Euro 2024 – Thoughts after the Final

 

Euro 2024 – The Final    
Sunday 14th July 2024    

Spain 2 England 1 (Berlin)    

Ah well, it was not meant to be. England had found a way past every team they had faced, but there’s no debate that the better teams were in the other half of the draw. Spain were clear favourites in the final, and ultimately deserved winners of the tournament. You can’t argue with their winning all seven of their games without the need for a penalty shoot-out, and six of those in normal time.

 

Southgate elected to start Luke Shaw ahead of Kieran Trippier, and retain the patently unfit Harry Kane. Kane had scored three goals in six games, which was an argument for starting him, but he’d done little else. His inability to make runs into space when England had opportunities in the penalty area didn’t stop them making the final, but he was a passenger in Berlin. (Those who know their Iggy Pop and his time in that city might enjoy that description). Southgate was never going to drop him, but at least had the balls to remove him from the fray after an hour. I don’t think Kane has written his autobiography, but when he does, I wonder if he will ‘fess up to the reality that he was not fit to start two of the three major finals he has reached – and ultimately cost his club and country in the process. 

 

The opening of the game was harrowing, almost exclusively in England’s half, the ball rarely not Spain’s. Southgate’s side weathered that storm and played their way into the final. One half chance for Phil Foden just before the interval was the closest anyone came to actually scoring. So far so good, and the non-appearance of Rodri for the second half raised hopes that but there was a brief lack of concentration after the restart and Spain went ahead through Nico Williams. It didn’t look good as they almost followed up with a second. Kane was removed as Watkins replaced him, and England were still in the game when Cole Palmer came on for Mainoo a few minutes later. 

Palmer scored a cracking goal after Bellingham teed him up and hope returned. You did feel that fatigue was going to play a part in this final, and on that level there was only going to be one winner. With the end of normal time approaching, Spanish sub Oyarzabal found space between Stones and Guehi to convert a low Cucurella cross and win the final for Spain. Yes, England had a header cleared off the line subsequently, but in honesty, I’m not certain they would have got through extra time unscathed. Of course, we’d have all liked to find out, but it was not to be. 

 

England did as well as they could given their poor run of form going into the tournament, the lack of fluidity and understanding in the side, and the fact that they started every game with an unfit striker. It was a case of the sum being lesser than the collection of the parts, something that could not have been said of Spain. The two best teams in the tournament were the winners and the hosts, who met in the quarter final. France and Portugal ultimately disappointed, and in England’s half of the draw, nobody came anywhere close to Spain’s quality. 

But for the draw, England might have only made it as far as the quarter finals if we are honest. They won matches through conjuring up just enough goals when they mattered, and has been said elsewhere, were a team of moments. And sure, they gave us a good few of those, specifically in the three knockout games that got them to the final. At such times, the quality of the individuals concerned proved decisive, but it’s no big surprise to anyone that Spain was a game too far. 

 

Gareth Southgate’s contract runs until December, ensuring there is no knee jerk reaction to this tournament, giving everyone the chance to reflect. My view is that it’s time for a change. The manager’s done well in terms of getting England to the business end of four major tournaments, but I’m not sure he’s got the best of out of his players. Kane didn’t help him there, but Southgate didn’t have to pick him. That he didn’t have a settled midfield going into the tournament was indicative of his team not being ready, and the relative anonymity of Phil Foden for the vast majority of the matches suggests that Southgate was picking the best names on paper, rather than thinking about the balance of his team.

Kane has not become a bad player. He’s simply not fit. I would be very surprised if he is not at the finals in the USA in two years’ time, and assuming he is fit for that, might well be the best option to start up front. But you really can’t carry players at this level. You could blame Kane for believing he could still do a job for his country, but ultimately the manager sees what is happening and reacts in his team selections or doesn’t. Watkins had one moment in the area last night after Bellingham slipped him through, but lost control of the ball on the turn. But at least he was in space to receive the ball. 

 

Southgate’s team had a go, beat teams you would expect them to, then fell short when they met a superior opponent. That they were able to negotiate three knockout games after winning their group despite playing poorly gave the nation some great moments. But ultimately it was the eternal story. They fell short, as since 1966, somehow they always do. During major tournaments, I sometimes wonder if I will ever see England lift another major trophy in my lifetime. I was around in 1966, but too young to even know what football was. It wasn’t until I was about seven years old that I became interested in the game, the season after Arsenal’s double under Bertie Mee. I had to wait until 1982 for a World Cup that England were playing in that I had any awareness of. 

With this young group of players, there is a platform to build upon. There is real talent, but it just needs to be coached in such a way that we will see the best of them. Much as Southgate did get them to the final, he got lucky and far too often the players underperformed. The first half against the Netherlands was an exception, whereas Spain were producing excellent football on a consistent basis. 

 

Overall, I think it’s been a decent tournament. The group stages offered plenty of entertainment. There will always be a few duff matches, but there weren’t too many outside of England’s group. Things got tighter from the quarter finals onwards. Being English, bad as many of England’s games were, we always had tension. The stadiums and the atmosphere were generally excellent (ironically Berlin the exception for watching the game), even if the infrastructure in Germany won’t be missed by those crowded onto trains and trams, and those whose train was simply cancelled. A number of the smaller cities simply didn’t prepare sufficiently, and at times, getting to and from the stadium was an endurance. Many elected to walk a few miles, especially after the game. Here’s one example of this, from England’s opening group match in Gelsenkirchen.

 

All the same, I will look back on the experience of my own trip around the ten host stadiums with fondness, even the character-building adversity. Ticket, accommodation and travel expense will limit my experience of USA/Canada/Mexico 2026. The plan at the moment is maybe a toe in the water job by seeing a game in each of Mexico’s three stadiums, and if money is good for me at the time, two or three games in the south of the States. No way will I be getting to every stadium unless David Dein reaches out to me with a spare seat on his private hire jet. Euro 2028 is in the UK and Ireland, so I figure the World Cup 2030 may be the next that one involves a schedule like the one I had in my two weeks at this Euros.

That’s for the future though. Now I can focus again on club football and Arsenal specifically. I think I’ve mentioned previously that I will be on Substack from next season, with pieces on the games free to all, but a couple of articles a week reserved for those happy to pay a modest fee to read my stuff. It takes time to produce the words I do. You’ll get plenty of notice to switch over here.

One final thought. Southgate came into the job as a consequence of Sam Allardyce only lasting a single game as England boss back in 2016 due to his transgressions. I wonder what might have been had Allardyce resisted the temptation to swim with the sharks? We’ll never know.

 

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