Lamine Yamal etched his name in history with a record-breaking goal before Dani Olmo fired Spain into the Euro 2024 final with a 2-1 victory over France.
Yamal produced a remarkable long-range equaliser shortly after Randal Kolo Muani's ninth-minute opener in Tuesday's first semi-final in Munich, the 16-year-old becoming the youngest scorer at a major tournament in history.
In-form Olmo then delivered the decisive strike midway through the opening half, manufacturing space inside Les Bleus' area before squeezing a low effort home.
Didier Deschamps' side had been unconvincing before this last-four meeting, and though they improved in the second half, they were unable to find a leveller as Spain teed up a meeting with either the Netherlands or England.
Luis de la Fuente's Roja entered this clash as the only team to win all five games at the tournament (including extra time), and another dominant start saw them go close within five minutes.
Yamal was afforded far too much time to clip towards the back post for an unmarked Fabian Ruiz, who could only head over with Mike Maignan's goal at his mercy.
Yet France struck the first blow just three minutes later when the now-unmasked Kylian Mbappe stood up Jesus Navas before delivering from the left for Kolo Muani to head past the helpless Unai Simon.
Yamal single-handedly dragged La Roja back into the contest, however, shifting the ball away from Adrien Rabiot before curling a sumptuous strike into the top-left corner from 25 yards out.
Spurred on by that historic moment, Spain completed the turnaround within four further minutes as Olmo pounced on Navas' half-cleared cross before finishing past Maignan, with Jules Kounde unable to clear on the line.
Maignan was somewhat fortunate moments after the interval, mindlessly racing towards the touchline to challenge Nico Williams, who would have been clean through without the goalkeeper's questionable lunge.
Les Bleus improved from then on, though, with a free Aurelien Tchouameni heading straight at Simon from Ousmane Dembele's right-sided corner after 52 minutes.
Theo Hernandez wasted a gilt-edged opportunity to equalise with 15 minutes remaining, blazing over from the edge of the area before Mbappe followed suit 10 minutes later, as Spain held on to reach their fifth Euros final.
Spain toast new king Yamal
At the age of 16 years and 362 days, Yamal made history by becoming the youngest-ever player to appear in a semi-final at a major international tournament, a record previously held by Brazil's Pele (17 years, 244 days versus France at the 1958 World Cup).
Yet the Barcelona winger was not satisfied with that record, delivering a remarkable leveller to surpass Pele – who found the net aged 17 years and 239 days against Wales at the 1958 World Cup – as the youngest scorer in history at either major tournament.
His teenage brilliance helped inspire Spain to their sixth straight win at the Euros, a feat never achieved by any team previously, while La Roja are also the first side to win six matches in a single European Championship tournament (including extra time, but not penalties).
However, Yamal cannot take all the credit as Olmo – with three goals and two assists – became the first Spain player to manage five-plus goal contributions at a single tournament since David Silva during their victorious Euro 2012 campaign (two goals, three assists).
One French problem solved, another found
Deschamps may have been over the moon to finally see a French player score from open play at the tournament, with Kolo Muani's headed opener Les Bleus' first goal to not come from the penalty spot or an own goal.
That strike came from France's 87th non-penalty attempt at Euro 2024, and somewhat repaid the faith of Deschamps, with Kolo Muani scoring his fourth goal when starting for Les Bleus as opposed to just one strike from the bench.
The joy was short-lived, however, as France then conceded twice within the opening 25 minutes – more goals than they allowed in their first five matches at Euro 2024 combined (one, a penalty against Poland).
A rapid turnaround marked the first time France had taken a 1-0 lead but trailed by half-time in European Championship history, and that first-half collapse proved decisive.
De Bruyne to skip Nations League fixtures to manage workload
Kevin De Bruyne has asked to skip Belgium's remaining Nations League fixtures for 2024 in order to manage his workload, coach Domenico Tedesco has revealed.
On Friday, Tedesco named his 23-man squad for the Red Devils' upcoming games against Italy and France in Group A2, with De Bruyne the headline omission.
De Bruyne played both of Belgium's games in the September international break, as they beat Israel 3-1 before losing 2-0 to France in Lyon.
After that latter match, he made headlines by questioning the mentality and fighting spirit of Tedesco's team, but he has reaffirmed his commitment to continuing on the international stage until at least the 2026 World Cup.
With Manchester City facing a gruelling schedule this term after qualifying for the first 32-team Club World Cup, the midfielder has taken steps to protect his fitness.
"I had a long phone conversation with Kevin. He has an injury, but he is very motivated to continue with the Red Devils and to play the World Cup in 2026," Tedesco said when announcing his latest squad.
"He has asked to skip this camp and also November, to take care of his body. The schedule has become even busier due to the Club World Cup.
"That is why he is not there now and in November. But when it really counts – the World Cup – he will be there."
Tedesco was also asked if De Bruyne's comments last month had led to any negative repercussions in the squad, but he insisted the controversy surrounding them was unwarranted.
"Kevin is a big player, but also a big personality," he added. "We talked after what happened in the last match. Of course he was emotional, he always wants to win. But he never mentioned names in the media. We just have to deal with it.
"In the media it has become a big item, just because it was Kevin who said it. But in the dressing room it is not a big topic."
Romelu Lukaku is the other big-name absentee from Belgium's latest squad, with the Red Devils' all-time leading scorer failing to win a recall after being dropped last month, despite recording four Serie A goal involvements for Napoli in a positive start to the season.
Belgium squad: Koen Casteels (Al Qadsiah), Matz Sels (Nottingham Forest), Maarten Vandevoordt (RB Leipzig), Sebastiaan Bornauw (Wolfsburg), Timothy Castagne (Fulham), Zeno Debast (Sporting Lisbon), Maxim De Cuyper (Club Brugge), Koni De Winter (Genoa), Wout Faes (Leicester City), Matte Smets (Genk), Arthur Theate (Eintracht Frankfurt), Charles De Ketelaere (Atalanta), Arne Engels (Augsburg), Orel Mangala (Lyon), Amadou Onana (Aston Villa), Youri Tielemans (Aston Villa), Johan Bakayoko (PSV), Jeremy Doku (Manchester City), Malick Fofana (Lyon), Dodi Lukebakio (Sevilla), Lois Openda (RB Leipzig) Cyril Ngonge (Napoli), Leandro Trossard (Arsenal).
Carsley: No more 'copy and paste' England squads
Interim England boss Lee Carsley says he will not "copy and paste" his squads, with players to be rewarded for strong club form with Three Lions call-ups.
Carsley oversaw 2-0 Nations League victories over the Republic of Ireland and Finland last month, having taken the reins on a temporary basis after Gareth Southgate's resignation.
The former under-21 boss announced his latest 25-man squad for upcoming matches against Greece and Finland on Thursday, making four changes from last month's party.
Tottenham striker Dominic Solanke won his first call-up in seven years, with Eberechi Eze, Harry Maguire, Tino Livramento and Jarrod Bowen all left out.
Predecessor Southgate was often criticised for sticking with a trusted core of players during his eight-year spell with the Three Lions, but Carsley says nobody is guaranteed a place under him.
"In the back of my mind, I wanted to make sure it feels fresh," Carsley said.
"When you get that email or WhatsApp to say that you've been called up, it's an achievement because it shouldn't be something that is taken for granted.
"I thought it was important that it was not just a copy and paste. I want them to feel like they have earned their place in the squad."
Tottenham midfielder James Maddison and Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford – both of whom were left out of Southgate's Euro 2024 squad – were among the players to be overlooked.
Carsley said he had been left with several tough decisions to make but had prioritised those in form in order to build rhythm before the 2026 World Cup qualifiers start next year.
"The players I've left out, I could make a case for them being in, but ultimately I have to make those decisions," Carsley said.
"The reality is you want a player to be coming in in top form and fighting for a position in the team.
"Getting out of this Nations League is important for us in terms of setting up World Cup qualification. Whether I'm here or not, it's important we are in a favourable pattern and in a position to win the World Cup."
Rashford withdrawal down to rotation, insists under-fire Ten Hag
Erik ten Hag has insisted Marcus Rashford's half-time withdrawal during Manchester United's draw with Porto was down to a need for rotation, not a statement on his performance.
United are still searching for their first Europa League win of the campaign, after Harry Maguire's late header salvaged a 3-3 draw in Porto on Thursday.
After the Red Devils went 2-0 up through early goals from Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund, a strike from Pepe and a brace from Samu Omorodion had put them on the brink of another humiliating defeat.
To cap United's frustrations, captain Bruno Fernandes was shown a red card for a second successive game after also being dismissed in Sunday's 3-0 loss to Tottenham, having never previously been sent off in any of his first 241 games for United.
It was the decision to substitute Rashford for Alejandro Garnacho, though, that dominated post-match talk, with no United player matching Rashford's eight touches in the Porto box or three successful dribbles all game, despite his early withdrawal.
Speaking to TNT Sports after the game, Ten Hag said: "We have to rotate. Garnacho, we didn't start him, but he had a great game not only Sunday but the whole season.
"We go quickly with a turnaround to Villa and they have had a day longer to recover and we have an away game."
Rashford now has 14 goals in the Europa League, moving him outright fourth in the all-time UEFA Cup/Europa League charts among English players, behind only Martin Chivers (22), Alan Shearer (21) and Jermain Defoe (19).
Asked about the substitution again in his post-match press conference, Ten Hag added: "Yeah, but Garnacho was my best player on Sunday by far and also in many other games.
"I think in the season, as I assess it so far, he is bringing us so far the offensive threat by creating chances, assists, also scoring.
"Garnacho we also have to play as well and we have two very good players over that side."
Pushed on whether the decision had anything to do with Rashford's role in Porto's first goal, which came down the England man's flank, Ten Hag said: "I have to watch it back and I think over the left side definitely we didn't defend well tonight.
"Marcus also played a part in this but, as I say, it had to do with Garnacho and nothing against Rashy."
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