Euro 2024 final team news: England hand surprise start to Shaw as Yamal makes history

Luke Shaw has been handed his first start of Euro 2024 with the left-back replacing Kieran Trippier for England’s showdown with Spain in Berlin.

Shaw, who missed the last three months of the 2023-24 season, did not feature in any of England’s first four matches.

However, after coming on as a substitute against Switzerland in the quarters and then again against the Netherlands in the semi-finals, the 29-year-old was included in Gareth Southgate’s starting XI for Sunday’s final.

Trippier, who had filled in on the left, has dropped to the bench. Shaw’s inclusion was the only change for Southgate from the team that started against the Dutch, meaning the semi-final matchwinner Ollie Watkins had to settle for a place among the substitutes yet again.

It is the first time Shaw, who scored early on in the Euro 2020 final, which England lost on penalties to Italy, has started for the Three Lions in over a year.

There was two changes for Spain, with Luis de la Fuente bringing back Dani Carvajal after the full-back had served his one-match suspension following his red card in La Roja’s quarter-final defeat of Germany.

OFICIAL |

Os presentamos la alineación de Luis de la Fuente para vencer a Inglaterra y GANAR LA EUROCOPA.

¡¡A por ellos, equipo!! ¡¡Traed el trofeo a casa!!#VamosEspaña | #EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/SJfSmCl3kx

— Selección Española Masculina de Fútbol (@SEFutbol) July 14, 2024

Jesus Navas, who will be retiring from international football after the tournament, made way for Carvajal. Likewise, Robin Le Normand came back from suspension to replace Nacho.

Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal, whose stunner dragged Spain level against France in the last four, were handed starts on the flanks, either side of Dani Olmo, who ahead of kick-off was one of six players tied on three goals in the race for the Golden Boot, along with Harry Kane, Jamal Musiala, Cody Gakpo, Ivan Schranz and Georges Mikautadze.

Yamal, at the age of 17 years and one day, is the youngest ever player to feature in a World Cup or European Championship final, surpassing Pele’s record from the 1958 World Cup (17y 249d).

This will be England’s first major tournament final played outside of England, with the 1966 World Cup and Euro 2020 finals being played at Wembley Stadium. The Three Lions have never lost a match in Berlin in six attempts (W4 D2), only playing more in Helsinki (eight), Amsterdam (seven) and Sunderland (seven) without ever suffering defeat.

Meanwhile, this is Spain’s fifth European Championship final, with La Roja winning the trophy three times (1964, 2008, 2012) and losing once (1984). They could become the first team to win the competition on four separate occasions.