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England Lost ‘Euros,’ But Won Hearts
Three Lions fall to penalty curse; Black players hit by racial abuse — again!
On Sunday, the England national football (soccer) team was defeated 3–2 on penalties by Italy. That result left Italy the champions in an exciting European Championship tournament. The tournament was groundbreaking in many aspects. England played a tactical, constrained game. The team also defeated Germany, often England’s jinx team, and they excited the nation with their run to the final of the tournament. This is the first time this has happened in 55 years.
But, England fell to their familiar Achille’s heel — penalties. Although goalkeeper Jordan Pickford stopped two penalties, England’s Marcus Rashford, Jaden Sancho and Bukayo Saka failed to score.
The good
However, there are several positives. Gareth Southgate, the England coach, has turned out to be a tactical genius. He approached every game with a unique plan. And sometimes, his rationale worked. He was bashed for his conservative approach to games. Southgate decided the “Three Lions” would pack to the defense and try to score on the counterattack. Once they had scored, they would defend that lead. It wasn’t pretty. But it was effective.
