ENGLAND’S 4-2 thumping of Croatia at Euro 2004 will be replayed in FULL on the BBC at 3pm today.
Two goals from Wayne Rooney and one each from Paul Scholes and Frank Lampard saw the Three Lions reach the knockout stages of the Euros on foreign soil for the first time ever.
England’s 4-2 thumping of Croatia at Euro 2004 will be replayed in FULL on the BBC at 3pm today
Paul Scholes scored one of England’s four goals
The win had fans dreaming of a Euro 96 repeat and supporters across the land can relive the action on BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport online and on the red button this afternoon.
England’s dreams were eventually shattered when Sven Goran Eriksson’s men were knocked out by Portugal on penalties in the quarter-final after Rooney was subbed off early in the game with a broken metatarsal.
Rooney later said he believed England would have won the tournament if he had stayed fit.
The fresh-faced 18-year-old dared to have the nation dreaming after lighting up the tournament with four goals.
His opening strike against Switzerland also ensured he became the youngest goalscorer in European final history.
But with Roo in the form of his life and England 1-0 up against Portugal in the quarter-finals, the broken metatarsal cruelly ended his tournament in the 27th minute of the contest.
England went on to lose on penalties and the wait to win their second major tournament continued.
Speaking in 2018, Rooney said: “The only time I really looked back was when I stopped playing, when you start looking at different situations, different games, what you can do better.
“I think overall it was good, getting records was the highlight of it, but then you look back in disappointment in the main areas of it, in the tournaments.
“Euro 2004 was good; I still believe the form I was in, the confidence I had, if I’d stayed fit I believe we would have won it.”
Fans on Twitter were thrilled with the news when it broke this morning.
One wrote: “I’m loving the retro football replays. Keep them coming.”
Another added: “If @BBCFOUR showing the entirety of Croatia vs England at Euro 2004 this afternoon isn’t justification for the license fee, then frankly nothing ever will be.”
And one cheekily tweeted: “Morning @SkyBet, you have my word that I’ve forgotten the outcome of the Euro 2004 game between England and Croatia due to be shown on BBC today, any chance of opening a market on it?”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
