Jones and Trafford lead England to Euro U21 glory as Spain miss last-gasp penalty
Attention ahead of this final will have been on England’s impenetrable defence facing the tournament’s highest scorers, but Anthony Gordon was at the centre of the early action. The forward saw an effort saved after cutting in, then played a pass that was seemingly destined to tee up Morgan Gibbs-White until it was instinctively cut out by Jon Pacheco.
There was still a reminder of La Rojita’s threat as they grew into the game, with Álex Baena’s curling effort and an Aitor Paredes header going agonisingly wide.
The occasion’s magnitude was on full display as the first half progressed, with the match largely lacking any flow and various hard tackles going in.
Cole Palmer still showed his quality, hitting a venomous strike from range that Arnau Tenas held at the second attempt, before providing a free-kick delivery that Levi Colwill headed against the woodwork.
It was a slice of fortune that resulted in the opener moments before the break, though, as another Palmer free-kick deflected off Curtis Jones to wrongfoot Tenas, which raised the heat even further as both teams had a player booked and a member of staff sent off in the aftermath.
Spain came out from the restart defiantly and James Trafford was finally beaten by Abel Ruiz’s powerful header in the 51st minute, although the tournament’s joint-top scorer was denied by the offside flag.
The Young Lions continued to look solid despite that scare and Santi Denia responded with three changes before the hour mark, which brought about more pressure but no breakthrough, as Ruiz flicked his header wide after Jones had wasted an opportunity at the other end.
With the finish line tantalisingly close for England, the Spaniards were offered a lifeline when Colwill was adjudged to have caught Ruiz.
However, La Rojita’s captain was denied by an outstanding save from Trafford, who then miraculously got up again to deny Aimar Oroz’s rebound.
Antonio Blanco and Morgan Gibbs-White both received second yellows in the aftermath, but England still celebrated their third-ever U21 Euros title and first since 1984, adding to the Women’s Euros success from last year.
They also inflicted Spain’s first defeat in 16 internationals, which denied them the opportunity to become the tournament’s outright most successful nation.
Flashscore Man of the Match: James Trafford (England)