To the final with Kane and the VAR

Wembley roared 55 years later to celebrate that England is in a final, the first he has disputed since he was proclaimed world champion at home in 1966. That historic and controversial outcome with Hurst’s phantom goal continued against Denmark in the semi-finals of the Euro. This time it was a ‘light’ penalty on Sterling that tipped the balance in extra time, another sign that in these tournaments everything plays in favor of the ‘hosts’.

Only Makkelie’s controversial decision could bring down a Denmark faithful to its miracle team tag. Armed on three very solid centrals, also armored by two hunting dogs in midfield (Hojbjerg and Delaney), he endured the fervor of the English and even shocked their bodies. The Danish bet was to bother and bruise. Thus they succeeded in turning the Pickford area into paveable territory.

The English goalkeeper had to live with doubts. He missed with his foot and on a short serve, something that Braithwaite could well take advantage of. The honk that silenced Wembley was, however, a Damsgaard free-kick that also caught Pickford in their worlds. Great goal and distraction in equal parts. Nobody counted on this young striker with the face of a child and the instinct of a murderer, but his Euro Cup is one of those that catapults a career.

For the first time in the tournament England was seen from behind, also jumbled, but his response was a big team. With Kane at the controls, the Southgate men came out of the quagmire at depth base. The Tottenham forward detected that the most damage he did was outside the area, a garden that he has made his own in recent years.

Disguised as Benzema, he gave Sterling the tie first from the band (although he saved Schmeichel) and later he drew the action that leveled the shock, this time well culminated between Saka, Sterling and Kjaer’s leg in their attempt to clear the ball. There are strikers who do damage 30 meters from the goal as well as just one. Kane is theirs.

The Danes were not too upset by the draw. They kept closing corridors and believing in the impossible. The passage of time was a tailwind that gave them a push. Schmeichel also contributed to this, immeasurable, with a save to Maguire from a set piece, the permanent threat from the English. Taking that ball from as low as the Leicester goalkeeper did is within the reach of very few.

By then the party already had a single address. Southgate stoked the fire by bringing in Grealish and the Danish coach populated the midfield with one more piece to bring Braithwaite and Poulsen upstairs. in search of the bell. England went for the triumph, seeing that the forces of its rival were less and less. Before extra time he could take the game, but Denmark held on heroically in yet another exercise of non-negotiable generosity in effort.

The siege was increasing. The English pressed as never before and put more bullets in the chamber, in this case Foden and Henderson. Schmeichel, who threw another impossible ball at Kane, had no hands anymore. Denmark was on the edge of the cliff and was pushed by the Dutch referee Makeelie, who was emboldened by the environment and he whistled a penalty that was more of a pool from Sterling than a foul from the defender. Schmeichel stopped Kane’s first shot, but missed the second. Deciding finals by these lightness should be much more watched by the referees.

England, yes, felt powerful and impenetrable, finally in a final so many years later, so many generations later, so many failures later. Not without suffering, not without a wink from the referee. This is how champion teams smell. Those for whom everything goes in their favor.