"With Bellingham coming on, England should attack more aggressively. Hopefully they can create some chances."
"If England still can't find a way through Spain's defense early in the second half, they may run out of opportunities once we get into the closing stages."
"Spain are extremely good at finishing matches. Their control over the final 20 minutes is incredibly strong!"
Scholes had watched more than enough Spain matches to know the pattern.
Most teams saw their players tire and their performances decline as the final whistle approached.
Spain were the exact opposite.
England's supporters desperately wanted their team to win the European Championship.
"Let England win the Euros for once! After all these years, Southgate and these players deserve some reward for all their hard work!"
"England have so many young players. Winning the European Championship would be a huge achievement this early in their careers, just like when Leo won the World Cup!"
"Keep it up, Saka! Make Spain's left side suffer again in the second half!"
The second half of the European Championship final finally began.
For the fans, those 15 minutes of halftime had felt like the longest wait imaginable.
As soon as play resumed, the anxiety among the England supporters was obvious, and England immediately began attacking with greater intensity.
Bellingham had rested throughout the entire first half, so once he came on, he quickly became England's most active player.
He repeatedly pushed forward, making run after run toward Spain's penalty area.
"Bellingham's characteristics are nothing like those of a workhorse midfielder. When he first emerged, quite a few fans thought that might be the type of player he would become."
"But judging by the way his game is developing, Bellingham has a much better chance of becoming an attacking midfielder, perhaps even the kind of midfielder who plays almost like a Second Striker!"
49th minute!
"Bellingham's attacking movement is excellent. Bringing him on has definitely increased the pressure on Rodri and Busquets!"
Zubizarreta's halftime instructions had Rodri providing more support to Gayà against Saka.
That left Busquets responsible for tracking Bellingham.
But how was Busquets supposed to keep up with a young Bellingham?
Henderson switched play from midfield with a long pass to Saka.
Saka received it and immediately laid the ball inside to Rice.
Leo stayed tight to Rice, deliberately positioning himself to block the passing lane toward Bellingham.
But Bellingham cleverly curved his run behind Leo and moved toward Rice's right.
Rice immediately slipped a through ball past Leo and into Bellingham's path.
Busquets had already been dragged out of position, leaving Bellingham and Kane to attack Spain's defenders together.
Laporte instructed Pau Torres to close down Bellingham while he prepared to provide cover and kept an eye on Kane's position.
The clever defensive adjustment made Bellingham hesitate for just a moment as he prepared to pass with his right foot.
Kane immediately moved around Laporte, looking for space to receive the ball and spotting a possible combination with Bellingham.
But Leo had already used that brief hesitation to recover.
He quickly closed in on Bellingham and joined Busquets in trapping him between them.
This was the first time the young Bellingham had ever faced Leo.
Before today, the two had never played against each other.
Bellingham dragged the ball behind himself with his left foot, then used his right side to shield it as he turned with possession and tried to create more room.
It was one of the midfield shielding moves he used most often.
Normally, defenders couldn't match the rhythm of his dribbling and would eventually be left behind.
This time, however, the moment Bellingham pulled the ball behind him, a figure at his back nearly muscled him off it.
Bellingham immediately braced himself and barely managed to keep possession.
Under pressure, he nervously nudged the ball toward the left, hoping to find Saka and escape the danger.
But Gayà had Saka completely covered.
If Bellingham tried that pass, Gayà would certainly intercept it.
With no other option, Bellingham continued carrying the ball backward and to his right, doing everything he could to protect possession.
But the moment he took that first step toward the right, the figure behind him seized the opening.
Leo exploded forward.
He completely muscled Bellingham aside and positioned his body between Bellingham and the ball.
Leo won possession!
"Bellingham is still too young. His shielding technique against Lin was excellent, but his decision making let him down."
"Against Lin, you can't expect to protect the ball by yourself. Nobody has managed that over the past few years!"
"Lin wins it and launches the counter down the left! Bellingham is chasing him, while Rice moves across to provide cover. But England have to remember that Rice is already on a yellow card!"
Rice didn't dare dive directly into a challenge.
Instead, he moved closer to Leo while gradually reducing his dribbling space, waiting for Bellingham to recover and help him.
Leo chose not to keep carrying the ball.
Rice was defending well. If Leo continued dribbling, the available space would only get tighter.
Leo stopped the ball, looked up, and passed toward the middle.
Rodri had already surged forward.
Rodri received it and immediately slipped a through ball ahead.
Sure enough, Morata was looking for Kyle Walker again.
With his back to goal, Morata held Walker off and slipped the ball to Sarabia, who had returned to the left wing for the second half.
Trippier stayed tight to Sarabia, but Sarabia's excellent first touch gave him the positional advantage.
He then drove past Trippier and reached the byline.
Olmo was calling for the ball at the far post!
Sarabia immediately crossed!
Olmo was inches away from getting his head to it, but Stones kept England's hopes alive!
"Stones' excellent form is what makes Southgate's three center back system work!"
"He's been outstanding in this final so far!"
"Bringing Bellingham on has definitely changed England's attack, but it still isn't enough!"
Stones reached the ball first, but he couldn't clear it away.
His header went behind instead, giving Spain another corner.
Stones hurriedly organized himself inside the penalty area as Olmo sent the corner toward the middle.
Stones attacked the ball first and headed it away again.
But under pressure from Morata, he could only send it behind for yet another Spanish corner.
"England have defended the first two situations successfully, but they can't keep giving Spain corners! You can't expect to stop Spain from every single corner they take!"
This time, almost every England player dropped back to defend.
Olmo delivered another corner.
Maguire got there first at the near post and headed it clear.
Bellingham followed up near the edge of the penalty area and headed the ball again.
After two consecutive headers, England finally managed to get the ball outside the box.
Leo, who had been occupied by Henderson, suddenly burst into motion and lightly used one hand to hold Henderson off.
That small shove was enough.
Henderson had been ready to accelerate alongside Leo, but in an instant, he lost the defensive initiative.
Leo sprinted toward the ball Maguire had headed out beyond the edge of the penalty area.
He controlled it with his chest, deliberately directing it down toward the turf.
The ball struck the grass and bounced back upward.
The instant it began to rise, Leo stepped into it and swung his leg.
He volleyed.
The ball carved a vicious outward curve through the air.
Driven by tremendous power and spin, it flew toward Pickford before suddenly bending toward the right post!