Euro 2020 news - 'We suffered in Moscow, and put that right' - Gareth Southgate hails victory
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Updated 08/07/2021 at 00:30 GMT
The England manager had to watch his team suffer extra-time heartbreak against Croatia three years ago but there was to be no repeat of that. This time it was they who emerged victorious in the additional 30 minutes and they will now face Roberto Mancini's Italy team for a chance to lift the trophy on Sunday.
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England manager Gareth Southgate has said that he is “so proud” of his players for wronging the right of Moscow and reaching the final of Euro 2020.
England beat Denmark 2-1 in extra-time thanks to Harry Kane slotting home on the rebound after Kasper Schmeichel had saved his penalty.
They will face Italy in the final after missing out at the World Cup three years ago when they lost to Croatia in extra-time.
Speaking to ITV after the game Southgate said "I’m so proud of the players. It’s an incredible occasion to be a part of, the fans were incredible all night.
It wasn’t going to be straight forward, the game the other night in Rome was, but we told the players that they would have to show resilience and come back from some setbacks, and we did that tonight.
“I felt we would get over the line but knew we would have different sorts of battles. Denmark are so underrated as a team; they did cause us a lot of problems. When you have waited as long as we have to get through a semi-final, given the limited amount of international experience some of the players have, they have done an incredible job.
"The most pleasing thing is that we’ve given our fans and nation a fantastic night, and the journey carries on for another four days. For the team to come through this sort of a night, we suffered in Moscow on a night like this, we managed to put that right.”
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England's forward Harry Kane (R) celebrates with England's midfielder Phil Foden (L) after scoring a goal during the UEFA EURO 2020 semi-final football match between England and Denmark at Wembley Stadium in London on July 7, 2021.
Image credit: Getty Images
Southgate said that he had not seen the penalty incident that saw Raheem Sterling earn the spot-kick for Kane.
Whilst he was keen to praise his team for what they had achieved the England boss was still keen to stress that there was a tough task ahead.
“We’re in a final, we’ve got to enjoy that fact, but there is one more massive hurdle to try and conquer. Italy are a very good side, they have really shown outstanding form, have defensive warriors at the back, it’s going to be a great game to look forward to.
"We’ve had three memorable games on the bounce. We said we wanted to create memories for our nation, now we’ve got to finish the job. Finals are there to be won, we’ve got to regroup, repair and recover because tonight has taken a lot emotionally and physically.”
Should England succeed it will be the first time they’ve ever won the European Championships, and it will be their first major victory since 1966.
Italy haven’t won the Euros since 1968 but have tasted success this millennium with their World Cup win in 2006.
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