THE NOTEBOOK: ED SHEERAN ENJOYS ENGLAND'S DRAMATIC COMEBACK AS THREE LIONS FANS RUSH TO PUT THEIR FLAGS ON SHOW IN GELSENKIRCHEN
- England came from behind to beat Slovakia in dramatic circumstances
- The Three Lions were on the brink of death before Jude Bellingham's leveller
- LISTEN to It's All Kicking Off! EUROS DAILY: Rallying cry from England fans - why it's time to back Gareth Southgate
England secured their spot in the quarter-finals of Euro 2024 in the most dramatic of circumstances with a 2-1 victory over Slovakia in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday.
The Three Lions looked set to be heading home when Jude Bellingham made it 1-1 with a bicycle kick in the 95th minute.
Harry Kane then gave his side the lead right at the start of extra-time and Gareth Southgate's men held on to progress to the last eight.
Mail Sport's Mike Keegan was on hand in Gelsenkirchen to pick out things that you may have missed.
More Gelsenkirchen transport chaos. Just like the first visit for the opening fixture with Serbia, a woefully inadequate tram network, with four-carriage services to the stadium turning up every 20 minutes, saw many of those who could decide to walk the three miles from the centre of town.
Ed Sheeran was among the celebrities in the England support. The singer, an Ipswich Town fan, was wearing a white replica jersey and was mobbed by fans as he made his way up the VIP steps, ahead of Germany great Philipp Lahm.
Some England fans had vowed not to return to Gelsenkirchen following the carnage at the Serbia game and, two hours before kick-off, tickets were available on UEFA’s resale site. Indeed, shortly ahead of the start two category B tickets were being offered for just £120 for the pair.
Jack Grealish may not have made Gareth Southgate’s squad but he has been a regular in Germany, at least on the television. The Manchester City playmaker stars in a heavily-dubbed advert for Hellmann’s mayonnaise, which appears during virtually every match.
The first competition of the evening started three hours before kick-off. When the gates opened, hundreds of England fans jostled for position before racing into the stadium to grab a place from which to hang their flags.
The road outside Schalke’s stadium is named Stan Libuda Way, after the former West Germany international who had two spells at the club. Libuda, who scored an extra-time winner for Borussia Dortmund to defeat Liverpool in the 1966 Cup Winners’ Cup Final, was actually called Reinhard – although the right winger was known as ‘Stan’ after Stanley Matthews and thanks to his own dribbling skills.
The Three Lions have been touring German cities twinned with counterparts in England.
Frankfurt’s sister city is Birmingham, Cologne’s is Liverpool and last night’s venue, Gelsenkirchen is twinned with Newcastle. Following the defeat to Slovakia they will not head to Dusseldorf, which is paired with Reading.
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