England’s hopes of crossing the great divide that has separated them from the major prizes were snatched away by a superior Spain side on a tough night in the German capital.
The iconic stadium was a sea of white as the massed ranks of England supporters vastly outnumbered their Spain counterparts, in the belief that the near misses of previous years were about to end.
And when Palmer’s smooth finish against the run of play 17 minutes from time drew England level, confidence surged. Many will have felt that Southgate’s side were about to mount the sort of comeback that rescued them against Slovakia, Switzerland and the Netherlands earlier in Euro 2024.
This time there was to be no escape, with England being opened up clinically for Oyarzabal’s decisive strike that gave Spain the success their performances throughout the tournament merited.
And just to compound England’s agony, Declan Rice and Marc Guehi both saw headers cleared off the line in the closing moments, firstly by keeper Unai Simon and then Dani Olmo, who celebrated like it was a trophy-winning moment – which it effectively was.
England’s misery was confirmed seconds later, meaning that for all the progress and optimism of Southgate’s eight-year reign, tangible success has escaped them. They have lost two successive European Championship finals, a World Cup semi-final in 2018 and a World Cup quarter-final in Qatar in 2022.
It now remains to be seen whether Southgate stays in charge for the next World Cup, but it may well be that this proves to be one disappointment too far for England’s manager.