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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
John Brewin (now) and Gregg Bakowski

Euro 2020: Italy touch down and Foden sits out England training on eve of final – as it happened

Lorenzo Insigne of Italy arrives with his teammates at Luton airport.
Lorenzo Insigne of Italy arrives with his teammates at Luton airport. Photograph: Claudio Villa/Getty Images

That concludes the blog for today, and we’ll back tomorrow for more, before, well, you know what. Goodbye for now.

And Jonathan Liew on Jordan Henderson, who has shown his leadership qualities even when playing all of his football from the bench.

Henderson had a conversation with Gareth Southgate a few weeks ago, just before the start of the tournament. He hadn’t played a minute for Liverpool since groin surgery at the end of February. The idea of throwing him into the mayhem of an international tournament midfield without having played a competitive game for more than three months was absurd. Henderson knew this. Southgate knew this. His playing role would be tangential at best. And yet the idea of leaving him at home never crossed Southgate’s mind.

Tim Lewis speaks to a footballing family in Northumberland.

Coward, who turns 95 in August, admits he definitely didn’t imagine in 1966 that it would be more than half a century before the England men’s team would again reach the final of a major tournament. But, as a fan of Newcastle United (who last won the top division in 1927, when Coward was one), he’s no stranger to disappointment and had long given up any hope of seeing the national team reach such heights again.

Some quotes from Gareth Southgate on Phil Foden’s “minor knock”. The England manager was speaking to BBC Radio.

He’s a doubt. We’ll have to check again but he’s got a fairly minor foot injury. But it’s just whether it’s going to be one that clears up in time for him to be able to take part in the game, so we’ll have to assess that again later.

The socials are being shared. A running theme here.

Philip Cornwall, our production editor, has travelled all over the world for the thin and thin of watching England play. And now, he’s going to see them play in the Euro 2020 final.

It is not just the football, you understand. It is possible to use following England as a means to explore countries and cities chosen often at random by complete strangers, a holiday lucky dip that gives you glimpses of life in Tirana and Turin, Sapporo and São Paulo. But for too many – by no means a tiny minority, and on some trips an apparent majority – it’s about extending the worst excesses of Saturday night drinking culture over a few days in the blameless heart of someone else’s city, with a dose of aggressive nationalism thrown in.

Skinner, Baddiel and Broudie denied.

Per Reuters.

“Three Lions” singer Frank Skinner said Uefa had opposed plans for him and David Baddiel to perform their popular song before Sunday’s final.

“UEFA said it was too partisan and not fair to the Italians to have that,” Skinner said on Channel 4’s The Last Leg. “In the opening game, which was Italy versus Turkey, (Italian opera tenor) Andrea Bocelli sang ‘Nessun Dorma’ before the game.”

Europe’s soccer governing body Uefa confirmed they had received a request on Friday but refused as the programme for the closing ceremony had already been finalised. “No additional elements can be integrated at this stage due to the very tight countdown schedule and operational complexities ahead of the kick-off,” a Uefa spokesperson told Reuters via email.

John Levison gets in touch: “I’m afraid Kevin Harris is mistaken; it was Sam Collins who was watching the Ipswich game that night. Jerry Westerby was actually in Czechoslovakia at the time, posing as a sports journalist. The two characters are mashed up in the 2011 film but not in the TV adaptation.”

There’s a lot of posing as a sports journalist about.

Stuart Pearce, who was Gareth Southgate’s close confidante back at Euro 96, and appeared on stage with him ahead of the Sex Pistols reunion gig at Finsbury Park that summer, appeared in a Pizza ad with the future England boss and then preceded him as England Under-21 manager and caretaker senior manager, has had some words to say on TalkSport in a video.

So what does England mean to me? It’s Cornwall, it’s the Lake District, the New Forest, Stonehenge, Buckingham Palace.

It’s a Cornish pasty, fish and chips, clotted cream and scones, pie and mash. It’s The Who, The Stranglers, Oasis, The Sex Pistols.

It’s the bridges of Brunel, the sonnets of Shakespeare. Her Majesty the Queen. It’s a Bristolian, a Brummie, a Scouser, a Geordie, a Cockney and a good old fashioned cup of tea.

More than anything, it’s home. This country, this England, my England. And if anyone knows that as well as I do, it’s Gareth Southgate and these players.

So do us proud lads. Think about what your country means to you. Keep dreaming, keep believing. Do it for yourselves. Do it for us. Do it for England.

Kári Tulinius gets in touch: “Marcela Mora y Araujo’s brilliant preview of the Copa América final has me seriously considering ruining my sleep schedule for the whole week by getting up at three o’clock in the morning to watch Argentina face Brazil at the Maracanã. The convergence of narrative, history and psychology in that one match could fill any novel.”

Kevin Harris gets in touch: “After reading about Paul’s love of Deep Purple it reminded me of another cultural touchpoint. In the BBC series of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy the character of Jerry Westerby is working the night shift when news of Jim Prideaux being shot in Czechoslovakia comes through. Westerby is watching highlights of an Ipswich match at the time where Paul Mariner is mentioned by the commentator. I’ve always wanted to find out what match that was. It’s a bit of a niche reference but I love stuff like that.”

Looks like the flying ants may swarm - if that’s the right word - in after all. Didn’t the Euro 2016 final feature some flying insects too?

Cristiano Ronaldo and friend.
Cristiano Ronaldo and friend. Photograph: BBC ONE

Gideon Saunders gets in touch: “Regarding Franz Josef Wagner’s comment, this is only a half truth. Wagner is infamous in Germany for his deliberately polemic style of writing. The subjects he chooses are also the very definition of bandwagon-populism (celebrities in the news, unpopular corona measures etc.) I wouldn’t consider him representative.

“Most Germans I have spoken to don’t really care about the penalty award - they won a World Cup like that in 1990 and Thomas Muller does similar at every opportunity now. The two major anti-English issues here are clearly Brexit and the behaviour of “fans”. The booing in particular is definitely turning neutrals, who would otherwise have been happy to see England finally win, against us.”

And we have columnists like that, too, of course. Lots of them, in fact.

Here’s Clive Tyldesley on Gareth Southgate. Enjoy!

Schoolteachers are not only busy trying to prep pupils for exams at this time of year, they’re also fielding calls from journalists asking what England’s finalists were like in their schooldays. Here’s Luke Shaw’s former head of house, Heidi Stone, on the left-back’s time at Rydens School:

It was always Luke Shaw and football. It was Luke football Shaw. We were quite lucky really because I have heard people say once you are signed up they don’t play for the school but Luke played for us religiously. It was our most successful football team ever and he was a huge role model to others at the school in terms of his sporting attitude. He was very laid-back and modest, still is and I think that comes across to everyone. When you see him in interviews, he is a very sensible lad with his feet on the ground and he has amazing family around him who definitely contributed to that and his football career because they were so supportive.

And Kieran Trippier’s old PE teacher at Woodhey High School, Lee Garcka, has also been chatting about his former star pupil who acted up a bit, by the sounds of it:

I started here in 2004 when Kieran was in Year Nine and our headteacher, the previous head, was a really big football fan and even in my interview he said to me ‘We’ve got some really good footballers here’. Kieran’s older brother Kelvin had just signed for Oldham and he was telling me about Kelvin but said ‘We’ve got a lad in Year Eight at the minute and is even better, he’s at Manchester City. I think he knew more than anyone what a talent Kieran was. Kieran has acknowledged in the past the influence this guy, Martin Braidley, our previous head, had. He would often chat to Kieran and make sure he was doing the right thing in lessons and out of school as well. I know he had a real soft spot for him. The headteacher would never allow me to drop him if he was in detention. There are a couple of teachers who are still in touch with him and think really highly of him and there are a couple of others who are like ‘He might be this footballer but he was a pain in the bum in my lessons’. As a PE teacher you have a higher threshold for banter as you’ve grown up in changing rooms and you know how the sports pitch can be. There were a couple of subjects he wasn’t into and a couple of teachers he bashed heads with but there was never any malice, it was just typical teenage boy behaviour where he’d rather be kicking a ball around rather than learning whatever subject that might have been.

Nothing has met this summer’s piquant elation quite like Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline. On paper, it’s up there with the Beach Boys’ Sloop John B as one of the more curious entries to the terrace canon, but as the bridge builds to a climax, the song’s optimistic momentum tends to sweep up doubters.

The Italians are here in London. The last two tournaments played in England saw them go home after the group stage, to a shower of tomatoes in 1966 after losing to North Korea, and at Euro 96, they lost out to Germany and the Czech Republic in the groups. Still, they beat Spain the other night in the semis.

Here’s our story on the reaction to Hungary being fined for racism and homophobia.

The Germans are taking it well. In Bild, at least.

Here’s our story on the Kasper Schmeichel laser incident.

Lutz Pfannenstiel runs the rules over the goalies.

How do they compare? On the line Pickford definitely has the advantage. He moves smoothly, like a jaguar, is extremely quick on his feet and has astounding reflexes. No wonder that they called him “Speedy” at school. He is not as tall as Donnarumma, rather small for a modern goalie at 1.85m, a fraction over 6ft. The Italian measures 1.96m, 6ft 4in, but does not have the same reaction speed. Advantage Pickford, 1-0.

In terms of reach, the 11cm of physical advantage translate into a greater range and a better control of the area and incoming high balls. The Azzurri goalkeeper seems like an octopus reaching even to seemingly impossible balls. Advantage Donnarumma, 1-1.

In terms of technical skills, Pickford is undoubtedly the stronger player with the ball at his feet. He shows complete control of the ball, with both feet. Donnarumma’s skills are satisfactory but he is not at the same level. Advantage Pickford, 2-1.

Pickford is 27, Donnarumma only 22, but in terms of coolness and serenity the younger goalkeeper has the edge. Donnarumma is a product of Milan’s goalkeeper school. He was top-level from early on, just 17 when he replaced the legendary Gigi Buffon in the national team.

Over in Hungary, they are not happy with the fine they received on Friday.

Per Reuters

Hungary’s foreign minister called European soccer’s governing body Uefa a “pitiful” organisation on Saturday for its decision to order Hungary to play their next two games behind closed doors due to their fans’ discriminatory behaviour.

“The committee that makes a decision like that is a pitiful and cowardly body. They should be ashamed of themselves,” Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on his Facebook page. “Just like in communism: no need for evidence, it’s enough to have unanimous reports.”

UEFA on Friday ordered Hungary to play its next two internationals with no fans due to discriminatory behaviour in the crowd during European Championship matches in Budapest.

England fined for Schmeichel laser

Story per Reuters.

Uefa have fined England’s Football Association €30,000 after a laser pointer was shone at Denmark goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel during what proved to be the deciding moment of their Euro 2020 semi-final.

Television footage showed Schmeichel was targeted by a spectator using a green laser as England captain Harry Kane stepped up for a penalty in extra time to give the home side a 2-1 win in Wednesday’s match at Wembley.

UEFA had opened disciplinary proceedings against England on Thursday. The FA were also charged following disturbance during the national anthems and for the setting off of fireworks.

Fans booed when Denmark’s national anthem was played before kickoff. Jeers were also heard when the German anthem was played at Wembley last week, when England beat Joachim Löw’s side in the round of 16.

Yash Gupta gets in touch on the sad loss of Paul Mariner: “I wouldn’t lie, I wasn’t old enough to follow his professional career as I was born in 99. But I did watch him in ESPN FC and he was a fascinating character. He unsurprisingly reminded of an era, a very interesting one, which has gone. In this video one thing struck me when he said he played cricket at a high level and stopped playing it for money. Good old days. Full video is very good, an American show with an English host, Liverpool legend and Scotsman Steve Nicol sharing his experience when England won the Cricket World Cup, and with Paul Mariner sharing some old experiences, how they worked in various jobs. Modern Football and even society suddenly looks sanitised and mechanised when hearing those words.”

North of the border, Roberto Mancini has become a National hero.

Updated

Las Vegas with Jack Grealish and raving with Jordan Pickford are surely long-read features in the making.

Patrick Wintour swears he was there in 1966.

For the third goal I remember clutching my dad’s hand – very un-son like – while we waited for the ref to consult the linesman, someone from Azerbaijan who supposedly had a grudge against the Germans for beating the Soviet Union in the semi-finals. He pointed to the centre circle. The ball was fully over the line. Thank God VAR had not been invented.

We waved our union jack flags, none of that St George nonsense, and roared, after nine beats: “England.”

It only takes a minute to realise that Arsenal have a new player in Nuno Tavares, the Benfica full-back signed for a figure of £6.8m.

Updated

Injury news: Foden sits out training

More to follow on this story but this is the word coming out of the England camp. A minor knock, it is said for a player who impressed when he came on in extra-time in the final.

Per PA Media

England playmaker Phil Foden sat out training on the eve of the Euro 2020 final against Italy with a “minor knock”.

Gareth Southgate’s men are making their final preparations for Sunday’s date with destiny against the Azzurri at Wembley. Foden was conspicuous by his absence from training on Saturday morning, when the rest of the 26-man squad trained at St George’s Park.

Updated

On the unsung heroes of England’s 26-man squad.

Take in this beautiful pictorial essay of how England made it to the final, accompanied by extracts from our writers’ coverage, from the opening win against Croatia to beating Denmark in the semi-final.

Everyone has to start somewhere, and here’s the origin stories of England’s 26 lions.

A reminder that England’s dreaming is taking place amid the Delta variant’s surge in England. Here’s a guide on how to watch the final in safety.

Morning all, it falls to me, John Brewin, to replace Gregg in the blogosphere. Very sad news to wake up to about Paul Mariner, who I was lucky enough to know a little when we worked together at ESPN. He was a lovely man, very funny, and great to talk football with, and we shared a love of classic rock. He was a mate of Ian Gillan and once told me that on Deep Purple’s Perfect Strangers reunion tour of 1984, he played bongos on stage with the band at Hammersmith Odeon. And he had a great Lancastrian accent, too, completely unaffected by years living in the United States. Rest in peace, Paul.

I went for a jog when it was pretty hot yesterday and and had to bat flying ants off me as I plodded through north London. There are some stories doing the rounds that Sunday’s final might be affected by them but the forecast is 17C with possible showers. My experience of Flying Ant Days over the years tells me that they don’t usually come out to mate when it’s tipping down and cold.

Here’s a cracking piece by Jonathan Liew on internationalism being the common theme in Gareth Southgate’s squad of European finalists:

Perhaps the real moral here, however, is not so much about individuals but internationalism. For all the motifs of English exceptionalism that will accompany their appearance in Sunday’s final, the success of Southgate’s side owes its origins to far subtler forces.

Distinct national identity, in footballing terms, is increasingly dissolving into myth. Everyone largely plays like everyone else these days. All but one or two of the Argentina and Brazil players in Sunday’s Copa América final will be based in Europe. We are all global capitalists now, orbiting ever more tightly around the big western European leagues and their inescapable gravity.

So, given the Premier League’s clout and the calibre of coach it has been able to attract, perhaps it was inevitable that English football would eventually have its day in the sun. Which is to take nothing away from Southgate or the quietly impressive infrastructure at St George’s Park or the players themselves.

If England or Italy need a boost from the bench on Sunday evening, then Gareth Southgate has a richer array of options, writes Pernille Harder:

Updated

What better way to get you all yapping on a Saturday morning than by posting a team of the tournament? It’s not ours, mind, it’s one that the good folk at the Press Association have drawn together. And here it is. Discuss …

Gianluigi Donnarumma (Italy) The 22-year-old failed to concede a goal in the group stage and has since made key contributions in the knockout rounds. Excellent in the win over Belgium, Donnarumma stepped up to the plate once more in the penalty shoot-out success against Spain.

Vladimir Coufal (Czech Republic) The West Ham full-back impressed during the Premier League last season and took that form into this summer where his showings helped the Czechs make it through to the quarter-finals. He bookended his Euro 2020 with assists – in their opener against Scotland and a narrow last eight loss to Denmark – to cement his status as one of the most solid defenders.

Andreas Christensen (Denmark) The versatile Dane was crucial to Denmark’s revival after Christian Eriksen collapsed in the first game against Finland. Kasper Hjulmand trusted the defender to move into midfield when he wanted to change formation in matches and his seamless transition between the two positions was a key component of their run to the last four.

Harry Maguire (England) An ankle injury threatened to rule the Manchester United centre-back out of the tournament, but he returned for the final group game against Czech Republic and has been colossal for the Three Lions. Maguire slotted in with ease after a six-week absence and produced excellent performances in the hard-fought wins over Germany and Denmark.

Leonardo Spinazzola (Italy) The Roma left-back has cruelly been denied an appearance in the final after he sustained an Achilles injury in the last eight win against Belgium. It was a sad way for the 28-year-old’s tournament to end after his marauding runs down the wing were a big feature of Italy’s successful progress.

Pedri (Spain) The teenager was a huge positive to come from a highly disrupted campaign for Spain, who made it through to the semi-final despite Covid-19 cases in the camp at the start of the tournament. Pedri was at the heart of everything good from Luis Enrique’s side, who went goal crazy in the knockout stage.

Pedri has a bright future for Spain and Barcelona.
Pedri has a bright future for Spain and Barcelona. Photograph: Kieran McManus/BPI/Shutterstock

Jorginho (Italy) Chelsea midfielder Jorginho has been one of the chief orchestrators behind Italy’s journey to the final and scored the winning penalty against Spain in typically cool fashion. He has only missed 15 minutes of the tournament so far and his ball retention and spatial awareness has allowed the Italians wing-backs to fly forward at every opportunity with the security of Jorginho covering them.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (Denmark) Hojbjerg has provided greater creativity in Eriksen’s absence and assisted three goals at the finals, only one fewer than he managed at Tottenham last term. On top of his improved offensive displays, the Spurs ace has been a rock in the middle from a defensive point of view and ensured play keeps ticking over for the Danes.

Raheem Sterling (England) Arguably England’s player of the tournament, the boy from Brent scored their only group-stage goals and then delivered a knockout blow in the round of 16 clash with Germany. Despite failing to score in the wins over Ukraine and Denmark, the Manchester City attacker has still been a big danger to remain as one of Gareth Southgate’s go-to players and most trusted lieutenants.

Raheem Sterling
Raheem Sterling: where would England be without him? Photograph: Carl Recine/EPA

Harry Kane (England) A slow start to the tournament threatened to scupper the Three Lions’ chances of glory but their main man eventually hit form. Even before his maiden Euros goal against Germany, Kane had impressed against the old enemy but his late header has opened the floodgates. The Spurs forward has saved his best for the knockout stage and caught the eye in victories over Ukraine and Denmark.

Patrik Schick (Czech Republic) The striker left his mark on the tournament in his opening game with a sensational lobbed effort against Scotland. It was part of a brace at Hampden Park - which proved a good ground for the Bayer Leverkusen ace as he also struck there in a 1-1 draw with Croatia. The Czechs only scored six goals at Euro 2020 but still made the quarter-finals thanks to Schick’s five strikes, which leave him joint-top goalscorer alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, who can count himself unlucky to miss out.

If you want to know where each England player is from and which was the first club they played for, you’re in luck because this piece on England’s origins stories will tell you all you need to know. There’s even this gem from Jordan Pickford’s former PE teacher:

I would play him in midfield and he scored a few goals with his left foot

Preamble

Morning all. I’ll keep you updated with all the latest news as we count down to Sunday’s Euro 2020 final between England and Italy at Wembley. But first, some sad news. Paul Mariner, the former Ipswich striker who scored 13 goals in 35 England appearances, has died aged 68.

A statement from his family read:

We regretfully inform you that Paul passed away peacefully on 9 July surrounded by his family, after a brief battle with brain cancer. We would like to thanks all the people who came to see him through his illness for their support and for the messages that were sent to him, they meant a great deal to him and us. A special thank you must go to the NHS and the unbelievable care he received when he most needed it and for that we, as a family, will forever be in your debt. Paul lived a full life and was fortunate enough to represent a group of fantastic football clubs as well as his country, all of which meant the world to him. Anyone who knew Paul will attest to his fantastic sense of humour, his passion for life and for his work. He will be sorely missed by everyone who was ever around him and by those most close to him.

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