England fans roared as the Three Lions finally broke Switzerland down on penalties in the quarter-final of the European Championship this evening.
After a nail-biting 120 minutes in Dusseldorf, supporters did their best to see the national team through to victory – but silence echoed through the stadium as the two teams stepped up to decide the match with a shootout after being held to 1-1.
With an early save from goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, the England players’ heads were lifted for the team to cruise on to victory, slotting home all five penalties before the terraces erupted back into life.
Wives and girlfriends of the players joined in the celebrations, with even Prince William pictured enjoying the moment as England defied a painful record on penalties. Supporters from Dusseldorf to Wembley were overcome with emotion as players ran a victory lap of the field.
It was a tense game for both sets of fans, with the deadlock broken in the 75th minute by a tap-in from Switzerland’s Breel Embolo forcing England through the gears to try to break down the Swiss defence.
Emotions were lifted by a world-class strike from Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka on the edge of the box moments later, cutting in on the left to shoot from distance and beating the Swiss goalkeeper to bring hope back to England stands.