Sport,Top Fives

Top five England escapes

With England’s do or die moment having passed off successfully (at least until the next one on Sunday), we look back at other occasions where our boys have pulled a vital victory (or draw) out of the bag and given us all reason to believe…

1. England vs. Poland 1986: England had lost 1-0 to Portugal and then played out a goalless draw against Morocco, which saw Ray Wilkins get his marching orders and Bryan Robson dislocate his dodgy shoulder. In a must-win game against Poland, England stepped up to the plate with three Lineker goals in the first half. Nice.

2. England 1-0 Egypt 1990: It was the third and (potentially) final game in the tournament and England faced the prospect of crashing out in the group stages. The heat was on. A win is what was needed to ensure qualification for the knock-out rounds. And that is exactly what defender Mark Wright served up, his headed goal being the difference between the sides.

3. England 4-1 Holland 1996: It’s Euro 96, England are on home turf. A place in the quarter finals is the prize. Nobody, not even the most ardent England fans expected what was about to happen: a 4-1 victory, England’s biggest win over Holland in almost half a century. Liquid football indeed.

4. England 3-2 Cameroon 1990: With a first World Cup semi-final in 24 years at stake , a goal down and just eight minutes on the clock, England’s dreams of glory hung by a thread. But then Gary Lineker scored a penalty to take the game into extra-time. A second penalty in the 105^th minute settled it. Just.

5. England 2-2 Greece 2001: Deep into in injury time at Old Trafford, many thought that it was all over for England as the team trailed Greece 2-1. Then, in the 94^th minute, David Beckham stepped up for a free-kick. It was do or die. This was his moment. We all know the rest:  a spectacular score, a spectacular draw, and England were on their way to Japan. Danielle Clark