Pickford stronger than Sommer. England beat Switzerland on penalties and reached the Euro semifinals

England and Switzerland faced each other in the quarter-finals of UEFA Euro 2024.

The teams started the match cautiously, clearly not eager to take risks and expose their defenses. This approach was evident throughout the first 45 minutes.

The statistics tell the story of what happened on the field: the teams went into halftime with just 1 shot on target between them.

Contrary to the expectations of the fans in the packed stands, the game didn't change much after the break. England had territorial advantage but couldn't convert it into dangerous chances or even shots on target.

For their inert attacking play, Southgate's men were punished. Breel Embolo put the Swiss ahead in the 75th minute.

Southgate reacted to the conceded goal with a triple substitution. Immediately after the changes, England equalized. Bukayo Saka restored parity with a spectacular long-range strike.

There were no more goals in regular time, and the game naturally went into extra time.

In the two 15-minute periods, neither team scored, although the Swiss were closer to finding the net. Consequently, the winner, as has become a tradition in this Euro, was determined by a penalty shootout.

In the post-match lottery, it was England who were the more accurate with Pickford deflecting Akanji's shot.

The opponent for today's winner in the semi-final will be decided in the match between the Netherlands and Turkey, which starts at 21:00.

• Euro 2024
  Round of 8
  England - Switzerland - 1:1 5:3P
  Goals: Saka, 80 - Embolo, 75