Ollie Watkins has revealed Gareth Southgate‘s instructions, minutes before he became a national hero in England’s 2-1 victory against the Netherlands to go to the Euro 2024 final.
Wednesday’s semi-final seemed headed for extra time as both sides fell short in their quest for a triumph in Dortmund. That was until Watkins came on for Harry Kane in the 90th minute and rifled home from the narrowest of angles.
England captain Kane had previously equalized with a disputed penalty in the first half, canceling out Xavi Simons’ seventh-minute rocket past Jordan Pickford.
Watkins’ stunning last-gasp strike sent England fans into a state of delirium, with the victory booking the Three Lions to a first ever final on foreign soil, three years on from a painful penalty-shootout defeat to Italy at Wembley.
Only Spain, who overcame France in Tuesday’s pulsating semi-final, stand in the way of England and a first major trophy in 58 years and Sunday’s showpiece in Berlin promises to be an absolute thriller.
Southgate has faced heavy criticism for his cautious approach to substitutions throughout the campaign but his changes proved a masterstroke versus the Dutch, as Palmer combined superbly with Watkins to score the all-important goal.
Asked what Southgate said on the touchline before he was introduced, the Aston Villa forward told England’s official YouTube channel: ‘To be fair, I thought we weren’t going to come on because [Bukayo] Saka scored [a goal that was ruled offside] and I thought he was going to tell us, you know, the Jose [Mourinho], “Sit back down!”.
‘But no, obviously in a way that was a blessing that he didn’t and we got our opportunity to make the difference. But he just said, “Go on and win it for us”, and I think we’ve done that.’
Watkins always had ‘belief’ that he could be the difference-maker and knew he had to be ‘selfish’ given he had only played 30 minutes at the tournament prior to the win.
‘I think you’ve got to have that belief when you’re going on the pitch that you’re going to bring something to the team, bring some energy,’ he added.
‘For me, when I had the ball there, I knew to be selfish and shoot because I may not get another opportunity again so you’ve got to take it.’
Watkins went on to say of his feelings after the full-time whistle, “It was just shock really.”
“It happened in an instant, and the feelings that flood your body are insane.” It’s just incredible and difficult to describe.
“I tried to take it all in and wanted to make the most of it, so I didn’t want to leave the pitch.”
Southgate had nothing but praise for Watkins in the aftermath, highlighting how the Villa striker had prepared perfectly for the moment with his application in training.
‘Ollie Watkins has trained like that every day,’ he told reporters.
‘He has trained for his moment no matter how frustrated.
‘They had each others’ back, they bonded so well and tonight it was an example of that.’