The Pride of Lions get undone by the ghosts of the past in the Euro 2020 final.

“THAT’S MONEY!!” When Luke Shaw gave England the lead with a banger just under two minutes, shouts of elation rang across my house. Was it finally coming home?

Yet, a more dystopian mood would soon take over England — befitting of the miserable, gloomy weather that loomed over Wembley. England was solid, but alas, got well undone by the Azzurri. Ultimately, it was to be heartbreak for all English fans home and abroad.

It just had to be the penalty voodoo yet again for Gareth Southgate. Nightmares of Euro 96′ and Southgate’s penalty miss came flashing back. The demon that was thought to be exorcised came haunting on this fateful night. Within the oh so thin line of hope, there was this sense of inevitability.

What started off as a pipe dream almost ended in England lifting a major tournament trophy since the 66′ World Cup. If you’d recall Sir Geoff Hurst’s heroic antics in that year. It was England’s first major tournament final ever since. Unfortunately, the 55 year trophy drought would only see itself get extended further.

For Manchester United fans such as myself, this match was reminiscent of their penalty woes a few months back in the Europa League Final loss against Villareal.

This tournament showing however, was no doubt a Gareth Southgate masterclass. England may have devastatingly lost the final, but wins against Germany, Ukraine and Denmark in the knockout stages give the team much to be proud of.

Raheem Sterling, who’s been a shadow of his former self the past two years, turned up big for England this tournament — registering 3 goals in the process. Harry Kane, leader of the pack, started off slow but eventually displayed his world-class swagger as he scored 4 goals and went hunting for the Euro Golden Boot— one that ended up in Cristiano Ronaldo’s extensive trophy cabinet. Luke Shaw, dubbed the English Roberto Carlos, did not put a foot wrong this entire run — picking up 1 goal and 3 assists. He’s undoubtedly been the best left-back in the tournament, perhaps even in the world. The solid showing at the back by the two defensive centre halves in Harry Maguire and John Stones was so effective in denying all flows of attack — justifying their sky-high values in the transfer market. Fantastic displays in the various departments were complemented by the dream-like chemistry the team exhibited.

If anything, this was a scintillating run of form by the English players. They have finally dug themselves out of the doldrums they’ve found themselves in for most part of the century. England have every reason to march forward with newfound optimism. It didn’t come home, but Gareth Southgate is now poised to be Sir Gareth Southgate. Does bring a nice ring to it.

The days we lose are the days our competitors should fear the most.

As Niki Lauda would say, “The most painful matches, the most painful events, are the ones from which you learn the most.”

“They’ve been absolutely outstanding through this tournament and they’ll come back stronger. They need to feel this pain tonight.” A proud Gary Neville says. Absolutely gutted that we were so near yet so far. This will be a sore lesson for the lads, one that will sting for much to come, but the boys should be immensely proud of themselves.

They came closer than the Golden Generation of 06′, boasting the likes of David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard, ever did. This was a team that was backed by an entire nation, united in a belief that something is brewing after what was one of the toughest years in history.

The mighty prospect of England winning a major tournament trophy after somewhere north of 5 decades effected an alluring sense of euphoria to be washed over all of England, even amongst those who didn’t pay much attention to the sport. This group of 26 gave hope to a country in a time when they needed it the most.

You can feel something special is cooking — and it’s not just bangers and mash. We’re just getting started. Minor Setbacks, Major Comebacks. Cue the Kings.

Alexander SR Pang