England were 1-0 up in stoppage time during their Euro 2004 opener against France thanks to a Frank Lampard goal, but a missed penalty and a poor back pass from Steven Gerrard meant England were the architects of their own downfall.
For those that are a little downhearted about England conceding a late equaliser against Russia during their Euro 2016 opener at the weekend, it could have been worse – like it was 12 years ago, in fact.
It was all going so well for the Three Lions as they faced up to a difficult opener against France in Lisbon in Euro 2004, but Frank Lampard’s header just before half time had seemingly put England in charge of their Group B game.
Their lead should have been doubled in the second half but David Beckham saw his penalty kick – won by Wayne Rooney at his first major tournament as an 18-year-old after being fouled by Mikael Silvestre – saved by Fabian Barthez.
With the game ticking down into the closing stages, it looked as if England could hold on to get their campaign off to the best possible start.
A foul by Emile Heskey on the edge of the England area gave Zinedine Zidane the opportunity to equalise – which he duly took, but it wasn’t finished there as Thierry Henry latched on to a poor back-pass from Steven Gerrard, who was then brought down by David James to give the French a stoppage-time penalty.
Zidane stepped up to give France a victory.
It was a classic case of England snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. You can watch the highlights here.
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