Euro 2024: semis arrive with Spain v France, plus England and Netherlands news – live

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Luke Shaw added his thoughts as well. He stated that when the player is on the field, he lifts the spirits of the team. Shaw believes that everyone feels optimistic when the player is playing because he is the top scorer. He has the ability to score at any moment and change the game. This player is crucial to the team and serves as their captain.

Harry Kane has received negative comments about how he has been playing in the tournament, but his fellow players have been ready to defend him. Trent Alexander Arnold mentioned: "Opposing teams facing England would prefer Harry Kane not be on the field. You know he is dangerous. When the ball is near the goal, you have to be ready. He can score from any position. I always say he is the most skilled scorer I have ever seen or played alongside. He not only scores goals, but also helps in creating plays and his ability to hold onto the ball is exceptional."

Now, let's head back to the England camp. PA has provided us with some updates on the team.

The entire England team practiced the day before the semi-final match of Euro 2024 against the Netherlands. Gareth Southgate's team is getting ready for their third semi-final in four big tournaments as they aim to make it to the first men's final in a foreign country for their country.

Harry Kane was one of the players who played in Saturday's quarter-final win against Switzerland. He was substituted during extra time after colliding with the dugout.

"I feel extremely honored to have been chosen to lead my country, it is the highlight of my career," Bellamy expressed. "Becoming the head coach of Cymru has always been my dream and I am prepared to take on the challenge."

Not focusing on the Euros, Wales has chosen Craig Bellamy to be their new manager. The previous captain will aim to guide the team to the upcoming World Cup and European Championship.

I always rewatch games in full, especially if I believe there are areas for improvement. I prefer to watch them by myself because you notice things that you might have missed on the field. The experience of watching the game is different from how it felt in the moment. Sometimes, there are events that I don't even remember occurring. I enjoy analyzing not only my performance, but also that of the entire team. In my head, I replay certain moments. I feel that we delivered a very strong performance against a team with similar qualities to us - a talented, physical team. There were instances where we faced challenges, when teamwork was crucial, and we had to remain focused. It's crucial to review those moments and truly comprehend them. It was an extremely tough task to defeat the host country, Germany. But at the end of the day, we achieved it.

An expected choice for a starting position is Manchester City's Rodri. Find out more about this midfielder by clicking here.

The Chelsea full-back Marc Cucurella is an unexpected but consistent presence in the Spain starting lineup. Discover how the left-back with eye-catching hair has become essential to de la Fuente.

Lamine Yamal has become one of the stand-out players at this year's competition. At just 16 years and 338 days old, he is the youngest player to ever compete in the Championships. Despite his young age, he has already made an impact with three assists while playing for Luis de la Fuente's team.

Hello everyone, this is a message from Kári Tulinius.

Compared to their cautious style of play, the French players showed a lot of enthusiasm in their political involvement. It's rare to see footballers getting involved in party politics and actually benefiting from it. It's been really inspiring. Hopefully, they bring some of that energy into tonight's game. Jonathan Wilson has noted that Deschamps' France performs best when facing adversity, like in their memorable matches against Argentina.

Monfort, age 56, is a freelance photographer for the Associated Press and other companies. He mentioned that the photo session happened in the visitors' changing room at Camp Nou in Barcelona during the fall of 2007, when Lamine Yamal was only a few months old.

"We created the calendar in collaboration with Unicef," Monfort explained. "Unicef held a drawing in the community of Roca Fonda in Mataró, where Lamine's family resided. They entered the drawing for a chance to have their photo taken at Camp Nou with a player from Barça. And lucky for them, they won."

However, Spain is currently the most thrilling team remaining in the tournament. The pair of wingers, Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal, have captured the attention of fans for their impressive skills, smooth dance moves, and now even their childhood photos are making waves?

France currently has a top goalscorer in Mr. Own Goal. Mbappé is the only player on their team who has scored a goal, which he did with a spot kick against Poland during the group stage. It's possible that we will see Mbappé's World Cup final form make a comeback in tonight's game.

Take a look at the complete list of players who have won the golden boot award.

Do politics and football belong together? Rabiot doesn't think so. He believes that sports and politics should stay separate. He thinks that during an important match, like a semi-final, it's best to focus on the game and leave politics aside. Rabiot encouraged people to vote in elections because he believes in democracy. Many people voted in the election, which had a high turnout. Rabiot doesn't want to analyze the results himself, as he's a football player, not a political expert. He's not sure if politics mixing with football is a good or bad thing. Only time will tell.

In France, many people may appreciate the distraction of the games given the uncertainty surrounding the recent election. Adrien Rabiot, a midfielder for France, mentioned that the team didn't watch the election together. After training, they had dinner separately and didn't discuss the results as a group. While some players have shared their thoughts on social media, the topic has not been brought up collectively. Despite the concerns, many people felt relieved after the election outcome.

Deschamps might prefer the dull matches now, following his team's exciting World Cup final loss to Argentina. He would probably prefer a 1-0 win in the EURO 2024 final than a thrilling 3-3 draw ending in a penalty shootout defeat.

The coach playfully suggested that a Swedish journalist might actually be French, pretending to be Swedish, when asked if his France team was uninteresting. He said if you're not enjoying their games, you can watch something else - that's okay. This Euro tournament is unique and challenging for everyone, with fewer goals than usual. Despite this, we are determined to bring joy to the people of France with our results, especially during a difficult time for our country. But if Swedes find it boring, that doesn't concern me too much.

The French coach, Didier Deschamps, responded to his critics in a recent press conference. He suggested that if someone was not enjoying watching his team play, they should switch to another game instead.

There are some reasons that make things difficult — Kylian Mbappé's injury is one of them, but it is also concerning that Marcus Thuram and Randal Kolo Muani are not producing results. Ousmane Dembélé has not been much better, even though he had a great performance in the quarter-final against Portugal. France still seems to struggle to find solutions when attacking, but maybe at this point in the tournament, the important question is not "what's wrong" but "does it really make a difference?"

To be fair, France has been doing an excellent job in their defense during this year's tournament. Learn more about France's struggling offense in our blog post.

Greetings and thank you for joining us for this live blog covering EURO 2024.

Spain will play against France in the first semi-final at 8pm. Before the tournament, I may have thought that a match between these European powerhouses would be thrilling. However, have we seen any truly thrilling games involving France so far? Perhaps the energy of Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and well... Marc Cucurella will inspire Kylian Mbappé and his teammates. Let's cross our fingers and hope for an exciting match.

Check back frequently for updates as we lead up to the big game and bring you the latest news from both England and Netherlands as they get ready for their semi-final showdown tomorrow evening.