England left it late to complete a dramatic comeback win over Slovakia to reach Euro 2024 quarter-finals, thanks to a stunning stoppage-time goal by Jude Bellingham.
It was a poor start for England. Slovakia got off to a roaring start. Although they had less of the ball, they looked more threatening on the attack.
Meanwhile, the frantic start saw four players bag yellow cards for rough challenges before the 20th minute. The first two yellow cards went to England. Crystal Palace centre-back, Marc Guehi, was the first to be booked after he up-ended Slovakia forward Strelec, who nearly stole his way through after latching on a poor pass by Kieran Trippier.
Manchester United’s fast-rising youngster Kobbie Mainoo was the next to be yellow-carded after he clipped down Slovakian player, Duda.
Six minutes after Mainoo’s yellow card, Slovakian midfielder Kucka was also booked after he tactically fouled John Stones, stopping England’s attempt to break on a quick counter.
It was a rain of bookings which underscored the match’s heated start. Four minutes after Kucka’s yellow card, Jude Bellingham also saw yellow for a wild tackle on Haraslin, taking the number of England players booked in the game to three in less than 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, Slovakia seemed to be on the ascendancy going forward with a strong and potent offensive play.
While England stayed slightly atop proceedings with more possession, the Francesco Calzona-led side were the threat-carriers when with the ball. They created an array of early chances and were looking set to take the lead.
Five minutes before the half-hour, they finally took a deserved lead. Slovakia forward, Schantz, beat Jordan Pickford to get the ball into the back of the net, thanks to an assist by Strelec. The goal was enough to separate the tie at the break.
In the second half, England thought they had equalized when Phil Foden poked home a cross from Kieran Trippier for the leveller. The goal was initially awarded but was cancelled after VAR showed the Manchester City attacking midfielder was offside before the goal.
It was an England affair in the second 45 as the Three Lions ramped up efforts to find an equalizer. Declan Rice came close to finding the leveller but had his attempt hit the woodwork. The rebound fell for Kane but the Bayern Munich forward blew it over the crossbar.
In the 66th minute, Kieran Trippier was forced off with an apparent muscle injury. Southgate brought on Cole Palmer in his place. The substitution saw Bukayo Saka move to left back while Palmer took up the right wing.
It was still a deadlock for the Three Lions. The game was far spent with the 2020 runners-up still trailing by a lone goal. With a minute of added time left, Jude Bellingham scored a sensational back-kick goal to tie the game at the death after a corner-kick. The goal dragged the game into extra time.
A minute into extra time, England completed the turnaround. After Cole Palmer’s free-kick, Harry Kane nodded home a header from Ivan Toney to make it 2-1.
From the jaws of defeat, the Three Lions sealed a slot in the last 8 of the tournament, knocking out a resilient Slovakian side, thanks to the two late goals by Bellingham and Harry Kane.
