England v Denmark: Euro 2020 semi-final advice from former Three Lions to current players

Playing in the semi-finals of a major tournament does not happen often and, for many, it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

For generations of England players – from Italia 90, Euro 96, Women’s World Cups in 2015 and 2019 and the 2009 and 2017 Women’s European Championships – they are matches that define careers. Perhaps even lives.

On Wednesday, Gareth Southgate and his squad have the chance to do something no England team has done in 55 years: reach a major tournament final.

So what did the players who have been there before – and failed to make that final step – learn from those painful experiences? And what advice would they give to their Euro 2020 counterparts?

Gary Lineker – Who says you can’t win with kids?

Former striker Gary Lineker scored four goals during the 1990 World Cup and equalised for England in the semi-final but West Germany went on to win in the penalty shootout.

It’s a long time since I was involved in a major tournament semi-final. We barely had any time after the quarter-final so all we were really thinking about was how we were going to get our tired bodies onto the pitch.

You don’t get quite how mad the country is going when you’re away with the team so we were a bit cocooned, and of course there was no social media.

But you knew the magnitude of it. These players have that experience and that will help them. They are good young players, many of whom have won tournaments at youth level, so they are much better placed than we were in 1990.

I wouldn’t tell myself anything different but I would have told Peter Shilton to dive a little bit earlier on each penalty.

Agencies