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Trent Alexander-Arnold fired home the winning penalty after Jordan Pickford saved from Manuel Akanji as England marched on

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(the match), and (later)
Sat 6 Jul 2024 16.20 EDTFirst published on Sat 6 Jul 2024 10.27 EDT
England players celebrate after Trent Alexander-Arnold converted the winning penalty.
England players celebrate after Trent Alexander-Arnold converted the winning penalty. Photograph: Nick Potts/PA
England players celebrate after Trent Alexander-Arnold converted the winning penalty. Photograph: Nick Potts/PA

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Time to sign off here, but I’ll leave you with our match report, reaction and analysis. Enjoy your Saturday nights, and please drink responsibly. See you in Dortmund!

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England’s Euros run now encompasses two British prime ministers. Here’s what the new man at No 10, Keir Starmer, had to say about the result:

Calm under pressure. Brilliant win @England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) July 6, 2024

Pickford > Shilton.

4 - Jordan Pickford has saved four of the 14 penalties he has faced in shootouts at major tournaments, twice as many as all other England goalkeepers combined saved between 1990 and 2012 (2 out of 36). Hero. pic.twitter.com/vspFL4aZLG

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 6, 2024

“Labour in No 10, England win a Euros game on penalties AND I’ve just put the central heating on in July,” says Showbizguru. “We’re living in unusual times ...”

Niall Mullen says: “In case there’s an England France final can we start campaigning now for it to go straight to penalties?”

Write to Uefa.

Gareth Southgate: “I thought the players were brilliant. It is the best we played, we caused them a lot of problems. They are a hard team to play against. To come from behind again and showed resilience and character is what it’s about. Winning tournament is not all about playing well all the time.

“It is so brave, he is one of our best. There was no doubt he would take one – we all know what he went through.

“We played well today and had to be tactically spot on. We are in a third semi-final, it says a lot about the group.

“We needed to get pressure on their back three and couldn’t do that without changing shape. We had to be disciplined and turned the ball over. Phil was a problem for them to pick up. We had good control. For some of the balls into the box, we should have more men in there.”

“Kane is England’s liability that apparently cannot be dropped just as Ronaldo is for Portugal,” says Phil Midgley. “Slows down the play, cannot run and if he is somehow substituted the team looks so much better. Hopefully he will be injured for the next game.”

Jude Bellingham: “It is probably all in all our best peformance, we dominated. We were comfortable defensively but did not create those big chances.

“We showed character and mentality in the penalty shootout. To take a penalty with all that pressure is a special thing.

“These moments are only special if you go on to win the tournament. We have to back it up in a few days.”

Harry Kane: “There’s a few hearts skipping a beat out there. Another tough game. Great resilience from the lads to go a goal down and come back.

“I felt comfortable with the lads and they scored five out of five. It was great.

“We trust in whoever is on the pitch. The difference is we have proven penalty takers with Ivan, Cole and Bukayo.

“Unbelievable. For Bukayo to play a new position and to play the we he did, with and without the ball, and to score the penalty in the manner he did. Incredible.

“I had a bit of cramp and tripped over the water bottles but I am fine.”

Bukayo Saka: “I am going to put it there with the best nights for England. It was special with how we fought back. I am proud of everyone.

“I felt we dominated the whole game and would get another chance.

“I have faith in God to come back from something like [missing the penalty in the Euro 2020 final] that is difficult but I used it to make me stronger.

“It shows how much we want to win the tournament. In the past two games we have gone down and come back. Hopefully we can win the next game in 90 minutes.”

Trent Alexander-Arnold: “Incredible. These are the goals we set for ourselves. A difficult opponent and we went behind. We showed a lot of character and heart. We knew it was going to be tight. We won and that’s all that matters.

“It is what we practised. A lot of practise went into it. I enjoy the pressure.”

Will Unwin

Baz has wandered off for pod duties so I (Will Unwin) will bring you some hot reaction.

England go through ...

All five of England’s penalty-takers came through when it mattered, which meant Jordan Pickford’s save from Manuel Akanji was enough to send England through to the semi-finals of Euro 2024. They’ve put their fans through the wringer again but they’re hanging in there.

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ENGLAND ARE THROUGH!!!

Trent Alexander-Arnold scores the winning penalty and England advance to the semi-finals of Euro 2024.

Trent Alexander-Arnold sends Switzerland keeper Yann Sommer the wrong way to score England’s fifth and winning penalty in the penalty shoot-out. Photograph: Richard Pelham/Getty Images
The celebrations have started. Photograph: Martin Meissner/AP
Alexander-Arnold, Jordan Pickford are mobbed by their teammates as they celebrate making it through to the semi-finals. Photograph: John Sibley/Reuters
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England 4-3 Switzerland

Zeki Amdouni fires the ball down the middle, as Pickford goes to his left.

England 4-2 Switzerland

Ivan Toney scores into the bottom left-hand corner. Sommer goes the right way but can’t get to it.

England 3-1 Switzerland

Bukayo Saka pulls his low effort into the bottom right-hand corner, hitting the side-netting. Sommer goes the wrong way again.

England's Bukayo Saka slots home from the spot. Photograph: Piroschka Van De Wouw/Reuters
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England 2-0 Switzerland

Jude Bellingham rolls the ball into the bottom right-hand corner.

We'll have penalties!!!

ET30+2: Toney goes down in the Switzerland box and is Steven Zuber-adjacent as he does so. His half-hearted penalty claims are waved away and the referee blows the final whistle.

ET30+1: Amdouni is on hand to head the ball away from Bellingham as Shaw crosses into the Swiss penalty area from the left.

ET29: Just on as a sub, Zeki Amdouni brings a smart save out of Pickford at his near post with a good strike. England are on the ropes but could be saved by the bell. There’s one minute to go.

ET27: Spotting Pickford a couple of feet off his line, Shaqiri tries to score directly from the corner. He whips the ball viciously from the quadrant and with Pickford scrambling back desperately, it hits the angle of upright and crossbar.

England's Jordan Pickford is almost embarrassed by Switzerland's Xherdan Shaqiri as he hits the bar from a corner kick. Photograph: Piroschka Van De Wouw/Reuters
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ET26: Bellingham runs into traffic on the edge of the Swiss penalty area. Switzerland break upfield and win a corner after excellent work by Shaqiri and Vidmer.

ET21: Eze is forced to clear after the ball was played Vidmer’s way on the edge of the six-yard box.

ET19: Trying desperatly hard to keep the ball in play out by the touchline, Harry Kane gets a little nudge from Akanji, skitters off the pitch, flattens Gareth Southgate and ends up on the floor by the England bench. It’s an unorthodox way of leaving the pitch but that’s where he’ll stay – he’s replaced by Ivan Toney.

Switzerland’s Manuel Akanji nudges England’s Harry Kane. Photograph: Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters
Ooof. Photograph: Richard Pelham/Getty Images
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ET17: Rodriguez gets the ball out wide near the corner flag after good work by Freuler but is unable to get a cross in. England win the ball back.

ET16: There’s a brief break in play following an accidental clash of heads between the two captains, Kane and Xhaka, as they contested a high ball.

ET16: Phil Foden gets the ball rolling after a fairly quick changeover. Granit Xhaka did the talking in the Swiss huddle, while Gareth Southgater channeled his inner Winston Churchill as Engladn’s players gathered around him.

ET15: Luke Shaw tries to pick out Eberech Eze with a lofted pass forward. Schar intercepts and heads the ball back to Sommer. It’s half-time in extra time.

ET13: Xhaka plays the ball forward to Zuber, who is unable to turn with Saka breathing down his neck. He fouls the English goalscorer as he tries to wriggle past him.

ET11: From the edge of the Swiss penalty area, Bellingham has a shot blocked by Xhaka. The ball drops at his feet and he tries to curl it past Sommer, but the Swiss goalie catches it.

England's Jude Bellingham goes close. Photograph: Hassan Ammar/AP
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ET9: Denis Zakaria is on for Dan Ndoye to give Switzerland more solidity in the middle. Already on a yellow card and a subsequent verbal warning, Fabian Schar fouls Ebereche Eze and is told in no uncertain terms by the Italian referee that if he commits one more foul like that he’ll be sent off.

Switzerland's Fabian Schaer (right) fouls England's Eberechi Eze. Photograph: Ozan Köse/AFP/Getty Images
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ET8: There’s a mini-scare for England as Kyle Walker almost gets caught in possession but Jordan Pickford rushes out to help spare his blushes.

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