesa’s low effort.
On the bench opposite Southgate is Roberto Mancini-the architect of the most iconic moment of the Premier League, when Sergio Aguero won for Manchester City in stoppage time Championship title. He is looking for another comeback to test England’s energy and concentration with a substitute.
At the 67th minute, it paid off.
Pickford made another excellent save, pushing Marco Verratti’s header to the post, but Leonardo Bonucci responded the fastest-from Harry Kane. Turn over on the leg out.
Has Southgate waited too long? There was an echo in the World Cup. In the semi-finals three years ago, Croatia’s equalizer was one minute earlier.
Substitute Domenico Berardi (Domenico Berardi) made Wembley hold his breath when he volleyed in the penalty area.
Southgate switched to the last four, Sarkar and Jordan Henderson put on new legs and better control.
It was another 30 minutes of high pressure. Next is Jack Gregory, and then Southgate’s drama-Rashford and Sancho. Both were selected to open five penalties for the England team.
When Rashford sent Donnarumma the wrong way, Wembley was happy, but as the ball bounced off the goal post, Wembley was silent.
Since then, this story has had a too familiar sense of doom.
This is an English team in a dominant position, and the Qatar World Cup is not coming soon enough-but this is another painful disappointment that has fallen together with other teams.
