Liverpool will have four representatives across the Euro 2024 and Copa America finals this weekend, with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez making up half of them after England’s late win.
The second Euro semi-final pit the Netherlands’ Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo and Ryan Gravenberch against England’s Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez – and it was the group of two who progressed.
Unsurprisingly, Gareth Southgate named both Liverpool defenders on the bench on Wednesday evening and failed to turn their way throughout the 90-minute clash.
Van Dijk and Gakpo, meanwhile, played the full match and were left to rue a 90-minute winner from Aston Villa‘s Ollie Watkins, a clinical strike that sealed a 2-1 win for the Three Lions.
Xavi Simons got the Dutch side off to the perfect start with a drilled finish in the sixth minute, only for controversy to follow after England were awarded a dubious penalty after VAR intervention.
Denzel Dumfries was adjudged to have made contact with Harry Kane after he got his shot away, the consensus was it was not a penalty and that referee Felix Zwayer got it wrong.
“I think it says it all that the referee went in quite quickly after the game, I had no time to shake his hand,” a heartbroken Van Dijk told beIN Sports post-match.
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— novembergirl ??????? (@babiimuayyy) July 10, 2024
Liverpool’s No. 4 was visibly emotional as he processed his side’s exit and, thankfully, he, nor his fellow team-mates, have to front up for a third-place playoff.
In the semi-final, Van Dijk won three of his four duels, made six clearances, had the most touches of any Netherlands player (76), but failed to win either of the tackles he contested, as per FotMob.
“It has been a very, very, very long year, a tough year,” Van Dijk emphasised, and he has deserved the three-week break that now awaits him, Gakpo and Ryan Gravenberch.
The trio will only report back for pre-season at the beginning of August, at the earliest, and will then be followed by Alexander-Arnold and Gomez.
Reds reach final
England will meet Spain in the Euro final on Sunday evening (8pm BST), and we see zero possibility of Southgate changing his mind over the involvement of Alexander-Arnold and Gomez.
Gomez has not played a single minute throughout the tournament, while the Scouser has 134 minutes under his belt after starting the first two group games.
Over in the United States, one of Alexis Mac Allister and Luis Diaz will lift the Copa America trophy after Argentina and Colombia qualified for the final.
The match takes place at 1am (BST) on Monday morning, hours after the conclusion of the Euro final.
And despite Uruguay missing out at the hands of Colombia, Darwin Nunez‘s season is not over as they face a third-place playoff against Brazil.
The players will all be granted a minimum of three weeks off after the end of international duty, meaning the abovementioned players will only return in August.
