Alexander-Arnold: 'Practice made perfect from the spot'

Trent Alexander-Arnold was thrilled to score the decisive penalty as England beat Switzerland on spot-kicks to book their place in the semi-finals of EURO 2024.

The Liverpool man was the Three Lions' fifth taker, scoring the winning effort after Jordan Pickford had earlier saved from Manuel Akanji.

Alexander-Arnold claimed it was a case of practice making perfect after finding the top corner.

He said: "It’s what we practise, a lot of practice goes into that moment. They are moments I enjoy. When the gaffer tells me I’m taking one, my belly doesn’t drop, I enjoy it, I practise it. 

"I knew my spot, I knew I needed to execute it, I went out and did that. All five penalties were great."

Team. 🤍 pic.twitter.com/vtsS75ZpYI

— England (@England) July 6, 2024

After drawing 1-1 in 120 minutes, Alexander-Arnold was clear that England will need to continue to win close matches but believes they will relish the challenge.

He said: "Both quarter-finals on Friday went to extra time, too. These games are tight margins but we've been able to win.

"These are the goals and aims we set for ourselves. It was a difficult opponent again, going behind. The team showed a lot of character, a lot of belief and heart and spirit. We dug deep when it mattered most.

"We knew it was going to be tight, we were never going to run away with the game, although that would have been nice."

Captain Harry Kane was not involved in the shoot-out after suffering from cramp in extra time but was equally convinced that the Three Lions will continue to fight in Germany.

He said: "There were a few hearts skipping a beat out there. It was another tough game. It was great resilience from the lads, to go behind with 15 minutes to go and to turn it up a gear and get the goal like we did.

"The difference between this year and past years is that we’ve got proven penalty takers with Ivan Toney, Cole Palmer, Bukayo Saka. We had a lot more experience in that sense and they showed it out there.

"It’s a team effort, you saw how much it means to all of us. We have to calm down and get ready for a game in a few days."