MX23RW : Friday, December 13 03:39:07| >> :600:147161:147161:

Luke Shaw vows to give "devastated" Bukayo Saka "a big hug"

Luke Shaw vows to give
© Reuters
Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho all missed spot-kicks in the Euro 2020 final shoot-out defeat to Italy.

Luke Shaw insists England lost the Euro 2020 final as a team and said he would give Bukayo Saka "a big hug" of support following his miss in the penalty shoot-out defeat to Italy.

Saka saw his spot-kick saved by Gianluigi Donnarumma as Italy won the shoot-out 3-2 to deny England a first major trophy in 55 years.

The 19-year-old had come off the bench having started the semi-final win over Denmark but was left in tears following his miss, with manager Gareth Southgate taking the blame for deciding who took penalties.

Saka saw his penalty saved as Italy won the Euro 2020 title.
Saka saw his penalty saved as Italy won the Euro 2020 title. (Mike Egerton/PA)

Saka was then targeted with online racist abuse but – before those issues came to light for his team-mates – Shaw said the squad would be there for the Arsenal forward, as well as Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho, who also missed.

"He's devastated," Shaw said of Saka, who he had labelled a "little brother" earlier in the tournament.

"But I think the most important thing is for us now as a team to be there for him and give him a big hug and tell him to keep his head up.

"It happens. It is a penalty shoot-out – anything can happen, as a lot of people know. It is an experience he will learn from but we will all be behind him, he knows that.

"It is not just him, though. There's Rashy and Sanch also. We're with them all. With this team there are no individuals who cost us.

"The squad in general, the togetherness, is definitely there. You could see that even after the game and that huddle and the way we were with the lads who missed.

"We are all together in this. Like I said, we win as a team, we lose as a team. We all lost tonight."

Shaw had given England an early lead in the final with his first international goal but Leonardo Bonucci's equaliser meant penalties were required to decide the tournament.

Saw had put England in front with the fastest goal in European Championship final history.
Saw had put England in front with the fastest goal in European Championship final history. (Mike Egerton/PA)

Shaw had already suffered penalty heartbreak with Manchester United as they lost the Europa League final on a shoot-out to Villarreal in May.

"It is a massive learning experience," he added.

"I have had it tonight and I had it in the Europa League as well. It is not what I want, but it is experience. Experience I can only learn from.

"I want to push myself even more because it hurts a lot and we want to be on the winning side of course.

Southgate and his players were left dejected after losing the shoot-out.
Gareth Southgate and his players were left dejected after losing the shoot-out. (Mike Egerton/PA)

"It is devastating. Gutting. It is of course not what we wanted. I think we felt very confident. We felt in a good way.

"We felt like we were going in the right direction with our performances. We are devastated. We gave everything and just came up short.

"But it was a step in the right direction in terms of what we wanted to achieve – a (Euros) final, that's the first time in history that has happened.

"But it is not just me, it's the team. That is not enough. We wanted to win but as I say we came up short."

ID:454993: cacheID:454993:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:9218:
Written by
P A
Restore Data
Share this article now:
England manager Gareth Southgate pictured on July 11, 2021
Read Next:
Gareth Southgate taking time to "reflect" before England contract decision
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
1.15am
Rams
@
49ers
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool14112129111835
2Chelsea1594235181731
3Arsenal1585229151429
4Manchester CityMan City158342721627
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest157441918125
6Aston Villa157442323025
7Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton156632522324
8Bournemouth157352320324
9Brentford157263128323
10Fulham156542220223
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1562731191220
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle155551921-220
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd155461918119
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham155372028-818
15Everton143561421-714
16Leicester CityLeicester153572130-914
17Crystal Palace152761420-613
18Ipswich TownIpswich151681427-139
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1523102338-159
20Southampton1512121131-205


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!