As we continue to lunge ever deeper into the knockout phase of Euro 2020, at All Leeds TV we're continuing to monitor the progress of our two remaining Leeds United representatives throughout the tournament, previewing the upcoming Semi-Final fixtures for both players still flying the flag for their respective nations. You can expect to be signposted in the direction of the relevant games, and inundated with the appropriate facts and figures to properly prepare you for the penultimate round of matches. Can either of our remaining Leeds duo reach the showpiece final? Or, could both?
Semi-Final's
The list of Semi-Final's fixtures is as follows, with Leeds United representative nations marked in bold;
Tuesday 6th July
Spain v Italy (8pm BBC One) Wembley
Wednesday 7th July
Denmark v England (8pm ITV) Wembley
Spain v Italy
Spain rode their luck as they edged through their Quarter-Final meeting with Switzerland in Saint Petersburg on Friday, winning 3-1 on penalties (after initially being held to a 1-1 draw, despite having an extra man for the entirety of extra-time, plus the final twelve minutes of normal time) to progress to the Semi-Final's.
Leeds United defender Diego Llorente was, once again, an unused substitute for Luis Enrique's side, meaning the 27-year-old is still to feature for Las Rojas at Euro 2020.
18-year-old, Barcelona midfielder Pedri has now completed the most succesful final-third passes and covered the most distance of any player at Euro 2020, having featured in every minute of Las Rojas journey to the Semi-Final's.
Spain will now face Italy in the final four on Tuesday 6th July at Wembley Stadium, after their 2-1 victory over Belgium in Munich on Friday.
Widely labelled as the "dark horse" of Euro 2020, Italy sailed through their group without conceding a single goal, and reach the Semi-Final's as the only side to have won all five of their games en route to the last four.
Roberto Mancini's side required extra-time to squeeze past Austria in the Round of 16, before dispatching the number one ranked side in Belgium in the Quarter-Final's. The Italian's have arguably been the greatest entertainers in the competition thus far, with Ciro Immobile, Manuel Locatelli, Matteo Pessina and Lorenzo Insigne all bagging two goals. Only Spain (12) have scored more goals than Italy (11) at Euro 2020.
Spain and Italy last met in 2017, with Las Rojas claiming four points from a possible six in World Cup Qualifying.
The two sides have met on 37 previous occasions, with Spain boasting a marginally superior record. Although, the last meeting of these teams at a major tournament came in the Round of 16 at Euro 2016, when Italy beat Spain 2-0 in Saint-Denis to reach the Quarter Final's.
The pair did famously meet in the final of Euro 2012, when Spain won 4-0 to become the first nation to record back-to-back European Championship title's. According to the FIFA World Ranking's, Spain and Italy are the 6th and 7th best sides in the world respectively, and they are the two highest-scoring sides at Euro 2020, which should make for a fascinating tie.
Denmark v England
England march on to their first appearance at European Championship semi-final since Euro 1996, after the Three Lions finally announced their arrival to the party, hammering Ukraine 4-0 in Rome on Saturday night.
A brace from skipper Harry Kane, coupled with a header from Harry Maguire, and a first senior international goal for Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson, saw Gareth Southgate's side record a statement win to breeze into the final four.
Jordan Pickford's made history in Rome with a record fifth consecutive clean sheet, becoming the first goalkeeper at any Euro's to do so, and solidifying the Three Lions' status as the most solid defence at the tournament.
Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips made his thirteenth senior international appearance, completing 65 minutes before making way for Jude Bellingham, to avoid any opportunity of collecting the booking that would've ruled him out of the meeting with Denmark at Wembley. Only Jordan Pickford (450) and John Stones (439) played more minutes for England than Phillips (425) at Euro 2020.
Kane's brace against Ukraine sees him draw level with Sterling (on three goals) as England's joint-highest scorer's at the competition.
Southgate's men will now host Denmark, conqueror's of Wales and Czech Republic in the knockout stages, at Wembley Stadium on Wednesday 7th July. Denmark beat the Czech's 2-1 in Baku on Saturday, courtesy of goals by Thomas Delaney and Kasper Dolberg.
Denmark overcame the odds to qualify for the knockout phase after the horrific collapse of Christian Eriksen in their opening-day defeat to Finland. A spirited Danish group have since overcome Wales, in a 4-0 Round of 16 drubbing, and Czech Republic.
Booking their Semi-Final slot with a 2-1 win over the Czech's in Baku on Saturday, Dolberg (three goals) and Joakim Maehle (two goals and one assist) appear to have taken over the reins, driving their nation to a first Semi-Final appearance since they shocked the world in winning Euro 1992.
England and Denmark have met fairly recently, with the Danes beating England at Wembley in October 2020.
Historically, England boast a superior head-to-head record from their 21 previous meetings with Denmark, along with a vastly superior goalscoring record in those fixtures. However, Denmark took four points from a possible six in their 2020 Nations League group fixtures, the two most recent meetings of the sides.
This is the sides' first meeting at a major tournament since the 2002 World Cup, where England recorded a 3-0 win in the Round of 16, to progress to an ill-fated Quarter-Final meeting with a Ronaldinho-inspired Brazil.
Denmark (10th) are the lowest-ranked side left in the competition, but only Spain have outscored Kasper Hjulmund's side at Euro 2020. Meanwhile, England have conceded the fewst goals of any side to ever reach the Semi-Final of a Euro's. This should be fascinating.
Is it coming home?!?!?
So, that's your preview of the upcoming Euro 2020 Semi-Final's, check back after the games to see how our boys got on in our Euro 2020 Review, and keep an eye out for our preview of the Final next week.
We've got your Euro 2020 covered on AllLeedsTV.
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