England beat Slovakia thanks to Bellingham's masterpiece

Having been pierced by Ivan Schranz in the middle of the first half, England continued to attack but could not overcome Slovakia's disciplined defence. It seemed as though Gareth Southgate's men would have to follow defending champions Italy home, but in the seventh minute of stoppage time, Jude Bellingham emerged as the hero, saving the Euro 2020 runners-up from danger. From Kyle Walker's throw-in, centre-back Marc Guehi headed the ball back. Bellingham took a step back and then jumped up to hook the ball to the ground, leaving goalkeeper Martin Dubravka rooted to the spot as he watched the ball go into the right corner of the goal.

Without this goal, Bellingham would have been criticised at the end of the match. The Real Madrid midfielder was lacklustre in both halves, drifting too wide and losing possession on several occasions. However, at the crucial moment, Bellingham's star quality still spoke for itself. This was Bellingham's second goal at Euro 2024, after the only goal in the group stage win over Serbia. After scoring, Bellingham ran to the corner post, said something to the cameras and then did his signature goal celebration - spreading his arms wide.

The equaliser helped England break the psychological knot. In the first minute of extra time, Harry Kane headed in from close range to put England ahead. This goal was marked by the players who came on as substitutes. Eberechi Eze's volley became a pass for Ivan Toney to head in for Kane. Southgate was also rewarded for keeping Kane on the pitch, although like Bellingham, the England captain was a big disappointment.

Kane's best chance of the two halves came in the 78th minute, from a Phil Foden free-kick. The ball found Kane unmarked, but he headed wide of the post. This was also a rare occasion where Foden and Kane found each other. Earlier, in the 50th minute, Kane's drop-back created space for Kieran Trippier to run up and cross for Foden to tap the ball into an empty net. But England's goal was ruled out for offside. Among the missed chances was Declan Rice's long-range shot that hit the post in the 81st minute.

Although England's comeback had a certain Southgate mark, the England coach once again showed a lack of tactical flexibility. With just one change, when he started with Kobbie Mainoo in place of Conor Gallagher, England seemed not to have anticipated that Slovakia would start the game proactively and be ready to play an attacking game. They were flustered when pressed and continuously escaped defeat. Lukas Haraslin gave Kyle Walker a nightmare when he twice got past the defender and made Jordan Pickford's goal wobble.

Slovakia's bravery helped them score first. From Peter Pekarik's long pass, Juraj Kucka beat Guehi in the air, allowing David Strelec to get the ball on the edge of the box. The player passed the ball to Schranz on the right wing. Guehi followed closely behind but only dared to make a slight impact, watching helplessly as the Slovakian striker beat Pickford after a moment of faltering.

This was the first time England had conceded a goal at Euro 2024 and the way they reacted to it was worrying. Before Bellingham's equaliser, England had not had a single shot on target against Slovakia. They even had fewer shots than their opponents (9 to 10), despite having 64% possession throughout the match. England's dominance was perhaps only reflected in the number of corners they won (9 to 1), but they also had no special plan to optimize set-piece situations.

The victory means England have reached the quarter-finals of four major tournaments in a row for the first time in their history. They will face Switzerland on 6 July, the first quarter-final tie to be decided at Euro 2024. Slovakia put on an entertaining show, but the injury-time goal knocked them out. Despite fielding the oldest squad in the tournament, Slovakia have always pressed hard. This style of play has worn down their stamina, and after going behind in extra time, Slovakia were unable to turn things around despite having plenty of time.