England narrowly escaped from the jaws of defeat against Switzerland in the much awaited quarterfinal. Switzerland was the dominant team for almost the entire match. This match seemed lost for England until Saka delivered a magnificent goal with his first shot to force extra time. In the 75th minute, Breel Embolo scored the opening goal of the match, putting Switzerland ahead.
England’s play was very average and chaotic. Harry Kane’s poor form continued in the tournament, and it was more evident when Southgate made substitute changes by bringing in Eberechi Eze, Luke Shaw, and Cole Palmer. The Swiss played an extraordinary match, holding 1-1 against England until the penalty shootout, where they lost 5-3 to the English. Manuel Akanji’s missed spot kick led to a heartbreaking loss for Switzerland. “No words of solace can help him, there is a deep emptiness and deep sadness. Everyone needs to work through it, but we can be proud of ourselves,” said the Switzerland coach.
England’s head coach Gareth Southgate defended his players and praised the character of the team. “To come from behind and show the character and resilience we did, talking to the players about that, winning tournaments isn’t just about playing well. It’s not just about that. You’ve got to show other attributes to win, and we showed them all tonight,” Southgate explained.
On the other hand, the Netherlands staged an inspired comeback in the second half of the match against a resilient Turkiye. Turkiye dominated the first half with a stunning header from Samet Akaydin. In the second half, the Netherlands showed a spirited fightback when Stefan de Vrij scored the equalizer. At the 76th minute, Mert Mulder’s own goal added salt to the injury for Turkiye.
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“The team played with a great spirit, a Turkish spirit; in spite of the defeat, the Turkish people love us,” said Vincenzo Montella, Turkiye’s head coach.
The semifinals begin with Netherlands and England clash set to ignite on 10th July , while Spain and France on 11th july.
