Arsenal’s Nigerian-born winger, Bukayo Saka missed a crucial penalty in England’s loss to Italy via lottery of the shootout in the final of this year’s European Championship, the first time they would reach that stage at a major competition since winning the World Cup in 1966.
What looked like ‘football coming home’ turned from possibility to nightmare for England, who shot ahead through Luke Shaw just two minutes into game at Wembley, but Saka could not save the day for the hosts when he missed his kick that could have extended the game.
Saka’s miss came after Three Lions’ coach, Gareth Southgate’s decision to send Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford on with less than two minutes to go in extra time backfired, as the lads that had been expected to net from the spot during the shoot-out both lost back-to=back, even their goalkeeper, Jordan Pickford made two brilliant saves.
Southgate largely opted for a 4-3-3 system during the tournament, but moved to three at the back for the final on Sunday, meaning that Saka misses out on starting role in the gaffer’s only change from semi-final victory against Denmark.
Due to the tactical switch, Kieran Trippier was recalled as part of a five-man defence for the final against Italy, thereby edging out Saka, who later entered the game midway through the second half but went on to play down the right wing.
Sadly, all the tactics and efforts did not pay off, as Italy were crowned European champions with a 3-2 win on penalties over England, after finishing 1-1 over 120 minutes, leading to a tense shootout, in which Rashford, Sancho and Saka all missed for the Three Lions, thereby giving The Azzurri victory.
That came long after Shaw gave England an early lead, hitting Italy on the counter-attack after just two minutes to convert a half-volley, completing an impressive team move, but Bonucci hit back with a 67th minute equaliser – stabbing home on the line from an Italian corner, following a long period of dominance after half-time.
