Cole Palmer and Ollie Watkins, despite only coming off the bench, made a big contribution to helping England defeat the Netherlands to book their place in the EURO 2024 final.

As in the quarter-final against Switzerland, England lined up in a 3-4-2-1 formation. The only difference was the return of Marc Guéhi from suspension, pushing Ezri Konsa back to the bench. The Netherlands also made just one change from the quarter-final, with Donyell Malen starting in place of Steven Bergwijn.

The match was exciting after the opening whistle when both teams did not hesitate to attack. And the goal came to the Netherlands in the 7th minute. Xavi Simons stole the ball from Declan Rice’s feet and then shot powerfully from a distance, forcing Jordan Pickford to pick the ball out of the net.

Simons opened the scoring for the Netherlands early on.

Conceding a goal, England focused on attacking. And very quickly, the goal came to them in the 18th minute, after Denzel Dumfries’s kick aimed at Harry Kane in the penalty area. Penalty for the Three Lions and Kane made no mistake, scoring for the home team from the 11m mark.

The two teams continued to play an exciting attack after that. In the 23rd minute, Gareth Southgate’s team had a great combination. Mainoo passed the ball to Foden who then finished from a tight angle, but Dumfries blocked the ball right on the goal line.

The Netherlands showed their attacking prowess with a header that hit the crossbar of Pickford’s goal by Dumfries in the 30th minute. But just 2 minutes later, it was the Three Lions’ turn to respond with a left-footed curler that hit Foden’s post.

After an exciting but inconclusive first 45 minutes, the two teams slowed down in the second half. Both England and the Netherlands made early changes, with Luke Shaw replacing Kieran Trippier and Wout Weghorst replacing Malen. However, this adjustment could not help their play become brighter.

The two teams played a tight game in the second half.

Despite controlling the ball better, England were helpless against the Dutch defense. Ronald Koeman’s team showed that they were very dangerous in set pieces. Especially in the 65th minute, from Veerman’s cross, Pickford had to show his talent after Van Dijk’s close-range shot. Not long after, the Everton goalkeeper had to rush out to punch the ball away in an aerial duel with Weghorst.

It wasn’t until the 79th minute that England had a notable attack. Saka put the ball into the Dutch net, but VAR determined that Walker had been offside before that.

In the 80th minute, coach Southgate had to send Cole Palmer and Ollie Watkins onto the field. The two teams played a tight game after that. It seemed like the match would go to extra time, but in the 90+1 minute, from Palmer’s pass, Watkins turned and shot quickly, dangerously and accurately, sealing a 2-1 victory and a ticket to the final for England.

Watkins shines at the right time.