Euro 2024

MARC GUEHI will give away his winner’s medal if England clinch victory at Euro 2024.The Three Lions defender hands all his accolades to his parents.Marc Guehi will give his medal to his parents if England win the Euro 2024 finalCredit: AlamyGuehi, whose dad John is a church pastor, said: “I’ll give it (the medal) to mum and dad. They’ll take care of it.“For me, it’s more about the memories you can pass and share. That’s the most important thing, to be honest.“I’m just enjoying the ride. I do get nervous but it’s a feeling you just try to use to help you.”Guehi jumped to the defence of Harry Kane, who has received criticism for his performances.READ MORE ENGLAND NEWSHe said: “Harry’s doing well. I think more than ever in this competition you’ve seen that side of him being a real leader.”The 23-year-old has already lifted an international trophy with England at youth level.Guehi was part of the side which lifted the under-17 World Cup in India seven years ago.Current Leicester boss Steve Cooper managed a squad which also included Phil Foden and Conor Gallagher to glory.Most read in FootballCASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO WELCOME OFFERSAs well as starting all seven matches at the tournament, Guehi also scored in the final as England beat Spain 5-2.He will be hoping to once again get the better of La Roja in a final on Sunday night.Meet Euro 2024 final ref who SLAPPED HaalandKobbie Mainoo: From work experience kid to England hero… and latest generational talentBy Charlie WyettAND we all thought England had just the one generational talent.Kobbie Mainoo was effectively brought to Germany as a work experience kid but has emerged as the key kid behind this country’s attempt to rewrite history.After just five senior starts, England’s new boy wonder will now have a teenage tear-up against Spain’s Lamine Yamal in the Euro 2024 final.Last night, he did not merely become England’s youngest ever player to feature in a semi-final of a major tournament, aged 19 years and 82 days.Here, he took this semi-final by the scruff of the neck, delivered a performance which was a joy to watch, particularly in the first half, and now England are in their first final on foreign soil.If Jude Bellingham thought he was certain to be England’s main posterboy over the next decade, he has someone else who has now emerged in his rear-view mirror within just a few weeks.To bag an FA Cup winners’ medal at the age of 19 was impressive. To then win Euro 2024 a couple of months later would be extraordinary.As we saw with Manchester United, Mainoo has now fitted seamlessly into the team and provided a perfect mix of both style and substance.Give it a couple of years, and you can only imagine how good this lad is going to be.For much of this tournament, the focus has been on the disappointing form of Harry Kane, Bellingham and Phil Foden.So Mainoo, to a degree, had almost been off the radar. But against the Dutch, in tight, congested spaces, he is a class apart.When he was put under pressure, remained cool, navigated his way out of difficult situations and drove forward.Despite what was at stake, Mainoo once again looked extraordinarily composed and was England’s best player in the first half. He won possession, he rode tackles and he drove forward like an old master.He nearly delivered an assist at 1-1 with some brilliant play. He received the ball from Foden, turned and drove forward before returning the ball to his team-mate but the shot was hacked off the line by Denzel Dumfries.Mainoo delivered a terrific block to snuff out some serious danger in a lightning-quick Dutch counter attack.In the second half, he had less space in midfield but nevertheless still had bags of energy and kept his discipline positionally – and then he let subs Cole Palmer and Ollie Watkins deliver the business.It is still mind-boggling that Mainoo is now heading to Berlin on Sunday, when you consider Mainoo only made his United debut against Charlton in the Carabao Cup in January 2023. His first Premier League start was just eight months ago.Yet it was his dazzling midfield form in an otherwise dysfunctional United team which earned him his first cap as a substitute against Brazil in March. He was then Man of the Match in a ridiculously-good performance in the 2-2 draw with Belgium.Mainoo’s form dipped in the last few weeks of the season. It was probably because he was knackered carrying some of his team-mates. But he then saved them again in the FA Cup final against Manchester City with a Man of the Match performance in a 2-1 win.A bit like Adam Wharton, he was part of England’s 26-man squad to soak up the experience, to learn what it is like to feature in a major tournament and maybe, if needed, to have a few cameo roles off the bench.And the fact he was effectively Southgate’s third-choice to partner Declan Rice here in Germany tells you exactly where he stood in a squad of 26.The Trent Alexander-Arnold midfield failed in the two opening games against Serbia and Denmark. Conor Gallagher – despite some bright performances as a sub in those games – really struggled in his start against Slovenia.Apart from a strong appearance as a substitute by Palmer, Mainoo’s performance against Slovakia was the only bright spot in a dismal and extremely fortunate win over Slovakia in the last 16.There was always a worry about Mainoo’s movement when England do not have possession but that will come with experience, like it would for any other central midfielder.Yet Mainoo has solved the problem for Southgate and now England can continue to dream big. And it is totally unthinkable from where you consider how they played in the group stages when they stunk out Germany.In Sunday’s final, England’s experienced players will be able to draw on the pain of both the 2018 World Cup and Euro 2020.For Mainoo, this will be a completely new experience but do not expect him to wilt. He’ll absolutely love it.Guehi could also be set for a place in the team of the tournament after starring for Gareth Southgate’s side in Germany.He has played every minute other than the quarter-final against Switzerland, which he missed through injury.The Crystal Palace centre-back also set up Jude Bellingham’s stoppage time equaliser against Slovakia in the last 16.England vs Spain recordEngland have played Spain 27 times in total – here is a look at every result…May 1929, Spain 4-3 England – International Friendly (L)December 1931, England 7-1 Spain – International Friendly (W)July 1950, Spain 1-0 England – World Cup (L)May 1955, Spain 1-1 England – International Friendly (D)November 1955, England 4-1 Spain – International Friendly (W)May 1960, Spain 3-0 England – International Friendly (L)October 1960, England 4-2 Spain – International Friendly (W)December 1965, Spain 0-2 England – International Friendly (W)May 1967, England 2-0 Spain – International Friendly (W)April 1968, England 1-0 Spain – European Championship (W)May 1968, Spain 1-2 England – European Championship (W)March 1980, Spain 0-2 England – International Friendly (W)June 1980, England 2-1 Spain – European Championship (W)March 1981, England 1-2 Spain – International Friendly (L)July 1982, Spain 0-0 England – World Cup (D)February 1987, Spain 2-4 England – International Friendly (W)September 1992, Spain 1-0 England – International Friendly (L)June 1996, England 0(4)-(2)0 Spain – European Championship (W)February 2001, England 3-0 Spain – International Friendly (W)November 2004, Spain 1-0 England – International Friendly (L)February 2007, England 0-1 Spain – International Friendly (L)February 2009, Spain 2-0 England – International Friendly (L)November 2011, England 1-0 Spain – International Friendly (W)November 2015, Spain 2-0 England – International Friendly (L)November 2016, England 2-2 Spain – International Friendly (D)September 2018, England 1-2 Spain – Nations League (L)October 2018, Spain 2-3 England – Nations League (W)Overall, England have won 14, drawn three and lost 10 matches against Spain. 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IF Spain’s Nico Williams wins the Euros tomorrow, he will dedicate it to his dad who used to man the turnstiles at Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge.The Athletic Bilbao winger —  one of breakout stars of the tournament — says he owes his success to his parents Felix and Maria who arrived in Spain as refugees in 1994.Nico Williams has become at Spanish hero at Euro 2024Credit: GettyWilliams has said he will dedicate a Spain win to his fatherCredit: GettyNico, left, is the brother of Athletic Bilbao team-mate InakiCredit: GettyTheir father, Felix, used to man the turnstiles at Stamford BridgeCredit: RexHis parents made the journey from Accra in Ghana to the Basque Country when she was pregnant with his older brother — and now Athletic team-mate — Inaki.The family settled in Pamplona, with Nico born there in July 2002.Much of his childhood was spent with his dad away trying to earn money for the family.When work as a labourer, cleaner and even as a shepherd ran out, Felix went to London to look for a job — leaving three-year-old Nico at home with his mum and brother. In 2021, Inaki told me: “My dad worked in a shopping centre near Chelsea clearing tables in the food halls or as a security guard, and he got a job tearing tickets at Stamford Bridge.”READ MORE IN FOOTBALLFelix was away for a decade, so Nico, who turned 22 yesterday, grew up with big brother as his biggest influence and paternal guide.The Spain winger told Spanish radio Cope this week: “I’m young and make a lot of mistakes and Inaki is always on top of me giving me advice about football and life.”Inspired by Spain winning the World Cup in 2010 when he was only eight, Nico would try to emulate his heroes kicking a ball against a wall in the Rochapea neighbourhood.Playing out on the street together Nico soon showed signs of an even greater talent than his brother.Most read in FootballBEST FREE BET SIGN UP OFFERS FOR UK BOOKMAKERSWilliams has contributed to two goals at Euro 2024Credit: EPANico and Inaki with mum, MariaCredit: https://www.instagram.com/williaaaams11/?hl=enAlthough Inaki — who represents Ghana — recently revealed that on rainy days indoors on the PlayStation there was only one winner.He told Madrid-based sports website Relevo: “I had to unplug him he was so bad. He could barely hold the controls properly.”England fans gush ‘my manager’ as incredible footage emerges of Southgate going wild after reaching Euro 2024 final Nico has improved considerably since then and admitted to spending six hours a day on EA Sports’ FC 24 during the tournament.Local club Osasuna wanted to sign the young Nico but in 2012 Athletic Bilbao swooped for his sibling and a year later they took him too.It meant being at the same club as Inaki who guided him through the youth ranks all the way to the first team.Villarreal coach Marcelino, who gave Nico his debut at Bilbao in 2021, said: “Inaki is like a father to Nico because he had to go through all the same things before his brother. “Nico couldn’t have a better role model.”That guidance has also helped him deal with the scourge of racist abuse when it has come his way in Spain. Inaki was a father figure to Nico growing up while their dad was away working in LondonCredit: https://www.instagram.com/williaaaams11/?hl=enInaki ended up choosing to represent Ghana, where Felix and Maria where originally fromCredit: GettyHe was racially abused at Atletico Madrid’s Metropolitano Stadium last season but there is renewed hope the problem is now being tackled.Three people were sentenced to eight months in prison and given two-year stadium bans for racially abusing Vinicius Jr during Real Madrid’s game at Valencia in May 2023.It was the first time a conviction has been made for racist abuse at a football stadium in the whole of Spain.Nico said this week: “There will be a before and after. When they insult you and get away with it then it encourages more people to do it.“Now people have seen that the law will take it seriously and act on it.“In the end, you have to reason with people and make them get to know you. Maybe they don’t know the African culture. The family settled in Pamplona, with Nico born there in July 2002Credit: Instagram @williaaaams11Now newly-married Inaki is trying to cut his honeymoon short to watch Nico in the Euro 2024 finalCredit: Getty”I think we have to teach them, let them discover the world, and that will change many mentalities.” Williams’ performances for Spain have put the whole of Europe on alert for a player whose release clause is just £49m.He has told his agent he does not want  to hear a word about his future until the  tournament ends tomorrow.Williams is expected to stay one more season so he can fulfil a dream of representing Athletic in next season’s Europa League.It is going to be hard to wrench him away from the Basque region where his parents settled 22 years ago.They will be at the final against England. Brother Inaki, 30, will be there too.READ MORE SUN STORIESHe was married at the start of June and Nico was granted permission from his Spain coach Luis de la Fuente to leave Euro 2024 preparations to make the ceremony.Now it is Inaki requesting to cut short his honeymoon with wife Patricia to watch his brother play the biggest game of his life.Inside the baffling, brilliant story of Lamine Yamal – from being bathed by Messi to doing homework while taking Euros by stormLAMINE YAMAL has confirmed his status as football’s next superstar at Euro 2024 – but has only been playing 11-a-side games for four years, write Jack Rosser.Spain’s incredible 16-year-old bent home the goal of the tournament so far against France as La Roja sealed the spot in the final.But his first five years in Barcelona’s academy were spent playing seven-a-side football, up until the age of 12 in 2020 when he finally got a crack at 11-a-side games.Yamal’s story is baffling, brilliant and barely believable in equal measure.He is a boy born to a Moroccan father and a mother from Equatorial Guinea, who turns 17 tomorrow and was cradled by footballing royalty at just six months old.Staggering pictures of Yamal as a baby being held and bathed by Messi, taken for a Barcelona charity calendar 16 years ago, resurfaced this week.He did not restrict his brushes with greatness to Barcelona either, with footage of Yamal as an academy player walking as a mascot with Spain and Real Madrid icon Sergio Ramos at an El Clasico in 2016.There is a touch of fate about this gem, Spain’s “little MVP”, as team-mate Nico Williams has dubbed him.Yamal has been doing homework in his spare time and received exam results during the tournament. He passed, obviously.Now he’s the youngest ever goalscorer at the Euros, also becoming the youngest player to ever start a major semi-final – claiming that title from Pele.But it’s Yamal’s humble approach on and off the pitch that most impresses everyone he meets.And France star Adrien Rabiot probably felt quite embarrassed as he boarded his plane back home from Germany.He had tried to intimidate Yamal ahead of their semi-final clash – telling Yamal he “needs to do more.”Was this good enough, then? Yamal responded with a goal for the ages and a man of the match performance.A season which started with a pre-season game against Tottenham where Yamal excelled but was overshadowed by Oliver Skipp scoring a brace will end on the biggest stage European football has to offer on Sunday.From being outshone by Skipp to eclipsing Pele’s records is not a bad year’s work – just imagine what he will do when he grows up.Read all about the incredible rise of Lamine Yamal in full… More

WHEN you become a European champion, you experience an intense emotional connection with the people of your country that you will share for the rest of your life.There is nothing to compare with winning a major tournament for your national team.Jurgen Klinsmann and Germany drank their hotel dry after winning the EurosCredit: GettyThe striker captained Germany as they won Euro 96 in EnglandCredit: AFPCollecting trophies with your club is great but winning a Euros or a World Cup is the pinnacle — and I really hope England’s players get to experience this by beating Spain on Sunday.Since we won the 1990 World Cup and Euro 96, every German fan I come across in pubs or shops or wherever will tell me where they were at that moment in time that you shared with them.Some will tell you they were in the stadium or abroad on holiday.They will never forget, they will cherish it forever and they’ll be a companion for life.READ MORE FOOTBALL NEWSSometimes they even give you a free beer but actually not very often!After we won Euro 96, we were  staying at The Landmark hotel in  Marylebone, London, and they were out of drinks by 2am or 3am.We were very disappointed. We had to empty out all our mini-bars so that we could keep partying because they called it a night at the bar.And I will never forget flying back to Frankfurt Airport. For the last couple of miles our plane was escorted by two fighter jets, guiding us down to the runway, the pilots smiling from their cockpits. That was very special.Most read in FootballCASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO WELCOME OFFERSAfter you win, those are an unforgettable couple of days — just like in 1990 when we spent two days partying in Rome after winning the World Cup.England just need one more win to experience all this.England fans gush ‘my manager’ as incredible footage emerges of Southgate going wild after reaching Euro 2024 final Spain are the team of the tournament — but England are the team of the moment after the way they beat Holland with that 90th-minute goal from Ollie Watkins. England might just be peaking at exactly the right time.Spain have been so impressive — they walked all over Italy and Croatia in the group stage, then beat Germany and France. But none of that gives them any right to be champions of Europe.England have to take that confidence and willpower they showed in the semi-final and continue to ride that wave.It’s becoming a tidal wave. I have a good feeling about England.Their first half against Holland was the England we’ve been waiting for — better late than never!The tempo of the passing and the movement off the ball, they enjoyed the running, they wanted to unlock the Dutch side — they looked confident enough to give Spain a message that they are up for this final.Euro 2024 final stadium is home to English football’s most shameful episodeGARETH SOUTHGATE and his players will walk in the footsteps of sporting infamy on Sunday.And they also have the chance to wipe out the memories of English football’s most shameful episode by replacing it with glorious triumph.For many, the Olympiastadion will always be the place where Jesse Owens humiliated Adolf Hitler in his own backyard.But the 1936 Olympics WERE used by the Nazis as pure propaganda, as a statement about the supposed supremacy of the “Aryan race”.The ghosts of those Games still flit between the towers and the colosseum-style architecture.Fans walking in on Sunday will see the plinth where the Olympic cauldron was lit by Fritz Schilgen – handpicked by propagandist film-maker Leni Riefenstahl – still there, high in the stands above one goal.And two years later, when the FA disgracefully ordered England’s players to raise their arm in the Nazi salute before beating Germany in a friendly, it seemed that the British state was implicitly accepting Hitler’s authority and power.The Three Lions have the opportunity to right that ancient wrong yet nothing can detract from the stadium’s place in the pantheon of sport’s darkest hours.Read the full story HERE.It’s a brain game now, it’s all in the head, and they showed me enough to convince me they can beat Spain.As a manager, when you make a sub, you always hope they will make an impact but there’s zero guarantee.When it works out like it did for Gareth Southgate, and Watkins takes his one opportunity, this is the moment you live for as a manager.Everyone was waiting for Southgate, his players and fans to experience a real emotional connection — and the joy from Watkins’ goal has created that, even if it was a bit late in the tournament.It was a loud call to England supporters to make them believe. Now the nation believes in what Southgate is doing.When I was manager of Germany at the 2006 World Cup, I brought on a young right winger, David Odonkor, as a sub when our group-stage match against Poland was goalless.Klinsmann and his team-mates emptied the mini-bars as their celebrations continuedCredit: ReutersGareth Southgate has taken England to a second Euros final in a rowCredit: GettyEveryone was asking how I could bring on this kid for such a big game but he was excellent and he assisted our late winner. That was in the same stadium, at Dortmund, as the England-Holland game and gave us our connection with the nation. Although we finished third at that World Cup, a lot of German people remember it as a summer fairytale.It’s so important for a manager, staff and senior players to ensure players like Watkins keep feeling appreciated, respected and fully part of the project.Because when you get your chance at a tournament, a split-second can change your life — as it has for Watkins with that brilliant finish to get England into their first major final on foreign soil.It’s a 24-7 thing to keep those players feeling loved. A good team looks after those who aren’t getting many minutes.Gareth has mentioned that England have one day’s less rest than Spain but I don’t think that matters.The players are used to playing every three days. The adrenalin will see them through. There will be zero tiredness. If anything, players can have too much energy. They need to be able to sleep.Ollie Watkins’ late goal booked the Three Lions’ place in the finalCredit: GettyLamine Yamal and Spain await England at the Olympiastadion in BerlinCredit: GettyI know there are concerns in England about players keeping their heads, Jude Bellingham especially.But I’d want a great player like  Bellingham to play on the edge, while still controlling his temper.I saw the Uruguay v Colombia Copa America semi-final and thought they were going to start killing each other.A Colombian player, Daniel Munoz, lost his head and was sent off for an elbow before half-time and they had to suffer with ten men to win.But I don’t expect that from England, they have their heads right.Spain are a great team. Lamine Yamal,  17 today, is an incredible talent who brings to mind a young Pele.READ MORE SUN STORIESSo it will be a festival in Berlin tomorrow with unbelievable energy and I can’t wait to be there.If these England players can do it, they will never forget it.Because they will be reminded every day for the rest of their lives. More

OLLIE WATKINS and the nation went crazy after his winner against Holland.But it could not have been more different to the reaction to his first goal for non-league side Weston-super-Mare ten years ago.Ollie Watkins scored his first goal for Weston-super-Mare in front of just one fanThe England striker is now preparing to face Spain in the Euro 2024 finalCredit: GettyPlaying at Ebbsfleet in the Conference South, the then-teenager netted the only goal of the game in front of a solitary away fan and then celebrated with a half-baked potato and some beans out of a tin.That humble beginning underlines just what an amazing a journey the Aston Villa striker has been on as he goes into Sunday’s final against Spain.Watkins labelled the 1-0 victory at Stonebridge Road as his standout non-league memory and recalled: “I scored and ran off, pulling my shirt up and there was one fan in the away end.“That was my first goal for Weston. Ebbsfleet had a really big budget at the time and we were fighting to stay up.READ MORE ON OLLIE WATKINS“We had a long bus journey. JR was the kitman — bless him, he’s  passed away now — and he used to make us potato and beans and cheese on the bus. It’s definitely very different to the semi-final. Him making us meals on the bus, we got a half-cooked potato with some beans out the tin — we were on rations!“I remember one lad who turned up to the bus and he had paint all over his hands because he had just been painting before we travelled to a game. That was his main job.  It was really good times.”Watkins’ lethal strike against the Dutch went down as one of England’s greatest goals from the moment it hit the back of the net at Dortmund’s Westfalenstadion.Yet many fans were surprised Gareth Southgate turned to the 28-year-old Villa man rather than Ivan Toney when subbing off Harry Kane at 1-1.Most read in FootballCASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO WELCOME OFFERSThat was because Toney, 28, had made such a devastating impact in the previous two knockout games.Against Slovakia in the last 16, the Brentford man teed up Kane’s winner in extra-time, which had been forced by Jude Bellingham’s extraordinary 95th-minute bicycle kick.England stars celebrate reaching Euro 2024 final with Wags as Ollie Watkins kisses girlfriend after late winnerInside humble Ollie Watkins’ remarkable rise from non-league to England’s Euro 2024 heroNINE summers ago Ollie Watkins went on a lads’ holiday after helping to save Conference South side Weston-Super-Mare from relegation, writes Dan King.Now he’s just fired England into the Euro 2024 final with a sensational 90th-minute winner.And even helped Aston Villa qualify for the Champions League last season.Watkins arrived on the Somerset coast as a teenaged striker on loan from League Two Exeter in December 2014.His 10 goals in 24 league games were a big factor in stopping Weston from slipping into the sixth tier for the first time in their history – and in giving them something to celebrate on a post-season trip to Spain.But it was also his workrate and attitude that earned him the respect of the dressing room, and helped him take the first significant steps on the road to stardom.Ryan Northmore, boss of Weston at the time, said: “His goals saved the club from relegation. But he contributed much more than his goals, which is really important when you’re scrapping away for your lives.“He wasn’t just sat at the top of the pitch waiting for the ball to come. He would roll his sleeves up and get involved in all aspects of the game.”Days after joining, Watkins made an instant impact with an equaliser against Farnborough.Team-mate Tom Jordan said: “He always struck me as the kind of lad who had his eyes wide open to different aspects of the game.“Sometimes you would have loan lads come in from a League club to non-League and they would be looking at you like they were doing you a favour.“His attitude was very different. He was coming in thinking, ‘I’m going to learn from this experience’.”It was during Watkins’ spell at Weston that the then Walsall boss Dean Smith spotted him.Smith would later take the striker to Brentford and bring him to Villa, where he has reached new levels under current boss Unai Emery.But Watkins has never forgotten the part that Weston played in his rise to the top.One of his Villa shirts is on display there, he has spoken to young players coming through and happily tells the local press how important and enjoyable his time at the club was.And he even helped fund an end-of-season boys’ trip to Spain due to his fines for being late – although he was allowed to join the rest of the squad.Read all about Ollie Watkins’ incredible rise in full…Toney then fired home that brazen no-look penalty in the shootout victory over Switzerland at the quarter-final stage.Watkins could have been forgiven for worrying about the pecking order, having only featured for the last 20 minutes against Denmark in the group stage prior to his inspired Dutch cameo.Yet he said: “I was saying  against Slovakia, if I’m not coming on here then he needs to bring Ivan on because we’re going to go direct.“He did — I thought it was going to be too late but then Jude pops up with the overhead kick, then Ivan sets up Harry Kane.“There’s no bitterness whatsoever. I was so pleased for Ivan.“There are certain times where it’s more suited for Ivan to go on the pitch if we’re going more direct.“Then there’s certain times where it’s better for me, where the game’s more open and I can run in behind and affect the game in a different way.READ MORE SUN STORIES“We both have different attributes and I’m really glad the boss didn’t just choose one of us.“That he brought all three of us because we’ve all had massive parts to play in this competition. It was a great decision to bring all three of us.”Watkins’ last-minute winner against the Netherlands booked England’s place in the finalCredit: Reuters More

GARETH SOUTHGATE wants to win the Euros “so much it hurts”.But the England boss will not let the result of Sunday’s final in Berlin define him — like his Euro 96 penalty miss once did.Gareth Southgate wants to win the Euros ‘so much it hurts’Credit: GettyAnd Southgate will return home proud of what he has achieved in his eight-year reign.He said: “In the end, winning and what that means completely changes how you’re going to be viewed.“I want to win so much on Sunday it hurts, don’t get me wrong. But I can handle whatever comes and I know it’s not going to change what the dog thinks when I walk back through the door.“The margins are so fine and there are bits you can affect, others you are not going to affect.READ MORE ENGLAND NEWS“I would probably have felt differently about that three years ago, five years ago.”But I’m in a different space now — and that’s a good thing because otherwise I’d have been in a mess these last five weeks.”Southgate was eaten up for years because he missed the crucial penalty in the Euro 96 semi-final shootout against Germany.But he will be comfortable in his own skin even if England are beaten by Spain, having led the team to back-to-back Euros finals, plus a World Cup semi and quarter-final.Most read in FootballCASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO WELCOME OFFERSSouthgate said: “As a player and an athlete you view those failures in a different sort of way.“Had we gone out in the first knockout round here, I know I’ve managed this period better than I did in Russia.SunSport’s Latest Euro 2024 headlinesEngland vs Spain recordEngland have played Spain 27 times in total – here is a look at every result…May 1929, Spain 4-3 England – International Friendly (L)December 1931, England 7-1 Spain – International Friendly (W)July 1950, Spain 1-0 England – World Cup (L)May 1955, Spain 1-1 England – International Friendly (D)November 1955, England 4-1 Spain – International Friendly (W)May 1960, Spain 3-0 England – International Friendly (L)October 1960, England 4-2 Spain – International Friendly (W)December 1965, Spain 0-2 England – International Friendly (W)May 1967, England 2-0 Spain – International Friendly (W)April 1968, England 1-0 Spain – European Championship (W)May 1968, Spain 1-2 England – European Championship (W)March 1980, Spain 0-2 England – International Friendly (W)June 1980, England 2-1 Spain – European Championship (W)March 1981, England 1-2 Spain – International Friendly (L)July 1982, Spain 0-0 England – World Cup (D)February 1987, Spain 2-4 England – International Friendly (W)September 1992, Spain 1-0 England – International Friendly (L)June 1996, England 0(4)-(2)0 Spain – European Championship (W)February 2001, England 3-0 Spain – International Friendly (W)November 2004, Spain 1-0 England – International Friendly (L)February 2007, England 0-1 Spain – International Friendly (L)February 2009, Spain 2-0 England – International Friendly (L)November 2011, England 1-0 Spain – International Friendly (W)November 2015, Spain 2-0 England – International Friendly (L)November 2016, England 2-2 Spain – International Friendly (D)September 2018, England 1-2 Spain – Nations League (L)October 2018, Spain 2-3 England – Nations League (W)Overall, England have won 14, drawn three and lost 10 matches against Spain.“But that wouldn’t be how it was viewed and it would sound like nonsense to the man in the street.“But I know the job now and I’m really clear on being my own biggest critic, reviewing everything clearly.“So I know there is a body of work there and how we’ve worked with different groups of players to get the outcomes that we have.”Greatest English sporting moments since 1966David Platt’s last-minute extra-time winner vs Belgium at Italia 90Paul Gascoigne’s wondergoal vs Scotland at Euro 96Jonny Wilkinson’s drop goal to win the 2003 Rugby World CupAshes victory over Australia in 2005Super Saturday at London 2012Ben Stokes’ heroics to win 2019 Cricket World Cup finalLionesses winning 2022 Women’s Euros at Wembley More