The champions are seen in the moments that count: an unwritten law of sport, which has had yet another confirmation in England-Slovakia. With just a hair’s breadth left to play, when the Three Lions national team was about to suffer one of the most sensational eliminations in its history at the hands of Calzona’s gallant team, Jude Bellingham – up until then opaque – has risen to the chair. Taking advantage of a header from Guehi, he sealed the 1-1 draw with a spectacular overhead kick. There were then another 30 minutes, but the match essentially ended there. In fact, just a few moments in the first extra half were enough to see England definitively overturn the score with Kane’s 2-1.
A success that feels like a sliding door for Southgate’s national team, just a breath away from the abyss and now more alive than ever in the German European Championship. There are still two rounds before the final on July 14th, but the scoreboard – with the Netherlands as the only big team on the English path – and above all the confidence given by such a victory lead to optimism. A team on the shoulders of its number 10, now called upon not to make the overhead kick against Slovakia an isolated exploit but the first of a splendid collection of pearls.