How Kyle Walker caused England's 'moment it died' in the Euro 2024 final

Losing two European Championship finals in a row is a heartbreak many in England will need years to overcome, for many, their coping mechanism has been to dissect every moment of the loss to Spain, and some think they have found the moment England's hopes and dreams died.

According to The Daily Mail, former England coach Gareth Southgate admitted to reporters there was one moment that he described as the “turning point”.

Just two minutes after Cole Palmer’s exquisite equaliser, England were on the front foot, looking to take advantage of their ascendancy. With Kyle Walker in position to put a long throw into the box, he decided to send the ball back to John Stones, who sent it back further still to Jordan Pickford.

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One England fan on X (formerly Twitter) described it as “the moment it died…” referring to the hope England fans felt during the brief spell of parity.

Southgate told reporters after the game, “There was one moment where we had a throw-in in their third of the pitch and we definitely had an opportunity to keep the ball in that area of the pitch but we played backwards.”

Southgate did clarify it wasn’t the main reason for the loss, saying, “I think in the main, at the end of the game, the physical issues that we had probably took their toll.”

Many of England’s players barely had a chance to take a break during the tournament, with multiple games going to extra time, and by the end of the final, it started to show.

Southgate himself suggested there were, “four or five players that we ideally would have refreshed,” but with little time left to make substitutions, there was little to be done.

Others were less balanced in their criticism, with former Liverpool and England defender Jamie Carragher saying, “The fact is our big players didn’t turn up in this tournament. And other tournaments going back years,” suggesting he perhaps thought one 75th minute throw in wasn’t the difference…

England fans will always remember the Southgate era as one of “what ifs?” due to two final losses and some heartbreaking defeats in World Cups. Do you think the decision to throw it back rather than forwards proved the difference, or was it too little, too late for England?

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