Ollie Watkins revealed that he had accurately predicted the exact outcome of England’s victorious semi-final against the Netherlands after the final whistle on Wednesday evening.
The Aston Villa striker was brought on as a late substitute by Gareth Southgate as the Three Lions struggled to pull ahead against Ronald Koeman’s side late in the second-half.
The Netherlands had been the first to open the scoring just seven minutes into the tie courtesy of a lashed strike from Xavi Simons, but England drew themselves back on level footing after equalising via Harry Kane’s nerveless penalty kick.
Bukayo Saka had attempted to find the decider only to have his second-half effort ruled out for offside, but in the end it was Watkins with a pin-precise shot on the stroke of 90 minutes, ably assisted by Chelsea’s Player of the Season – and fellow substitute – Cole Palmer.
‘It’s unbelievable,’ Watkins told ITV in his post-match interview. ‘I’ve been waiting that moment for weeks. It’s taken a lot of hard work to get where I am.
Ollie Watkins’ introduction in the 81st minute helped change the game for the Three Lions
The Aston Villa striker’s inch-perfect shot came at the tail end of normal time and proved the vital decider
‘I’m grateful for the opportunity I’ve been given and I’ve grabbed it with both hands, I’m delighted.
‘I swear on my life, I swear on my kids’ life,’ Watkins continued. ‘I said to Cole Palmer, “we’re coming on today, and you’re setting me up,” and I was so happy when he passed to me.
‘I knew as soon as he got the ball, he was going to pass to me, and you’ve got to be greedy, touch and finish. To see it go in the bottom corner, it’s the best feeling ever.’
Overturning the early deficit against the Netherlands came on the heels of England’s strongest performance at a European Championships where Southgate’s side have frequently come under fire for not looking their best.
But Watkins was keen to rise above the noise and celebrate the achievement of making the nation’s first major tournament final for the men’s team on foreign soil in history.
The 28-year-old insists that he had prophesised the goal with fellow subtitute Cole Palmer
Watkins was keen to urge England to block out the noise around tournament performances and look ahead to the final
‘Look, there’s been a lot of criticism,’ Watkins added. ‘At the end of the day, we’re in the final and that’s all that matters.
‘We’re in the final.’
England will play Spain at the Olympiastadion in Berlin on Sunday evening, meeting a side that has a fearsome 100 per cent win record in the tournament.
Luise de la Fuente’s side beat France 2-1 thanks to goals from teenage talent Lamine Yamal and Dani Olmo to push past Kylian Mbappe’s side on Tuesday night.
