England 2-0 Germany: 5 Hits and Flops as Three Lions exact revenge to seal quarter-final berth
England ensured their safe passage into the quarter-finals of Euro 2020 with a convincing 2-0 win over Germany at Wembley. Backed by their vociferous home crowd, Gareth Southgate's men buried the ghosts of the past to leave Germany in tatters.
While it seemed like the game was heading into extra-time, it was a late flurry from England that settled the high-stakes clash. Raheem Sterling netted his third goal of the tournament in the 75th minute, when he stabbed home from close range.
Thomas Muller then squandered a gilt-edged chance to restore parity for Germany, who were subsequently punished by Harry Kane in the 80th minute. The England captain produced a diving header off a Jack Grealish cross to put the game to bed as the home crowd broke into a delirium of noise.
Without further delay, let's take a closer look at the best and worst performers from the round of 16 clash at Wembley.
#5 Hit: Jordan Pickford (England)
The England custodian produced two excellent saves when the game was all-square to keep his team in the contest.
First, Pickford raced off his line to block Timo Werner from tucking away an excellent through ball from Kai Havertz.
Later, the 27-year-old also tipped Havertz's thunderous volley over the cross-bar shortly after the interval. It might have been struck straight at him, but Pickford had to react quickly and he did it with aplomb.
It goes without saying that without Pickford's safe hands between the sticks, England might not have had the platform to go and do what they did late on in the game.
Notably, Pickford is the only goalkeeper left in the competition to have not conceded a goal yet. England will hope it stays that way for at least a couple more games.
#4 Flop: Robin Gosens (Germany)
The Atalanta full-back enjoyed an excellent tournament up until the game against England. Gosens is entrusted with the duty of bombing forward on the left flank and making a real difference inside the final third for Germany.
There was plenty of evidence for his potential and ability in the group stages as well, however, it was a comparatively lackluster display at Wembley.
Gosens struggled to deal with Kieran Trippier and Bukayo Saka in the wide areas and never really managed to stamp his authority on the game.
The 26-year-old also received a booking for a silly challenge on Trippier, which obviously stemmed from his frustration.