England left it very late to beat the Netherlands and reach the final of Euro 2024.
Chelsea’s Cole Palmer and Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins came off the bench to combine for the winning goal in a 2-1 victory during the semi-finals.
They were both substituted on for the final 10 minutes when England and the Dutch were locked together at 1-1.
However, Palmer’s forward pass found Watkins in the penalty box, with the Villa striker taking a touch to set before scoring with a powerful low shot in the 90th minute.
Watkins actually shared in his post-match interview that he told Palmer that he would assist him before the duo got on the pitch and combined for England’s winner.
Watkins told ITV Sport: “I swear on my life that I said to Cole Palmer that we’re coming on today and you’re going to set me up. I knew as soon as he got the ball he was going to play me…”
Cole Palmer sends message to Ollie Watkins
Palmer uploaded a message on Instagram celebrating England’s win against the Netherlands on Wednesday night.
It’s included a shoutout to international teammate Watkins after assisting his winning goal.
Don’t be surprised to see Chelsea attacker make his mark on the final
Palmer hasn’t started a single match so far at this summer’s Euros tournament, so you’d guess it’s unlikely he’ll be in the XI for Sunday’s final versus Spain.
The 22-year-old Chelsea attacker continues to make an impact whenever he’s on the pitch, though.
He keeps coming on as a substitute and injecting extra bits of quality on the ball.
Chelsea supporters will selfishly want Palmer in the England line-up. Regardless, he should have a long international career ahead of him and a role to play in the final.
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