Two giants of European football meet in Dortmund on Wednesday as the Netherlands take on England for a spot in the UEFA Euro 2024 final on Sunday against Spain.
Both teams head into the match with the belief that we still haven’t seen the best from them, but time is running out to show it. For England especially, there’s a feeling that anything less than a return trip to the final is a disappointment.
This Three Lions side loves to leave it late. It took Jude Bellingham’s spectacular overhead kick to force extra time in their Round of 16 encounter with Slovakia before a Harry Kane header won it early in the first extra 15 in a 2-1 victory. Then in the quarters against Switzerland, England fell behind again with Breel Embolo putting the Swiss up in the 75th. It was Bukayo Saka who came to the rescue only five minutes later with a low strike from just outside the area that beat Yann Sommer.
Extra time didn’t solve anything, and the match moved on to the traditional bane of England’s existence at international tournaments – penalties. This time, though, England left nothing to chance. A cheat sheet on his water bottle that let Jordan Pickford know of each potential Switzerland shooter’s penalty proclivities allowed the Everton goalkeeper to start the spot kicks with a stop on Manchester City defender Manuel Akanji. That would be all his shooters needed as all five Three Lions players converted their spot kicks, with Brentford forward Ivan Toney never averting his gaze from Sommer’s eyes in a moment of supreme confidence.
For Luke Shaw, it doesn’t matter how England got there. All that he’s concerned with is that they’re in another final four.
“The most important thing is winning,” the Manchester United left-back said. “At the moment, whether people like it or not, the way we’re playing [got us] in the semifinals. That’s all that matters.”
The 28-year-old Shaw, who had been out of action since February with a hamstring injury, made his tournament debut as a substitute in the quarters. He says he’s ready to play a full 90 minutes now, and thanked manager Gareth Southgate for sticking by him.
“The last four months have been really tough,” Shaw said. “At the start, I was expected to come back a lot sooner, but I went through a lot of setbacks. It was really nice to get on the other night and get some minutes – I’ve been itching. I think before the squad got announced, we had a plan to come back around the second or third game but, unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned and I was pushed back a game or so…They were really there for me, not just Gareth and [assistant manager] Steve [Holland], but the medical staff, as well. I have a lot to thank them for.”
On the other side of the pitch, the Oranje showed their mettle in the quarter-finals. After a comfortable 3-0 win over Romania in the Round of 16, the Dutch got all they could handle from Turkiye in the final eight.
Falling behind 1-0 late in the first half, it was almost curtains for Ronald Koeman’s team in the 65th. Bart Verbruggen did well to deal with a shot from distance from Arda Guler, but he parried directly into the path of Kaan Ayhan, who appeared to have a tap-in to double the lead. Before he could do that, though, striker Wout Weghorst intervened at the last possible moment to poke it away and keep his team alive in the match.
Only five minutes later, the Dutch were level when Stefan de Vrij met Memphis Depay’s cross with a powerful header to beat Mert Gunok. Then, moments after that, Mert Muldur turned a Denzel Dumfries cross into his own net as he attempted to stop Cody Gakpo from scoring a fourth goal of the tournament to make it 2-1 and the Netherlands held on.
City defender Nathan Aké believes the Oranje are finally rounding into form after a disappointing group stage that saw them finish third behind Austria and France.
“We’re building momentum,” Aké said. “We came through tough stages at the start of the tournament and now we’ve got through another test, so we’re ready. Underdog or not, it doesn’t matter. We focus on ourselves. We know what we need to do. We are very close now.”
From a tactical perspective, Southgate has a choice to make. Switching to a back three of Kyle Walker, John Stones and Ezri Konsa, in for the suspended Marc Guehi, to match Switzerland resulted in England’s best performance of the tournament. With the Oranje utilizing a back four, it would make sense to go back to the four-man backline Southgate utilized in the first four matches, but there was enough to like against Switzerland to once again go with three. What Southgate opts for remains to be seen and it’s unlikely he will tip his hand either way.
“A lot of our processes have been shared,” Southgate said of the news breaking in advance of the switch to the back three. “We live in an amazing world where it is so difficult for us because any element of surprise you might have is gone three days before the game. It’s quite incredible really.”
The Netherlands are 7-9-6 all-time against England and Wednesday’s match will be the fourth between the two teams at a major tournament and third at a Euro. En route to winning the entire tournament, the Oranje defeated England 3-1 at Euro 1988 in the group stage on a hat trick from Marco van Basten. Two years later at the 1990 World Cup in Italy, the Three Lions and Netherlands would face off again in the group stage, this time playing to a 0-0 draw. Their final meeting took place at Euro 1996 as Alan Shearer and Teddy Sheringham each had a brace in a 4-1 Three Lions group-stage victory at Wembley Stadium.
While the last time these two teams met wasn’t at a major tournament, the match was of some importance. In the summer of 2019, the Oranje defeated England 3-1 in the UEFA Nations League semifinal on goals from Matthijs de Ligt and Quincy Promes and an own goal from Walker. Five England players from that match could feature on Wednesday, while seven are with the Oranje squad in Germany.
NETHERLANDS POTENTIAL XI (4-3-3): Bart Verbruggen; Denzel Dumfries, Stefan de Vrij, Virgil van Dijk, Nathan Aké; Jerdy Schouten, Xavi Simons, Tijjani Reijnders; Steven Bergwijn, Memphis Depay, Cody Gakpo
ENGLAND POTENTIAL XI (3-4-2-1): Jordan Pickford; Kyle Walker, John Stones, Marc Guehi; Bukayo Saka, Kobbie Mainoo, Declan Rice, Luke Shaw; Phil Foden, Jude Bellingham; Harry Kane
The French league’s legal commission has ordered Paris Saint-Germain to pay Kylian Mbappé the 55 million euros ($61 million) in unpaid wages that he claims he’s entitled to, the league said Thursday.
The league confirmed the decision to The Associated Press without more details, a day after the France superstar rejected a mediation offer by the commission in his dispute with his former club.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Former football star Reggie Bush was at his Encino home Tuesday night when three male suspects attempted to break in, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.
“Everyone is safe,” Bush said in a text message to the newspaper.
The Los Angeles Police Dept. told the Times that a resident of the house reported hearing a window break and broken glass was found outside. Police said nothing was stolen and that three male suspects dressed in black were seen leaving the scene.
Bush starred at Southern California and in the NFL. The former running back was reinstated as the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner this year. He forfeited it in 2010 after USC was hit with sanctions partly related to Bush’s dealings with two aspiring sports marketers.
VANCOUVER – A fresh face has been gracing the B.C. Lions‘ highlight reels in recent weeks.
Midway through his second CFL campaign, wide receiver Ayden Eberhardt has contributed touchdowns in two consecutive games.
The 26-year-old wide receiver from Loveland, Colo., was the lone B.C. player to reel in a passing major in his team’s 37-23 victory over the league-leading Montreal Alouettes last Friday. The week before, he notched his first CFL touchdown in the Lions’ win over the Ottawa Redblacks.
“It’s been awesome. It’s been really good,” Eberhardt said of his recent play. “At the end of the day, the biggest stat to me is if we win. But who doesn’t love scoring?”
He’ll look to add to the tally Friday when the Leos (7-6) host the Toronto Argonauts.
Eberhardt signed with B.C. as a free agent in January 2023 and spent much of last season on the practice squad before cementing a role on the roster this year.
The six-foot-two, 195-pound University of Wyoming product has earned more opportunities in his second season, said Lions’ head coach and co-general manager Rick Campbell.
“He’s a super hard worker and very smart. He understands, has high football IQ, as we call it,” Campbell said.
The fact that Eberhardt can play virtually every receiving position helps.
“He could literally go into a game and we could throw him into a spot and he’d know exactly what he’s doing,” the coach said. “That allows him to play fast and earn the quarterback’s trust. And you see him making plays.”
Eberhardt credited his teammates, coaches and the rest of the Lions’ staff with helping him prepare for any situation he might face. They’ve all spent time teaching him the ins and outs of the Canadian game, or go over the playbook and run routes after practice, he said.
“I’ve played every single position on our offence in a game in the last two years, which is kind of crazy. But I love playing football,” he said. “I want to play any position that the team needs me to play.”
While B.C.’s lineup is studded with stars like running back William Stanback — who has a CFL-high 938 rushing yards — and wide receiver Justin McInnis — who leads the league in both receiving yards (1,074) and receiving TDs (seven) — versatility has been a critical part of the team’s back-to-back wins.
“I think we’ve got a lot of talented guys who deserve to get the ball and make big plays when they have the ball in their hands. So it’s really my job to get them the ball as much as possible,” said quarterback Nathan Rourke.
“I think that makes it easy when you can lean on those guys and, really, we’re in a situation where anyone can have a big game. And I think that’s a good place to be.”
Even with a talented lineup, the Lions face a tough test against an eager Argos side.
Toronto lost its second straight game Saturday when it dropped a 41-27 decision to Ottawa.
“We’ll have our hands full,” Rourke said. “We’ll have to adjust on the fly to whatever their game plan is. And no doubt, they’ll be ready to go so we’ll have to be as well.”
The two sides have already met once this season when the Argos handed the Lions a 35-27 loss in Toronto back on June 9.
A win on Friday would vault B.C. to the top of the West Division standings, over the 7-6 Winnipeg Blue Bombers who are on a bye week.
Collecting that victory isn’t assured, though, even with Toronto coming in on a two-game skid, Campbell said.
“They’ve hit a little bit of a rut, but they’re a really good team,” he said. “They’re very athletic. And you can really see (quarterback Chad Kelly’s) got zip on the ball. When you see him in there, he can make all the throws. So we’re expecting their best shot.”
TORONTO ARGONAUTS (6-6) AT B.C. LIONS (7-6)
Friday, B.C. Place
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: The Lions boast a 4-1 home record this season, including a 38-12 victory over the Redblacks at Royal Athletic Park in Victoria, B.C., on Aug. 31. The Argos have struggled outside of BMO Field and hold a 1-5 away record. Trips to the West Coast haven’t been easy for Toronto in recent years — since 2003, the club is 4-14 in road games against B.C.
CENTURION: B.C. defensive back Garry Peters is set to appear in his 100th consecutive game. The 32-year-old from Conyers, Ga., is a two-time CFL all-star who has amassed 381 defensive tackles, 19 special teams tackles and 16 interceptions over seven seasons. “Just being on the field with the guys every day, running around, talking trash back and forth, it keeps me young,” Peters said. “It makes me feel good, and my body doesn’t really feel it. I’ve been blessed to be able to play 100 straight.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
