England winger Cole Palmer displayed incredible confidence in his goalkeeper after Spain were awarded a last-minute spot-kick in the European Under-21 final.
England won the competition for the first time in nearly 40 years after a dramatic penalty save by James Trafford ensured Lee Carsley’s side edged past Spain.
Manchester City’s Trafford, who has been linked with a £19million move to Burnley this summer, kept out Abel Ruiz's low spot-kick in the 99th minute before producing another brilliant stop to deny the follow-up.
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England scored the game’s only goal in the first half after Palmer’s free-kick deflected off team-mate Curtis Jones and wrong-footed goalkeeper Arnau Tenas to find the bottom corner.
And Trafford’s late heroics saw the Young Lions become the third England team to win the competition after previously picking up the trophy in 1982 and 1984.
They also became the first side in history to ho the entire championship without conceding a goal.
Palmer’s confidence in Trafford
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Footage has emerged of Palmer comforting a nervy England bench just before Abel Ruiz took his last-minute spot-kick.
In the video above, City winger Palmer calmly tells his team-mates: “I bet you he saves it. Watch.” The clip then cuts to a jubilant England bench after Trafford denies the Spaniard.
After the game, Trafford also claimed he had a premonition of saving a penalty in the final.
Speaking to Channel 4, the shot-stopper said: “I told everyone this morning I was going to save a pen. I knew I would save. It was pretty easy really. I told all my mates back home I was going to save one.
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“The clean sheet record means a lot to us because it would take a massive effort to get broken. We are a very good team and we believe nobody can score against us and we showed that.”
However, it has since been claimed that Trafford was only regarded as the third-best goalkeeper at stopping penalties in training and England may have substituted the 20-year-old in extra time if the game looked like heading for spot-kicks.
Manager Carsley said: “We’ve practised pens for 10 mins every day for the past month. James had mixed success but the amount of work that goes in by the goalkeeping department has really helped and it’s testament to them.
“I think he’s been outstanding through the tournament. You always worry, or you’re mindful when there’s transfer things going on in the background and how that affects the players.”
Featured Image Credit: England via TwitterTopics: Football, England, Spain, Cole Palmer