England end 55-year wait as they beat brave Danes in extra time at Wembley to set up Euro 2020 final with Italy

England will play in their first major final since 1966 after Harry Kane scored in extra time in a 2-1 win against Denmark – but much of the focus is on Raheem Sterling who was accused of ‘diving’ to win the crucial penalty.

A nervy England went behind on the half-hour when the excellent Mikkel Damsgaard fired home a long-range free kick past the despairing grasp of Jordan Pickford to give the Danes a shock lead in the home of England football.

But just as fans were wondering if, in fact, football was might not have been ‘coming home’, good work on the right flank from Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka was rewarded with an own goal from Danish skipper Simon Kjaer on 39 minutes, who was forced to turn the ball into his own net as he attempted to deny Sterling an easy tap-in. 

The Danes, excellent in the first frame, weren’t quite so clinical in the second as they ceded territory to a rampaging England who enjoyed the lion’s share of possession as the game wore on, but both teams struggled to make an impact in the final third as the 90 minutes ticked away.

Denmark, obviously exhausted, and with some of their best players now off the field, couldn’t muster the same type of rapier-like thrust which characterized their all-action display in the first half. 

Oh, what Christian Eriksen might have done.

England, though, were far from excellent. In contrast to the midfield dynamism on display on the same turf 24 hours earlier in the magnificent duel between Spain and Italy, England instead opted for a more blunt approach – which, regardless of how they got there, produced a similar outcome to the impressive Italians on Tuesday. 

England boss Gareth Southgate oped to play his trump cards late in the game, sending in the likes of Jack Grealish and Phil Foden to orchestrate a game-winner – but it was again Sterling who created the crucial moment when he went down in the box to win a penalty shortly before the break in extra time. 

Replays appeared to show little to no contact on the Manchester City man from the offending Danish defender – but even after a VAR check referee Danny Makkelie was instructed to point to the spot where Harry Kane eventually prodded home from close range after Kasper Schmeichel saved his initial attempt. 

As much as the Danes (and practically all sections of non-English twitter) protested, Makkelie remained steadfast in his decision and once that final whistle blew, Sterling’s imprint on the game was little more than an afterthought. 

As for Southgate, who endured his own “25 years of hurt” after missing the crucial penalty in England’s exit from Euro 96 semi-final on the very same pitch, one suspects no one with the Three Lions badge on their hearts felt the simultaneous wave of relief and joy quite like him.

Sunday’s showpiece game, one expects, will provide a few more twists and turns before we can close the book on Euro 2020, more than a year after it was supposed to begin, so we can’t say just yet that ‘football is coming home’.

But it does appear as if the train might just have left the station.

Also on rt.com ‘His head’s gone’: Fans point finger at Pickford as England concede first Euro 2020 goal from Damsgaard free-kick (VIDEO)