You have to feel a little bit sorry for the young Arsenal star Calum chambers, unless you are a German of course, because once again the three lions were knocked out of an international competition by the cruellest possible method, the ill-fated penalty shootout.
I do not know for sure if there are any nations with a worse record in these spot kick deciders but I would not be surprised to find out there was not. And once again it was at the hands of Germany, just like it was in the World Cup semi-final of 1990 and in Euro 96 at the same heartbreaking stage.
On both of those occasions you could easily argue that England deserved to go through after normal play but tonight the under 21s were left hanging on after having their 2-1 lead pegged back early in the second half. Chambers can be very proud of the way he played both in this game and the whole tournament but I doubt that will help him much for a while.
It was a different matter for the other Gunner involved, as Hector Bellerin and his Spanish teammates cruised past Italy with ease, thanks in part to a sending off for a second yellow on the Italy side. So our right back will be up against the former Arsenal star Serge Gnabry in the final this weekend and I hope he wins and, of course, stays at Arsenal for next season.
Bob.