England expects as Southgate’s stars eye Euro 2020 final against Italy

England face Denmark in the Euro 2020 semi-finals at Wembley on Wednesday with a success-starved nation willing them on to reach their first major final for 55 years as Italy await the winner.

Gareth Southgate’s side are bidding to reach the European Championship final for the first time as they try to banish the ghosts of England’s under-achieving past.

But they will face a Denmark side fuelled by a sense of destiny and desire since Christian Eriksen had to be resuscitated on the pitch in their opening game against Finland.

Both sides will be playing in front of 60,000 mostly England fans for the right to play Italy, who beat Spain 4-2 on penalties at Wembley after a gripping 1-1 draw on Tuesday.

Since winning the 1966 World Cup, England have reached only four major semi-finals, including at Euro 1996, when Southgate infamously missed a crucial penalty in the shootout against Germany.

Those agonising defeats have been etched in the psyche of English football ever since.

But Southgate has overseen the emergence of a vibrant young team unconcerned by the trials and tribulations of their failed predecessors in the England shirt.

Yet to concede a goal in their five matches in the tournament, England underlined their potential with a 2-0 last-16 win against old rivals Germany before routing Ukraine 4-0 in Rome.

Now they are back on home turf for the Denmark showdown and, with the final also in London, Southgate knows the Three Lions have a golden opportunity to make history.

“We don’t have as a good a football history as we like to believe sometimes,” he said.

“These players are making massive strides and breaking barriers all the time. We have broken barriers in this tournament and we have another opportunity to do that tomorrow.”

England has been gripped by Euro fever since the cathartic victory against Germany and millions in homes and pubs across the country will tune in for the Denmark match.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted: “Today is the day. Come on England!” while Prince Charles posted a good luck message accompanied by a clip of a military band playing England’s iconic “Three Lions” anthem.

Former Manchester United and England defender Gary Neville urged Southgate’s men to take their chance.

“History beckons for this team,” he wrote on Instagram. “To reach back-to-back semi-finals is incredible, but it’s not enough. You become nearly men!”

– Wembley fervour –

Thousands of fans gathered outside Wembley in the hours before kick-off, singing and lighting flares in a raucous, party atmosphere.

England fan Jonny Keogh, 29, said he was “quietly confident”, urging the team to go on the attack.

“We’ve got to believe in ourselves,” he said. “It’s at Wembley and it’s up to us. All the pressure is on us, not them.”

Jacob Moller-Andersen, 52, was one of a small number of Danish fans among the sea of England supporters.

“I believe every Dane would say we have already won this tournament because Eriksen is still alive,” he said. “Whatever the outcome is today it doesn’t really matter. We’re just here to have a party.”

– Wave of emotion –

Surprise semi-finalists Denmark, who won Euro 92, can count on the support of many outside England after their emotional campaign.

Rocked by the cardiac arrest suffered by their star midfielder Eriksen, Denmark went into their final group game without a point.

But, with Eriksen on the mend after the shocking incident, Kasper Hjulmand’s team have embarked on a three-match winning run that has taken them to a first semi-final in 29 years.

Eriksen has been invited to the Wembley final by UEFA and Hjulmand has urged his underdogs to make it a date with their team-mate.

“We still play for and with him. There’s no doubt about that. That’s the only thing I can say about Christian,” he said.

“It’s really something that makes us do as much as we can. I hope that if he comes to the final that we’re going to be playing it. It would be amazing.”

On Tuesday Italy, who failed even to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, booked their place in the final after a dramatic penalty shootout win over Spain.

Federico Chiesa gave Italy the lead with half an hour to go only for Spain substitute Alvaro Morata to equalise with 10 minutes left.

Both sides missed their first two kicks. Gianluigi Donnarumma saved Morata’s effort, with Jorginho converting Italy’s winner.dital