Scott Murray's Blog, page 117

Hannah Green wins 2019 Women's PGA Championship – as it happened

Australia’s Hannah Green won her first major after beating defending champion Park Sung-hyun by one shot at Hazeltine

11.58pm BST

Related: Australian Hannah Green wins first major at LPGA Championship

11.10pm BST

So congratulations to Hannah Green, who joins Yani Tseng (2011), Judy Kimball (1962) and the legendary Mickey Wright (1958 and 1961) as a wire-to-wire winner of the PGA. She held off a strong charge from the field, never relinquishing her lead, and is the deserved winner of the 2019 Women’s PGA Championship. Thanks for reading, and we hope to see you back here in three weeks for the Open at Portrush. Nighty night!

-9: Green
-8: S Park
-6: Reid, Korda
-5: Kang, Salas
-4: Lee, H Kim, I Park
-3: Ryu, L Ko, Khang, Jutanugarn

11.04pm BST

Honourable mention goes to the defending champion Park Sung-hyun, who did everything in her power to keep possession of her title. Nearly. Not quite. But her final-day 68 means there should be no what-ifs; she gave it everything. And hats off to Mel Reid, who tore up Hazeltine with a glorious 66. That’s earned her a share of third, her best finish at a major. Hopefully that’ll spur the 31-year-old from Derby on to greater things.

11.00pm BST

Hannah Green, 2019 PGA champion, gives an emotional interview, her voice cracking with a mixture of ecstasy, relief and a little stunned disbelief. “I’m pretty much speechless. I was really nervous playing the last five holes, and was really happy that I made that last clutch putt, because that was what I was struggling with in the middle of the round. To make the one at the last really is surreal! It’s awesome, I’m just so over the moon. I knew I had to make par, I really didn’t want to play that hole again!”

10.55pm BST

What an up and down from sand to win her maiden major! The pressure had been cranked right up to 11, after defending champion Park Sung-hyun’s birdie on the last, a birdie that had forced Green to wait and do battle with her nerves back down the hole. But she held firm! It would have been so easy to buckle in those circumstances ... just as it would have been easy to give in to fate after that mid-round wobble. On both occasions, she fought back and becomes only the fourth player to win the PGA wire-to-wire. And on a long, difficult track like Hazeltine too!

10.52pm BST

... makes no mistake! Hannah Green is the 2019 Women’s PGA champion! Her first victory on tour, and it’s a major! She dissolves into the happiest of tears as her friends and compatriots race onto the green and cover her in sticky booze!

-9: Green
-8: S Park

10.51pm BST

A little right-to-left break from five feet. Green again wastes little time. She steps up and ...

10.50pm BST

Ariya Jutanugarn ends a miserable day with bogey. She never got going, and that’s a 77 for the two-time major winner. She’s -3. Then Lizette Salas nearly drains a long par putt, but she’ll settle for a 72. At -5, she’s tied for fifth, by far her best finish of the season. And so the stage is cleared for Hannah Green.

10.47pm BST

Green wastes no time in jumping into the trap, and splashing out magnificently to five feet! That’s a wonderful result from there, especially in these circumstances. She allows a small smile to play across her face, though it’s clearly a nervous one. She knows nothing’s in the bag yet.

10.45pm BST

Green has found greenside sand three times previously this week. She’s got up and down twice. None of those scrambles were for the title, though. She stands with her arms folded, a study in turmoil, as Salas, having laid up, wedges into the green. She’ll be happy to see her lie in the bunker is pretty good, on flat, freshly raked sand. And there’s a little more green to play with than we thought: maybe 15 feet or so. Not ideal, but if she gets up and down from there, she’ll win the 2019 Women’s PGA Championship. She wouldn’t have wanted to be here back on the tee ... but she’d have sure taken it at the start of the week.

10.42pm BST

Green gets tense and pulls a 6-iron into the bunker at the front left of the green. She needs to get up and down from sand to win the PGA. No biggie. She’s shortsided, too, with very little green to play with. Park Sung-hyun has really turned up the heat on the 23-year-old Aussie, who is battling for her first win on tour ... and her first major. The tension at Hazeltine, as Green takes the long walk up the 72nd, is palpable.

10.39pm BST

Park turns up the pressure on Green! She rolls a perfect right-to-left slider into the cup, and raises a clenched fist in celebration. The roar that greets the defending champion’s birdie will reverberate back up the hole, where Green stands and waits. That’s a 68, and she’s the new clubhouse leader, just a shot behind Green. Par for Korda; she finishes at -6. And Kim Sei-young ends the day with a 75, slipping back to -1.

-9: Green (17)
-8: S Park (F)

10.34pm BST

Korda sends her approach to 12 feet. Park knocks hers to ten. A chance for the defending champion to move to within a shot and put some real pressure on Green. Back on the tee, the leader smacks a fine drive down the middle. A par, and the PGA is hers. A bogey will do, should Park miss her putt.

10.31pm BST

Inbee Park signs for a 71. She ends the week at -4, and the long wait for major number eight goes on. A par for Danielle Kang, who cards 70 and finishes at -5, alone in sixth place right now. Back down the hole, Nelly Korda and Park Sung-huyn are forced to wait for the best part of ten minutes. And on the tee, Hannah Green is left to wrestle with her nerves. Hey, majors shouldn’t come easy.

10.26pm BST

A huge stroke of good fortune for Park Sung-hyun on 18. She hooks her drive towards trouble down the left. Her ball is surely sailing into deep rough or one of the bunkers. But somehow, despite landing in the thick stuff, the ball takes a massive bounce out to the right, and scampers back onto the fairway! The defending champion isn’t quite done yet - though she must have thought the jig was up as her ball curved off to the left, seemingly taking all of her hopes and dreams with it.

10.24pm BST

Back at the business end of the leader board, Green sends her tee shot safely into 17. No heroics, no drama. Two careful putts and she’ll be going down 18 with a two-shot lead. Meanwhile Salas can consider herself extremely unfortunate not to make the birdie she so desperately needs. Her tee shot was straight at the flag: had it landed one foot further, it would have rolled very close to the cup. But it snagged in the fringe, and the long grass messes with her birdie putt too. She remains at -6.

-9: Green (17)
-7: S Park (17)
-6: Reid (F), Salas (17), Korda (17)

10.18pm BST

Neither Park nor Korda can make their birdie putts. Coming at the hole from different angles, Korda lets her ball slip by on the left, Park misreads and sends her putt off to the right. This is suddenly Hannah Green’s to lose once again. Meanwhile Jimin Kang ends the week at +15, tied for 78th out of 80. As the only club professional to make it to the weekend, she was guaranteed the vase for the low club pro. She lifts it over her head with a smile that mocks the weather. Congratulations to Jimin!

10.11pm BST

Park Sung-hyun and Nelly Korda pepper the flag at 17. They’ll both try to make birdie from less than ten feet. There’s to be no fairytale finish for Megan Khang: a double bogey at 18, the result of driving into a bunker, and she cards 70, finishing at -3. And back on 16, Salas doesn’t hit her birdie putt, but a par keeps her at -6. However that’s three off the lead now, because Green strokes a perfectly paced left-to-right breaker into the cup for birdie, and she’s suddenly got a two-shot lead again! How marvellously she’s responded to that mid-round wobble!

-9: Green (16)
-7: S Park (16)
-6: Reid (F), Salas (16), N Korda (16)

10.06pm BST

Salas fires an arrow into 16 and over the flag. She’ll have a look at birdie from 30 feet coming back. That’s decent, but a little wind will have been taken from her sail as Green sends an even better approach in to 15 feet. Meanwhile on 17, Kang’s tee shot snags in the fringe at the front. Close, though. She’s left with a 12-foot birdie putt, but the fringe compromises her backswing and her effort stops short. She remains at -5 and needs a birdie up the last now.

10.02pm BST

Korda makes her par putt, and she remains two off the lead. Kim Sei-young’s chase for her first major is over, however. Having sat quietly at -5 for much of the day, a triple-bogey seven at 16 has ruined her chances. She tumbles down the standings to -2.

10.00pm BST

Salas splits the middle of 16. Green follows her. Up on the green, Korda nearly chips in from the fringe, but her ball rolls six feet past. A little tester coming back to avoid back-to-back bogeys. First up, though, it’s Park Sung-hyun, who had found the centre of the green with her second and is left with a 30-foot downhill putt for birdie and share of the lead. She judges it to perfection ... almost. One more joule of energy and it was dropping; as it is, the ball dies off to the left. She remains at -7.

9.53pm BST

Green nearly takes advantage of her lucky break on 15. She gently caresses a chip from 80 yards to eight feet, a lovely touch. But her birdie putt shaves the right edge of the hole. So unlucky that didn’t drop, but I guess the gods of golf have balanced things out there. This really is too close to call. A wonderful end to this tournament. Let’s just hope the weather stays away long enough for the players to finish this evening.

-8: Green (15)
-7: S Park (15)
-6: Reid (F), Salas (15), Korda (15)

9.50pm BST

Rain is beginning to fall at Hazeltine. Will the players get round before the bad weather arrives? A fair chance of a play-off, of course, and Lizette Salas throws her hat in the ring by raking in a 40-foot birdie putt at 15. She moves to -6. Meanwhile Danielle Kang birdies the difficult 16th to rise to -5.

9.47pm BST

Mirim Lee can’t make her par putt. A bogey at the last, and she’s signing for a 69. She ends her week at -4. Mel Reid still has sole ownership of the clubhouse lead at -6.

9.45pm BST

A slice of luck for the leader Green as she slices her second at 15. Her ball sails off towards bunkers down the right, but somehow makes it over them and nestles into the semi-rough. On 17, Khang can’t curl in her downhill left-to-right curler for birdie. And up on 18, Mirim Lee’s hopes are extinguished as she finds greenside sand ... from which she fails to hole out for the required birdie. She’ll need to sink a 20-footer to save her par.

9.42pm BST

Birdie for Park Sung-hyun at the par-five 15th! And she swaps places with Nelly Korda, who makes a terrible mess of the hole, sending her third over the back, then failing to commit to a short chip, and finally yipping a three footer. That’s an awful bogey to make after two fine shots down the hole. Back on the tee, Green finds the centre of the fairway, which is just as well, because the defending champion is right on her tail!

-8: Green (14)
-7: S Park (15)
-6: Reid (F), Korda (15)

9.36pm BST

Khang makes her par putt on 16. That’s huge for her, and she remains at -5. Like Lee, she needs another birdie, and she’s given herself a chance on 17, landing her ball 12 feet past the flag. Green can’t make her birdie on 14, but par will suffice in the circumstances. But it’s a three-putt bogey for Jutanugarn. She slips to -4, and her race is run. She’s not got going all day.

-8: Green (14)
-7: Korda (14)
-6: Reid (F), S Park (14)

9.32pm BST

Birdie for Mirim Lee, freshly energised after that eagle at 15. She whips her tee shot at 17 to three feet, and in goes the putt. That’s got her up to -5, and now she’ll be looking for a birdie down the last that’d give her a share of the clubhouse lead with Mel Reid.

9.27pm BST

Green sends a big drive down the middle of 14. Just a wedge left. And the Green of the first three days returns, as she spins a glorious approach to ten feet. She’ll have a great look at a birdie that would go a long way to settling her nerves as she tries to land her maiden major.

9.26pm BST

Khang’s second into 16 isn’t all that, tugged into rough to the left of the green. She’s left in the thick stuff, but does very well to whip a high lob onto the downhill green and get to within eight feet. About the best she could do from such a lie on a slippery green. Big putt coming up, though.

9.23pm BST

Jutanugarn is hanging on in there. Just. Having failed to get up and down at 12, she nearly sheds another shot at 13. But in goes a very awkward six footer for par. Meanwhile Megan Khang is launching a late charge: birdies at 10, 11 and 15 have zipped her up the rankings to -5. A second top-ten finish at a major, to follow last year’s tie for 10th at the US Open, looks a live prospect for the 21-year-old American.

9.16pm BST

Green has been very jittery recently, but she regains her composure marvellously on the par-three 13th. She sends her tee shot into the middle of the green and is a little unfortunate when her ball topples into the rough at the back. She’s left with a delicate little downhll chip, and judges it brilliantly, flopping it onto the green and letting the slope do the work. Her ball gently comes to a halt next to the hole. A fine scramble to save par, and maintain her one-shot lead over Korda.

9.09pm BST

Mel Reid’s best-of-week mark lasted all of two minutes. Last year’s runner-up Nasa Hataoka guides in a right-to-left 30-footer for birdie, her seventh of the day on an unblemished card. That’s a 65 for the 20-year-old from Japan, to go alongside last year’s PGA Sunday 64! She ends the week at -2. Shame about that opening round of 76.

9.06pm BST

Mel Reid finishes with birdie at 18! She rakes in a 30-footer, celebrating with her putter in the air before it drops. She gave that a good rattle; she wasn’t in the mood for any what-ifs. No leaving that short. A sensational round! The 31-year-old from Derby is signing her name to a best-of-week 66. And she’s posted a clubhouse lead that could quite easily earn a play-off, because Green doesn’t hit her chip from the front of 12, or the long par putt she leaves herself, and that’s another shot gone.

9.00pm BST

Mirim Lee isn’t quite out of this yet. She’s missed the cut in her last four majors, but it looks as though she’ll end that miserable run with a high finish here. She’s just chipped in from 100 yards at the par-five 15th for eagle, and it whisks her up the standings to -4. A strong finish over the closing three holes, plus a stumble from the leaders, and you never know. And on 12, neither Green nor Jutanugarn can reach the green from the thick rough. Good luck predicting how this is going to pan out. It was looking like a shoo-in for Green not so long ago. It doesn’t look that way now.

8.55pm BST

Trouble for both Jutanugarn and Green on the 12th, as they spray their tee shots into the long stuff down the left of the hole. Up on the green, the defending champ Park Sung-hyun leaves a long putt ten feet short. A dreadful misjudgement that costs the South Korean a shot. Korda meanwhile leaves a 20-foot birdie effort short, too, and a chance to move within one of the lead is gone.

8.50pm BST

The putts just aren’t dropping for Salas. This time her ball stays stubbornly high on the left, and she remains at -5. Jutanugarn meanwhile hits a dreadful chip eight feet past the flag, and she can’t make the one coming back. A bogey on a hole tailor-made for her power. She’s not birdied it all week! The 11th is potentially costing her this tournament. Mind you, Green misses her par putt too, and I wonder if the nerves are really kicking in. That’s three short-ish putts missed in a row. Throw in her wild driving, and the mishit with the hybrid, and it’s looking a bit shaky for Green all of a sudden, despite her remaining in a two-shot lead. Closing out a major championship isn’t easy.

8.44pm BST

Jutanugarn, concerned, with the green sloping away from her, doesn’t commit to a splash out of the bunker. Her ball snags in the second cut around the green. She’s now got a task to get up and down for par. Green meanwhile doesn’t get her chip close, a poor effort bundled up to six feet, very missable in these pressurised circumstances.

8.41pm BST

Green gets the hybrid out, and mishits it. The ball squirts out of the rough and scampers down the fairway, not the worst result considering. Her third lands right by the flag, but she’s imparted no spin and it scampers over the back of the green. She’ll have a 30-foot putt from the fringe for birdie. Most likely she’ll be escaping with par. Jutanugarn meanwhile crashes two 3-woods down the hole, and she’s in a greenside bunker for two. Salas, not out of this yet at -5, is on in regulation, with a 15-foot putt for her birdie.

8.38pm BST

A spot of bother for Green at the par-five 11th, as she hooks her tee shot into the thick rough on the left. She’s 74th out of 80 players for driving accuracy right now. Given she’s three clear of the field, that’s testament to the power of her short game. Up on the green, last year’s champion Park Sung-hyun gets up and down from sand to move into a share of second. This is a staunch defence of her title. Meanwhile her playing partner Nelly Korda misreads an eight footer for birdie, failing to factor in a gentle left-to-right curl.

-10: Green (10)
-7: S Park (11), Korda (11), Jutanugarn (10)

8.33pm BST

Reid cuts the corner of the dogleg at 16 with a fine drive, then spins an iron to 15 feet. She’s left with a straight uphill putt, but fails to hit it. A great chance to move to -6 spurned. She swishes the air with her putter in frustration, knowing full well that every opportunity is so precious now, if she’s to apply any scoreboard pressure on Green from the clubhouse. She remains -5.

8.26pm BST

Salas is so close to making her birdie putt from 25 feet. Her star-spangled Titleist slides by on the right, one dimple away from dropping. She gnaws on a nail in theatrical frustration. She remains five behind Green, who can’t convert her birdie chance. The iron in deserved better. But she remains three clear of Jutanugarn, who quietly pars.

8.21pm BST

Green’s approach play has been wonderful all week, and at 10 she arrows another one at the flag. A 7-iron from 150 yards to ten feet. She’ll have a good look at birdie. Salas and Jutanugarn both find the green in regulation, but their birdie putts will be rather more speculative.

8.18pm BST

Another birdie for Mel Reid! This one comes at 15, and she’s -5 for both the tournament and her round. She’ll be cursing that second-day 76. Without that, a maiden major could have been on the cards. As things stand, she’s most likely a little too far back. But if she posts a score, and the weather closes in, you never know.

-10: Green (9)
-7: Korda (10), Jutanugarn (9)
-6: S Park (10), S Kim (10)
-5: Reid (15), H Kim (11), Kang (10), I Park (10), Salas (9)

8.15pm BST

Green is going round in the last group with Jutanugarn and Lizette Salas. The 29-year-old Salas isn’t the longest of hitters, so she does well to keep up with her partners as they all crash drives down the middle of 10. She’s level par for her round today, after bogey at 5 and birdie at 8, and is -5 overall. Salas is looking for another high finish at the PGA; she tied for eighth last year.

8.10pm BST

A first misstep today by the leader. Green’s putter has been hot all week, but it suddenly cools on 9 and a ten-footer for par slips by. That’s only her fourth bogey all week. Not an ideal time to record it, as she reaches the back nine on major-championship Sunday ... when anything can happen.

-10: Green (9)
-7: Korda (9), Jutanugarn (9)

8.04pm BST

Yet another birdie for Nasa Hataoka! This one at 5 brings her up to -1 overall. Pars all the way in, and she’s shooting a 66 that’d go along very nicely with last year’s final-day 64.

7.55pm BST

Bogey for Ariya Jutanugarn at the par-three 8th, and this is beginning to look like Hannah Green’s tournament to lose. Green pars, and her lead is now four. Still, major championships don’t really begin until the back nine on Sunday, and the leaders are approaching the turn now. Inbee Park also dropped a stroke on 8 and slipped to -4; her chances of an eighth major this week look pretty slim now.

-11: Green (8)
-7: Korda (8), Jutanugarn (8)

7.51pm BST

Pajaree Anannarukarn is making a very impressive major-championship debut. The 19-year-old Thai - younger sister of 2018 LA Open winner Moriya Anannarukarn - has stated her ambition to crack the world top ten, and she’s going about things the right way in her rookie year. Birdies at 1, 2 and now 11 have whisked her up the leader board to -4. She’s just inside the top ten.

7.40pm BST

No let-up from Hannah Green at the top of the leader board! She extends her lead over Ariya Jutanugarn to three, with a birdie at the par-five 7th. Jutanugarn (who has parred the first seven holes) and Lizette Salas (who dropped a shot at 5) are the only players inside the top ten not to be under par for their rounds today. It’s surprising that Jutanugarn isn’t taking advantage of her length off the tee, but she’s making no in-roads yet.

-11: Green (7)
-8: Jutanugarn (7)
-7: Korda (7)

7.36pm BST

Nasa Hataoka doesn’t half like the final round of the PGA. Last year she shot a sensational Sunday 64 at Kemper Lakes, a round that hauled her into a three-way play-off with Park Sung-hyun and Ryu So-yeon. She lost out to Park by a shot, but it was a decent day’s work nonetheless. This year something similarly stunning could be afoot: she’s five under for her round through 13, having birdied 11, 15, 17, 1 and now 3. There’ll be no surge to the play-off this year, though, as she’s only level par overall, stuck behind the eight-ball all week after an opening round of 76. But she’s turning a bang-average week into a much better one.

7.30pm BST

Kim Hyo-joo started her major-championship career with a bang, shooting 61 (!) in the first round of the 2014 Evian Championship as a 19-year-old (!!). She held on to win that tournament, and has continued to perform well in the big ones, having since recorded top-ten finishes in all the other majors, the best of those being last year’s play-off loss to Ariya Jutanugarn at the US Open. She’s going along very nicely today, too, hitting the turn in 33 strokes after birdies at 4, 5 and 9. She’s currently tied for sixth at -5.

-10: Green (6)
-8: Jutanugarn (6)
-7: Korda (7)
-6: S Kim (7), S Park (7)
-5: H Kim (9), Kang (7), I Park (7)
-4: Reid (12), Salas (6)

7.23pm BST

Nelly Korda’s length should see her right around Hazeltine, one of the longest courses on the LPGA Tour. The weather’s not been great, and with soft fairways and thick rough, it’s playing even longer than usual. Korda is accordingly making hay while the sun doesn’t shine: birdies at 5 and now 7 have moved her to within three of the leader Green at -7.

7.20pm BST

The biggest mover so far today: England’s Mel Reid. The 31-year-old from Derby doesn’t have a great record in the majors, with a tie for ninth at the 2015 British Open her only notable finish. Last year’s PGA saw her finish in a tie for 60th. But this week is suddenly promising a lot more. It’s been eventful from the get-go: she started out bogey-birdie-bogey-birdie-birdie. Since that loopy run she’s added more birdies at 7, 9 and now 11, and she’s -4 both for her round and the championship.

7.10pm BST

The players have gone out a little earlier than expected today, the PGA desperate to avoid some incoming inclement weather. They’ve teed off in threesomes, the leading bunch going off at 1, those further down the leader board starting at 10. All of which means there’s already been plenty of action at the top of the leader board. Most importantly, Hannah Green has extended her lead over Ariya Jutanugarn at the top thanks to an early birdie at 2. But some of the pack behind are making a move: Kim Sei-young, Park Sung-hyun, Danielle Kang and Inbee Park are all two under for their rounds so far, nibbling into the advantage Green held over them after 54 holes.

-10: Green (5)
-8: Jutanugarn (5)
-6: Kim (6), S Park (6), Korda (6)
-5: Kang (6), I Park (6)

5.43pm BST

Welcome to our coverage of the final day of the second-oldest major in women’s golf: the Women’s PGA Championship.

Hannah Green is chasing her first major, and indeed her first victory on Tour. The 22-year-old Aussie is in good shape for it, leading at Hazeltine on Saturday evening after rounds of 68, 68 and 70. That put her atop this 54-hole leaderboard:

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Germany 3-0 Nigeria: Women's World Cup 2019, last 16 - as it happened

Germany became the first team to reach the quarters after seeing off spirited Nigeria ... with a little help from VAR.

6.33pm BST

Germany were deserved winners, dominating possession, scoring three, keeping yet another clean sheet. But Nigeria performed with great resolve and no little skill. That run from Rasheedat Ajibade early in the second half was as exhilarating as football gets. Had Desire Oparanozie got a toe on Ajibade’s cross to half the deficit, this would have been a whole lot tighter. Nigeria will also point to the questionable VAR call that allowed Germany’s first goal to stand, with Svenja Huth standing in front of Chiamaka Nnadozie, offside, arguably interfering with play. But Germany had too much, even in second gear, as Alexandra Popp scored her 48th international goal while Lea Schuller bagged a clinical first at a World Cup. They advance to the quarters having played four, won four, scored nine, conceded none. Imagine what they might do if they start playing well!

6.26pm BST

Germany maintain their record of reaching every World Cup quarter-final! They’ll play Sweden or Canada next Saturday. Nigeria are on the way home.

6.25pm BST

90 min +4: Ogebe goes on a determined run down the inside right and nearly breaks through. But a consolation goal’s not to be.

6.24pm BST

90 min +3: Huth dribbles at pace down the inside left. Ayinde hauls her down, but gets away with it. No free kick.

6.22pm BST

90 min +2: There will be five added minutes, incidentally.

6.22pm BST

90 min +1: No, but this wasn’t half close. Oparanozie creams the free kick towards the top right. It’s a pearler, but inches over the crossbar. That would have been a net-ripper had it been three or four inches lower.

6.21pm BST

90 min: Ordega sashays in from the left, and is unceremoniously upended by a sliding Oberdorf. A free kick just to the left of the box, 25 yards out. Can Nigeria find a consolation, and become the first team to score against Germany at this World Cup?

6.19pm BST

89 min: Huth makes a right-to-left diagonal run and nearly dribbles her way into a shooting position just inside the Nigerian box. But she ends up down a cul-de-sac. A fourth goal would be hard on Nigeria.

6.18pm BST

87 min: This game is fizzling out now. Germany have done the job required of them. But Nigeria didn’t half make them work hard for it.

6.17pm BST

85 min: That was a stunning finish by Schuller. She hasn’t done a great deal today, but when a chance presented itself she really delivered. Birgit Prinz or Gerd Muller would have been proud of that.

6.15pm BST

83 min: Kanu is replaced by Ogebe.

6.14pm BST

It’s all over. Ayinde dithers over the ball while facing her own goal under pressure. She attempts a backpass to the keeper, but can’t get enough purchase on the panicked pass, and it sits up short for Schuller, who takes a stride down the inside-right channel before fizzing a clinical first-time shot into the bottom left.

6.11pm BST

81 min: Hegering suffers another whack, this time from Ajibade’s elbow, planted into the back of her head as the pair contest a high ball. It was more clumsy than malicious, but Ajibade is going into the book nevertheless.

6.10pm BST

79 min: Some baroque dribbling by the fresh Oberdorf down the left. She cuts inside and rolls a gorgeous pass down the channel to release Dabritz into the box. Dabritz only has Nnadozie to beat, but she’s coming in from a tight-ish angle, and drags her shot across the keeper and harmlessly out of play to the right of goal. That could have put this game to bed. As it is, Nigeria are still in this. But they need something soon.

6.08pm BST

77 min: A free kick for Nigeria just inside the German half. It’s launched into the mixer. Okobi rises just inside the area, and gets a header on target, but she’s too far out and there’s not enough power in the effort. Schult gathers without drama.

6.06pm BST

75 min: Ihezuo departs to warm applause from the 17,988 inside the Stade des Alpes. Nearly a full house. Fingers crossed that’s nothing more than cramp; she’s put in quite a shift at both ends of the pitch this afternoon. She’s replaced by Uchendu.

6.05pm BST

74 min: Ihezuo is down with a severe case of cramp. On comes the stretcher, it doesn’t look as though she’ll be able to continue. Team-mates perform the internationally understood mime to request a sub.

6.03pm BST

72 min: Gwinn has been a livewire presence for Germany. She very nearly fashions space to get a shot away from just inside the Nigeria box, but she’s closed down at the last. Nigeria half clear. Then Simon fizzes down the left and cuts back for Popp, whose latest attempt at the spectacular nearly hits the left-hand corner flag from the best part of 35 yards.

6.00pm BST

70 min: Huth dribbles down the left and earns Germany’s latest corner. Simon takes. She hits it long. Popp shapes for a volley, 12 yards out, and connects, but not cleanly. The ball squirts into a thicket of players before eventually being whacked clear.

5.59pm BST

69 min: Germany make their final change, switching Magull for Oberdorf.

5.58pm BST

67 min: Hegering is made of strong stuff and good to continue.

5.58pm BST

66 min: A free kick hoicked long into the German box. Oparanozie goes up with Hegering, and accidentally clashes heads with the defender. Ooyah oof. On comes the ice pack. That will have hurt.

5.54pm BST

64 min: Buhl earns a corner out on the right. Simon sends it straight down Nnadozie’s throat.

5.52pm BST

62 min: More space for Simon on the left. Nnadozie punches this one clear with purpose.

5.52pm BST

61 min: Oparanozie is booked for coming straight through the back of Popp. Should Nigeria somehow turn this around, she’ll not be playing it the quarter-final.

5.51pm BST

60 min: It’s end-to-end fun. Kanu can’t quite sort her feet out to shoot from the edge of the German box. Then Simon finds a lot of space down the left and crosses, the ball evading Nnadozie. But there’s nobody in a white shirt available to turn the ball home.

5.49pm BST

58 min: Germany can’t find much in the way of fluency, though this is better, as Buhl chases Popp’s pass down the right and backheels for Gwinn, barrelling into space down the inside-left channel. Gwinn lifts her shot over the bar, in an attempt to float a chip over Nnadozie. A lovely move, shame about the finish.

5.47pm BST

57 min: Huth is booked for a clumsy charge into the back of Okeke.

5.46pm BST

56 min: Dabritz has a bash from distance. It’s deflected out for a corner, which results in Gwinn sending a dribbler towards goal from 25 yards. It’s easily gathered by Nnadozie.

5.45pm BST

54 min: It’s scrappy, but Nigeria will take that right now. They’ve asked a fair few questions of Germany, whose passes aren’t sticking.

5.44pm BST

52 min: Germany look a little shocked by that burst of brilliance. A flustered Hegering slices a simple clearance behind her and out for a corner. Nothing comes of the set piece, but it’s enough to get a concerned Martina Voss-Tecklenburg out of the dugout and into her technical area.

5.42pm BST

50 min: What a run by Ajibade! From the halfway line, she bursts down the left with great purpose and skill, gliding past Gwinn, who is left in the dust. Ajibade enters the box and fires a low ball across the face of goal. If Oparanozie connects with a telescopic leg at the far post, it’s a goal, but the ball evades her toe by millimetres. What an entrance to the World Cup that was by Ajibade!

5.39pm BST

48 min: Germany come back at Nigeria, Buhl very nearly bustling her way into the box after getting on the end of a long clearance by Schult. She earns a corner. Hegering stops Nnadozie claiming on her line, and the whistle blows for a foul. Pressure off.

5.37pm BST

46 min: An early corner for Nigeria out on the right. It’s sent sailing straight through the box and away from danger. But that’s a statement of intent from the underdogs, who need something to happen quickly.

5.36pm BST

And we’re off again! Germany get the ball rolling for the second half, having made two changes. Schweers and Leupolz have been replaced by Simon and Buhl. Meanwhile Nigeria have swapped Nwabuoku for Ajibade, who makes her World Cup debut.

5.26pm BST

Half-time entertainment. The design of Germany’s shirt: a homage to this Atari Video Computer System classic?

5.21pm BST

And that’s the first half. Germany have reached the quarter-final stage of every World Cup to date, and they’re 45 minutes plus however many extra hours will be added for VAR checks from making it again.

5.20pm BST

45 min +4: Or do they? Kanu is afforded more space down the right. She hoofs the ball towards Gwinn, who is facing the other way. The ball hits her upper arm. Nigeria want a penalty, and the referee checks, but it’s not happening. The correct decision - Gwinn wasn’t aware, she was right next to Kanu, and her arm was a totally natural position - but the crowd boo nevertheless. The neutrals have taken sides.

5.18pm BST

45 min +3: The ball’s swung in from the right. Popp rises highest to flick a fine defensive header away from danger. And she’s fouled in doing so. Germany weather the late storm.

5.18pm BST

45 min +2: A free kick for Nigeria on the halfway line. Ohale launches it long. Germany only half clear, and Ordega is able to cue up a cross from the right. She sends it in low, and Oparanozie tries to flick it home from the edge of the six-yard box. Doorsoun is forced to clip the ball out for a corner.

5.16pm BST

45 min: Dabritz sends it into the mixer. Oparanozie is forced to head behind. Dabritz takes again, Nnadozie dealing with the second one very well. There will be four extra minutes to play before the break, making up for all that VAR faff.

5.14pm BST

44 min: A quick throw releases Schuller into plenty of space down the right. She earns a corner. Nigeria simply can’t afford to concede another before half-time.

5.12pm BST

42 min: Gwinn crosses hard from the right. Huth, ten yards out and level with the right-hand post, attempts to guide the ball into the net with a spectacular scorpion kick. Had that gone in, it would have surely been goal of the tournament. As it was, the ball sailed harmlessly wide. But full marks for ambition.

5.10pm BST

40 min: German passes aren’t quite sticking right now. That’s a testament to the way Nigeria have bounced back since conceding the second goal. They’ve grown into the game again.

5.09pm BST

38 min: Okobi whips the ball towards the near post. It’s whistling towards the top left, but Schuller is on the line to head clear. Another header, this time from Schweers, completely quashes the danger. Schult wasn’t getting to that cheeky free kick, though.

5.07pm BST

37 min: Leupolz bundles into Ihezuo as the Nigerian forward works her way down the left. This is a free kick just to the side of the German box. Trouble ahoy for the two-time champs.

5.06pm BST

36 min: It’s getting a bit tasty out there, as Popp becomes the latest player to go in the book for a cynical clip on Ordega, who was in the process of turning her and making off into space.

5.05pm BST

34 min: Now it’s Gwinn’s turn to be clattered, as Ihezuo jumps into her from behind in the midfield. A bit of payback, I’ll be bound. The referee issues a one-last-chance lecture, but no booking.

5.03pm BST

32 min: Dabritz rolls a gorgeous pass down the inside-right channel, very nearly releasing Gwinn on the overlap. Ihezuo does extremely well to keep up and shepherd the ball out of play for a goal kick. Gwinn, slightly exasperated, takes a wild swipe at the ball just before it runs out, and connects with Ihezuo instead. She’s booked.

5.00pm BST

30 min: Short corner. Faff. Ball easily cleared. Did the first goal not teach Germany anything?

4.59pm BST

29 min: And Nigeria had started so well, too. The crowd have turned on the referee and Germany, and are booing at the non-award of every perceived foul. Germany care not, going about their business and winning another corner out on the right.

4.58pm BST

Dabritz sends an unstoppable arrow into the bottom-right corner. Perfectly placed and executed! Nnadozie went the right way, but couldn’t get anywhere near it, even at full stretch.

4.57pm BST

26 min: Nnadozie is lectured by the referee. Don’t move off that line! There’s hardly been any action for the last six minutes. It’s all VAR-related shenanigans. The rhythm of the NFL.

4.56pm BST

25 min: Yep, it’s a penalty, and Nwabuoku is booked. The crowd don’t like this, and boo heartily, but this is the correct decision.

4.55pm BST

24 min: And now there’s more VAR action, as Germany come straight back at Nigeria, Magull attempting to latch onto a ball in the Nigerian box. Nwabuoku swipes at the ball, but misses, kicking Magull’s knee instead. This is probably going to be a penalty. So clumsy.

4.54pm BST

23 min: Probably, yes. But according to VAR, no. So the goal stands!

4.53pm BST

22 min: Of course, Fifa have their new toy, so this is going to VAR, with Huth possibly standing offside, marginally. Is she in front of Nnadozie, restricting the keeper?

4.52pm BST

Here’s what happens when you don’t play a short corner. Magull’s presence wins a corner out on the left. The ball’s whipped into a crowded six-yard box by Dabritz, who lands it perfectly on Popp’s head. She doesn’t have to move, instead flashing an instinctive header into the bottom right. Nnadozie had no chance!

4.50pm BST

19 min: One corner leads to another. Now it’s Schweers and Magull’s turn to pull off a clever short set piece. You know how this ends up. One of these routines will bear fruit soon, surely.

4.48pm BST

17 min: Popp has a pop from distance. Her shot is deflected high into the sky and briefly threatens to loop into the top right, over a stranded Nnadozie. But the ball flies away from harm. Corner.

4.47pm BST

16 min: Nnadozie takes her time over a goal kick in order to take a little sting out of the game. Plus it’s hot.

4.45pm BST

14 min: Once again, Germany over-elaborate at a set-piece. Schweers and Dabritz make a holy mess of some routine or other. But the good news for Germany is their ability to think on the hoof when plans go awry. Not for the first time, they respond to making a mess of a free kick by recycling the ball well. Schweers is sent clear down the wing after some neat, crisp triangulation. Sadly the resulting cross is no good.

4.43pm BST

13 min: Magull is threatening to break into space down the left with a cute turn. She’s unceremoniously upended by Okobi, and this is another dangerous free kick for Germany out on the touchline, the box loaded.

4.42pm BST

12 min: Schweers and Huth fiddle around with a short, intricate corner, to little effect. Schweers eventually loops a long, aimless ball over everyone in the box and out for a goal kick.

4.41pm BST

11 min: The corner is no good. Easily claimed by Schult. Germany go up the other end, Gwinn earning a corner down the right off Ohale. It’s two-all in corners already.

4.40pm BST

10 min: Okobi bursts through a huge gap in the midfield and nearly releases Kanu into acres down the left. Doorsoun does extremely well to come across and nip the attack in the bud. But Nigeria are soon coming back at Germany again, Oparanozie dropping a shoulder to make gains down the left and earning a corner off Doorsoun.

4.39pm BST

8 min: Schuller busies herself down the German left to earn a corner. The set piece is hoicked into the mixer, and Nnadozie comes off her line, flapping wildly under the ball. She’s lucky to get away with that one. Huth tries to recycle things out on the right, but can’t keep the ball in play. It’s been a really open and entertaining game so far.

4.37pm BST

6 min: Germany make an awful mess of a training-ground routine. But they recycle the ball, and Dabritz loops in from the left. The ball lands at the feet of Magull, who really should score from a central position, eight yards out. But she lets the ball get snagged between her feet, and by the time she gets a shot away, Ohale spreads to make a sensational block. Nigeria clear.

4.35pm BST

5 min: Ayinde concedes a clumsy foul, needlessly barging into Dabritz out on the German left. This is a free kick in a very dangerous position. Germany load the box.

4.34pm BST

3 min: Ordega, who has been involved in everything so far, makes good down the right and loops a cross into the German box. It’s too close to Schult, who claims easily enough. But this is a very sprightly start by the underdogs.

4.33pm BST

2 min: The corner is whipped low towards the near post. Ordega, her back to goal, traps, turns and whistles a shot straight at Schult from a tight angle and at close range. The keeper gathers.

4.32pm BST

And we’re off! Nigeria get the party started. And within 45 seconds they win the first corner of the game down the right, after lovely work by Oparanozie, who sprays a pass wide to Ordega, who in turn feeds Ayinde. She bursts into the box and sees her cross knocked out.

4.29pm BST

Here come the teams! The knockout stage of the 2019 Women’s World Cup is upon us at last. This gets real, right here, right now. An anticipatory fever sweeps around the Stade des Alpes in Grenoble. Jack White’s most popular riff is hollered from every corner as two nation armies take to the stage. The atmosphere is boiling up nicely ... and the weather’s pretty pleasant too, a balmy 30 degrees. Blasts of the Deutschlandlied and Arise, O Compatriots are performed and well-respected. Hands are clasped. Pennants are swapped. Coins are tossed. We’ll be off in a minute!

4.20pm BST

A word with Nigeria coach Thomas Dennerby. “First we have to bring our good defence. But we also have to be a bit more patient in building up our attacks. If we find the right ways to attack, we will have the opportunity to steal some balls. They use their full-backs high, so there will be some spaces behind. We hope for that!”

4.17pm BST

Pre-match entertainment. Our Louise Taylor has been on the road in France, putting in the hard yards so you don’t have to. Here’s her weekly diary, which considers the impact the #MeToo movement has made on sunbathing habits in Nice, and hails the boundless energy of Phil ‘New Guardiola’ Neville.

Related: Women’s World Cup diary: gold from Duggan and Neville charms France

4.00pm BST

Germany wear their first-choice white shirts this afternoon. Alexandra Popp will be handing over this lovely pennant before kick-off. That none-more-modern DFB logo was designed in 1926. 1926!

3.48pm BST

Alexandra Popp wins her 100th cap for the Nationalelf. The 28-year-old Wolfsburg striker has scored 47 goals for Germany since making her debut against North Korea in 2010. Lea Schüller gets the nod to play alongside her.

Meanwhile so much for building up the goal threat of Asisat Oshoala. She hasn’t fully recovered from picking up a knock in Nigeria’s final group game against France, and isn’t fit to start. Uchenna Kanu makes her World Cup debut on the wing while Chinwendu Ihezuo and captain Desire Oparanozie lead the line. At the back, Evelyn Nwabuoku will make an African-record 14th appearance at a World Cup.

3.38pm BST

Germany: Schult, Gwinn, Doorsoun, Hegering, Schweers, Huth, Leupolz, Magull, Dabritz, Popp, Schuller.
Subs: Benkarth, Simon, Hendrich, Maier, Oberdorf, Goessling, Marozsan, Elsig, Dallmann, Buhl, Knaak, Frohms

Nigeria: Nnadozie, Okeke, Ebi, Nwabuoku, Ohale, Ordega, Ayinde, Okobi, Kanu, Ihezuo, Oparanozie.
Subs: Oluehi, Okoronkwo, Imo, Oshoala, Uchendu, Ajibade, Ogebe, Chukwudi, Ebere, Chikwelu, Michael, Jonathan.

11.01am BST

With most of the headlines so far being made by goal-hungry reigning champions USA, happy hosts France, upwardly mobile hopefuls England and the Netherlands, Aussie striker Sam Kerr, and that eejit in the VAR truck, Germany have arrived at the knockout stage almost unannounced. That’s two-time world champions Germany. Eight-time European champions Germany. Current Olympic champions Germany. Three wins out of three in this year’s groups without conceding a goal Germany. Yes, you remember them.

The loss to injury of playmaker Dzsenifer Marozsán, who broke her toe in Germany’s opening match with China, goes a little way to explaining the slightly subdued expectations of the Nationalelf. But they’ve come out of the group with a perfect record, having spread the goals around the team; there have been six of them, by five different scorers. They’re currently on a 15-match unbeaten run in all competitions. Alexandra Popp, who manages on average a goal every other cap, could be making her 100th appearance today. Oh, and Marozsán could get a run-out as sub, which would augur well for the rest of the tournament ...

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The Fiver | Goddess of fate goaded into wreaking revenge with extreme prejudice

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Argentina has long been a word seared on the heart of every Scottish football fan. That’s a legacy of 1978, when the men’s team went over there and rewrote the dictionary definitions of both hubris and fiasco. They had been seen off in style by 30,000 delirious fans at Hampden, but as they approached their hilltop hotel, the clutch on their bus burnt out, and a truck had to nudge them the last 200 metres of their journey. It proved a powerful metaphor. Peru and Iran did a number on them; beleaguered manager Ally McLeod bent down to stroke a dog, uttering the immortal words “At least this wee fellow loves me!” just before the mutt sank its teeth into his hand; and Archie Gemmill scored the best goal in the history of All Football only for it to mean nothing 202 seconds later when Holland’s Johnny Rep lashed one in from downtown Buenos Aires. Oh Scotland! Ah Argentina! Oh aaaiiee aaarrgh.

Related: Shelley Kerr says Scotland ‘devastated’ after cruel World Cup exit

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Scotland 2-1 Cyprus: Euro 2020 qualifier – as it happened

Oliver Burke won it late for the Scots, just when it seemed the hosts had thrown it all away.

10.16pm BST

Ewan Murray was our man at Hampden to witness Scotland squeak past Cyprus. His report has landed, and here it is. Meanwhile thanks for reading this MBM. Anon!

Related: Andy Robertson and Oliver Burke strike to haul Scotland over Cyprus hill

10.02pm BST

The new boss Steve Clarke talks to Sky Sports, the metaphorical eyebrow raised. “It was interesting. A little bit different! I thought we did OK, we were comfortable at 1-0, but we switched off at a set play and that’s something you shouldn’t do at this level. But I thought the resilience and the character of the players to bounce back - because it would have been easy to feel sorry for yourself, but they didn’t - was a good sign. When you get such a late blow - and it wasn’t even a good header, it was poor marking, we’ll have a look at the video - they way they bounced back gives us good hope for the future. I’ve only been working with the group for seven training sessions, so it’s not going to change overnight. But I’ve given the lads a real amount of information. There are a lot of things to be pleased about, a lot of things to work on. We couldn’t afford to lose. We go to Belgium, everyone expects them to win, but it’s football, anything can happen.”

And did you enjoy the game tonight? “No chance!”

9.54pm BST

A very happy match-winner Oli Burke speaks! “It’s an amazing feeling to get my first Scotland goal. Credit to the boys, who were fantastic today. I’m really happy, and really happy for the team. Coming into a game like that, it’s made for me to make an impact, and conceding so late drove us a little bit more, pushed us for that next goal. And I think we deserved it.”

9.50pm BST

Elsewhere, it was a 3-0 win for Belgium against Kazakhstan. Throw in Russia’s earlier 9-0 rout of San Marino, and the table, with all teams having played three times, reads:

1. Belgium 9pts
2. Russia 6pts
3. Scotland 6pts
4. Cyprus 3pts
5. Kazakhstan 3pts
6. San Marino 0pts

9.40pm BST

Well that was exciting. Perhaps more exciting than Steve Clarke would have preferred, but it’s three points to the Scots. They were pushed all the way by Cyprus.

9.39pm BST

90 min +5: Efrem’s free kick flies into the top right ... of the stand behind the goal. That’s a dismal effort, and surely Scotland are home and hosed now.

9.38pm BST

90 min +4: It’s very shapeless. Suddenly Costi barges down the middle of the park and buys a cheap free kick off McLean, who really didn’t need to make a challenge. That’s a free kick, 30 yards out, just left of centre! A chance for Cyprus to salvage a point!

9.36pm BST

90 min +2: Scotland draw a couple of fouls from Cyprus and the clock ticks on in their favour.

9.34pm BST

90 min: Then another corner for Cyprus, which is just about dealt with by the Scots this time. There will be five added minutes of this gloriously messy nonsense!

9.34pm BST

What a response by Scotland! Fraser dribbles down the left and hooks a fine cross into the centre. Burke gets up above Nicholas Ioannou and sends a downward header past Pardo ... but crashing off the inside of the right-hand post. But the ball rolls into the centre, where Burke converts into the empty net with glee! Hampden roars again!

9.32pm BST

The corner’s hit long. Kousoulos, eight yards out and level with the far post, doesn’t have to jump off the ground to meet it with a header, and plants one into the right-hand side of the goal. None of the Scottish defenders covered themselves in glory there, to say the least. Penny for the thoughts of Steve Clarke, an assured defender himself.

9.30pm BST

86 min: McGregor’s corner is plucked from the heavens by Pardo, who launches long for Georgiou. The sub forces the backtracking Robertson into the concession of a corner. From which ...

9.29pm BST

85 min: Fraser makes up some ground on the left, then looks for the top right. No Robertson he, though it’s a decent enough curler that forces Pardo into tipping round the post for a corner.

9.28pm BST

84 min: Scotland take the sting out of proceedings by taking an age over a throw in the professional style. Hampden is nervous.

9.27pm BST

82 min: Hampden holds its breath as Margaca fires a deep cross in from the left. Kousoulos, coming in from the right, looks to have a clear header, ten yards out, but is blocked by his own man in Sotiriou. Artymatas tries to smash the rebound home from distance, but Marshall gathers. Sleepy Scotland were so close to giving it all away there.

9.25pm BST

80 min: McGinn is replaced by McTominay. Then Makris makes way for Pittas.

9.24pm BST

78 min: Fraser, out on the left, slips a pass down the inside-left channel for the underlapping O’Donnell, who draws Pardo and chips for goal. The ball bounces inches wide of the right-hand post. That would have been a picture-book goal.

9.22pm BST

77 min: But Scotland’s lead is a slender one. Hampden are reminded of this when Makris has a dig from 25 yards. The ball pings off McKenna and nearly loops over Marshall, but the keeper tips over spectacularly. The resulting corner leads to nothing. But Cyprus were so close to a very fortunate equaliser there.

9.20pm BST

76 min: A gorgeous bit of skill by Fraser, tight to the chalk out on the left. With little space to play with, or margin for error, he chips the ball down the line past Kousoulos and skedaddles towards the box. At which point he rather runs out of ideas, but that’s a fine run nonetheless.

9.19pm BST

75 min: Artymatas is booked for excessively bothering McGregor. A free kick midway in Cypriot territory. Scotland rather conservatively play it backwards, professionalism rather than entertainment the watchword. See, this is where Uefa Multiball would come into its own.

9.17pm BST

74 min: Burke comes on for the luckless Brophy, who hasn’t really had much chance to shine on his debut.

9.17pm BST

72 min: Cyprus stroke the ball around in midfield for a while, the rhythm of the game having been disrupted by Spoljaric’s injury. For a while, there are two balls on the pitch. The referee doesn’t stop the game, perhaps under instruction from Uefa to trial a new multiball system. And you thought VAR was needless tinkering.

9.14pm BST

70 min: Spoljaric has tweaked something, so he’s replaced by Costi.

9.13pm BST

68 min: Scottish tails are up now. They’re passing it around with much more confidence. Cyprus by contrast are sitting back, hoping to weather the storm. What a difference a goal makes, is a cliche for a reason.

9.10pm BST

66 min: The resulting corner ... you know how this goes by now. Once Cyprus clear their lines, they swap Michalis Ioannou for Georgiou.

9.09pm BST

65 min: McGregor, to the right of the D, has a shot towards the bottom right. Pardo parries. He should gather, but spills the ball round the post. It was inches away from squirting into the net. The keeper got away with one there.

9.08pm BST

64 min: McGinn sends a pass wide to Fraser, who is dribbling again with more purpose and intent, just as he did during the early stages of this match. He can’t quite break through on the edge of the area, but Cyprus were worried for a minute there.

9.07pm BST

62 min: And there’s the Hampden Roar at last! The goal deserved nothing less. Robertson is a special player, and he’s being serenaded by the crowd accordingly.

9.06pm BST

What a goal! McGinn, in a central position, slips the ball left to Robertson, who is racing towards it with extreme intent. He meets it first time, flush, sending a diagonal rising heat-seeker into the top right, Pardo with no chance whatsoever! A captain’s goal from a European champion. What a week he’s had!

9.04pm BST

60 min: Sotiriou bustles down the left and wins a corner off O’Donnell. Another wasted set-piece will be along in a minute. And there it is. Scotland clear.

9.03pm BST

59 min: McGregor passes the ball into touch while standing one yard from the white line, under no pressure whatsoever. A few addled Scottish heads right now as they hectically search for the breakthrough.

9.01pm BST

57 min: Robertson’s cross from the left is swallowed hole by Pardo. Nobody in there challenging. On the touchline, Steve Clarke shows his first signs of concern.

9.00pm BST

56 min: Fraser runs at the Cypriot back line, but loses confidence as he approaches the final third. The hosts need to up their game, quick-smart.

8.59pm BST

54 min: And now a few whistles thrown in as Efrem earns a corner down the left. The set piece is claimed by Marshall. Scotland’s surge since the restart didn’t last long.

8.57pm BST

52 min: Artymatas strides from the back like Beckenbauer, nobody bothering to close him down. He picks out Spoljaric upfield. Spoljaric races through a big gap between Mulgrew and McKenna, and sends a shot towards the bottom right. Marshall smothers, but the home faithful are getting worried. This second half had begun with a passionate, full-throated chorus of the Bonnie Banks o’ Loch Lomand. But that Hampden Increasingly Concerned Mutter’s back now.

8.55pm BST

50 min: Sotiriou busies himself on the edge of the Scotland box, then sends a pass right for Makris, who fizzes a low one into the box. Fortunately for Scotland, it’s just behind Sotiriou, and the hosts clear.

8.53pm BST

49 min: A positive run by Forrest down the right leads to a corner, which in turn leads to nothing. Pardo’s still to have his hands seriously warmed by Scotland.

8.52pm BST

48 min: Added energy = good. Rushes of blood = bad. Fraser and Brophy work a little space down the left, the ball breaking back to Robertson, who must still be high on life after events in Madrid last Saturday. He smashes a very ambitious shot from distance miles over the bar.

8.51pm BST

47 min: Roberson hoicks a long one down the left. McGregor gets on the end of it, and sends a huge up-and-under of a cross into the box. It’s easy pickings for Pardo. But it looks as though Scotland have been given the half-time rocket by their new manager, because there’s an early energy about them.

8.48pm BST

We go again! Cyprus get the second half underway; there have been no half-time changes.

8.42pm BST

Half-time entertainment. Scotland’s women take on England tomorrow evening. Ahead of the big one, here’s Louise Taylor’s highly entertaining romp through the history of the women’s game, a tale that takes in outraged 17th-century ministers, the suffragettes, and some World Cup final hat-trick heroics that have nothing whatsoever to do with Geoff Hurst. (Also, the pictures from the 1971 Women’s World Cup in Mexico City are sensational.)

Related: From pink goalposts to blue plaques: a history of women's football

8.35pm BST

Where’s Colin Stein when you need him?

8.33pm BST

45 min: McGregor goes sliding into a 50-50 with Michalis Ioannou. He crumps his studs into his opponent’s knee, and is very fortunate just to see yellow. That was a poor challenge.

8.32pm BST

44 min: McLean launches long down the inside-left channel. He’s very close to finding Fraser free, but there’s one too many joules of energy applied to the ball, and Pardo can come out and gather.

8.31pm BST

43 min: Robertson picks up the pace and barrels down the inside-left channel. He slips a ball wide to Brophy, who enters the box, makes for the byline and crosses well. But the flag goes up for offside. Brophy had gone too early, though only just. Not much in that at all.

8.30pm BST

41 min: And I bet this moment gave Robertson another sort of rush, as Sotiriou strides free down his flank and shoots diagonally, low and hard, towards the bottom left. Marshall does very well to paw the ball away as it threatens to worm its way into the corner. Scotland clear their lines, but that was close.

8.28pm BST

39 min: Robertson sends Fraser into space down the left. He crosses, and claims a penalty when the ball hits the arm of Kousoulos, just inside the box. It didn’t look as though the defender’s arm was in an unnatural position, though I’d pay a penny or two for the thoughts of Tottenham Hotspur’s Moussa Sissoko. I bet that passage of play gave Andrew Robertson a Proustian rush.

8.25pm BST

38 min: Fraser slips the ball in from the left for McGregor, who tees up Forrest on the edge of the box. Forrest shoots through a thicket, the ball rearing up and falling gently into the arms of Pardo.

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36 min: Spoljaric heads forward in the hope of setting Efrem free down the middle. All he does is catch his team-mate offside. Small acorns, and all that, but at least the early attacking threat of Cyprus has been somewhat blunted in the last 20 minutes or so.

8.22pm BST

34 min: The corner’s half cleared. McGinn, deep on the right, loops into the mixer. Pardo, yet to be forced into meaningful action, rises to pluck the ball from the sky.

8.21pm BST

33 min: A not particularly good cross by Forrest from the right. But Nicholas Ioannou doesn’t realise he’s got space and time, and so heads behind for a corner. It comes in from the left and McKenna rises highest. His header is deflected wide right for Scotland’s fifth corner of the evening.

8.19pm BST

31 min: A one-two between Fraser and McGregor sends the former scuttling away down the left. He crosses deep. Too deep. It’s a free kick. But at least the Hampden Increasingly Concerned Mutter has piped down ... and the pipes are piping up. A nice carnival atmosphere inside Hampden at the moment, despite the scoreline.

8.18pm BST

29 min: Some good work by McGinn, who wriggles clear of a challenge in his own half and strokes a pinpoint long pass to Fraser on the left. Fraser’s in a lot of space, but can’t quite get a shot away, and has to wait for support. Eventually the ball is worked to Forrest on the right; he’s equally ponderous when faced with the chance to shoot. The ball goes back to the left, Robertson injecting some trademark energy and winning a corner, though the set piece isn’t worth writing home about. But this is better from Scotland, who are spending more time in enemy territory now.

8.15pm BST

27 min: Mulgrew takes. And it’s a decent free kick, up over the wall and back down, the ball heading into the bottom right. Pardo does very well to turn the ball behind for a corner. The resulting set-piece is hit long, and the debutant Brophy gets his first meaningful touch of the match, stooping to head a difficult chance just wide. That’ll give the young man a boost after a quiet start to his Scotland career.

8.13pm BST

26 min: Affronted by Laifis and his Beckhamesque stylings - actually more like Pele, come to think about it, seeing he missed - Scotland launch an attack. Forrest slips the ball in from the right to McGinn, who turns and is tugged back by Nicholas Ioannou. That’s a booking for the Cyprus centre-back, and a free kick just to the right of the D.

8.11pm BST

24 min: Laifis tries to score from inside his own half, having spotted Marshall wandering free. It’s safe to say the opening exchanges have filled Cyprus with confidence.

8.09pm BST

22 min: More of that Cypriot possession. After stroking it around for an age, Makris eventually bursts into a little space down the right and very nearly finds Sotiriou in the box with a clever ball down the channel. Not quite. Still no Hampden Roar, but you don’t have to strain your ears to hear the Hampden Increasingly Concerned Mutter.

8.07pm BST

20 min: “Despite the possession stats, we’re not 2-0 down. This is progress.” The tinder-dry Simon McMahon, people.

8.07pm BST

18 min: Scotland are opened up down the middle with great ease, as Sotiriou spins through 360 degrees to fox Mulgrew, and is nearly brought down by McKenna on the edge of the box. The ball breaks to Michalis Ioannou, whose first-time shot is blocked and breaks to Efrem on the right. Efrem shoots straight at Marshall, the only man he has to beat. Scotland extremely fortunate that Sotiriou couldn’t ride the questionable challenge by McKenna, because he was otherwise in.

8.04pm BST

16 min: Fraser is upended just to the left of the Cyprus box by Kousoulos. A free kick in a very dangerous position here. Fraser takes it himself, curling it low into the six-yard box. It’s a dreadful effort, nowhere near a team-mate, and delivered with no force, so there’s no manic pinball. Instead, Laifis traps with a yawn and clears his lines.

8.02pm BST

14 min: Scotland have woken up. Fraser yet again picks up possession on the left, and lays off for McGregor, who takes a stride before whipping a low cross through the box. None of his team-mates were there to take advantage of a ball trundling along the corridor of uncertainty in the style of a Breeders video.

8.01pm BST

13 min: Fraser again works himself some space down the left. He tears into it, then cuts the ball back to nobody in particular. But the ball eventually ends up at the feet of McGregor, who has a dig from distance. It’s blocked by a white shirt ... and not a hand, as McGregor claims, hoping for a free kick in a central position.

7.59pm BST

11 min: But this is nice from Scotland. Robertson curls a pass down the left flank for Fraser, who immediately shuttles the ball inside for McGregor. The brisk, free-flowing move leads to a corner ... which leads to nothing much, but baby steps and all that.

7.57pm BST

9 min: There’s already a little nervousness in the Hampden air, as Cyprus continue to dominate. They’ve had 66 percent of possession so far. And that nearly turns into a much more meaningful stat, as Efrem is found in space just to the right of the Scottish box. He dinks a cross towards Sotiriou at the far post. The striker can’t connect, but that was lovely football by the visitors.

7.55pm BST

7 min: But Cyprus are still enjoying the lion’s share of possession, looking very assured as they ping it around. Makris and Efrem combine well on the right flank, and briefly threaten to open Scotland up, but Robertson and Fraser make sure nothing untoward occurs.

7.53pm BST

5 min: Scotland launch their first sortie upfield. Forrest slips Fraser away down the left, and gets the return on the edge of the box. He opens his body to curl towards the top right, but doesn’t get it quite right, and the rising, fizzing effort flies harmlessly over the bar. That warmed up the crowd, who had previously been a little muted.

7.52pm BST

4 min: This is a confident start by Cyprus. Spoljaric strokes a pass from the centre circle down the right for Makris to chase, and Makris very nearly gets on the end of it. Robertson does very well to get across just in time and shepherd the ball out for a goal kick.

7.50pm BST

2 min: Cyprus stroke it around the back awhile, in order to find their feet. They look relaxed and confident ... until the keeper has a go, and sends a slightly hysterical one upfield that only just evades interception. But that’s some early possession for the visitors.

7.48pm BST

A minute’s silence for erstwhile Uefa kingpin Lennart Johansson, who died this week ... and then the game begins! The hosts get the ball rolling. The ball’s launched long and flies out of play, four seconds on the clock. The only way is up in the Clarke era!

7.45pm BST

The teams are out! No Hampden Roar to meet them, but a smattering of light applause. Then the skirl of the pipes and a quick rendition of Flower of Scotland. The Cypriot number is a jaunty waltz. Scotland are in the beautiful simplicity of their dark-blue kit, while Cyprus wear their second-choice white. Hands are clasped, pennants are exchanged, coins are tossed, and we’ll be off in minute!

7.39pm BST

Scotland’s midfield should have a spring in the collective step, despite a long season finishing in June. All three members enjoyed a fine end to their campaigns, Kenny McLean winning the Championship with Norwich City, John McGinn scoring the winner in the play-off final to secure promotion for Aston Villa, and Callum McGregor securing the Treble Treble, and consigning us all to a David Bowie earworm, with Celtic. Throw in new European champion Andy Robertson, and the Scottish Player of the Year James Forrest, and these lads should be brimming with confidence. Having just typed all that out, I’m not 100 percent sure I should be tempting fate by posting it, Scotland are still piecing their confidence back together in the wake of 1978 after all. But we can’t be living our lives in constant fear, so here goes nothing.

7.26pm BST

The new manager Steve Clarke speaks! “It’s just a normal match day. Good preparation. A team meeting before we left the hotel. Now it’s over to the players. I think it’ll be difficult. Everyone looks at Cyprus and thinks it’s a smaller nation but they have some decent players playing at a good level, and we have to be on our guard. I know we are on our guard, we’re ready for the game, but we have to respect the opposition because they’re decent. I’ve put David Marshall in goal, because he’s got a lot of experience. If you look at the team I’ve picked in comparison to the two teams that played in March, I’ve got close to 100 caps more in the starting XI, which for this game in particular I think is very important. Eamonn Brophy will hopefully bring us goals. We’ve got creative players on the pitch, and if you give Brophy chances he will score. He’ll also bring a good enthusiasm and energy to the centre-forward position, he likes to chase people down. I’m pleased that he’s in the team and I hope that he does very well.”

7.17pm BST

There’s already been one result in Group I today. Russia have drubbed San Marino 9-0 in Mordovia, captain Artem Dzyuba helping himself to four of the goals. That’s put them second in the table, on six points behind leaders Belgium, who will most likely pull ahead this evening after playing Kazakhstan at home. So Scotland, currently with three points, could certainly do with a win to keep themselves on the leaders’ tails.

6.53pm BST

The former Kilmarnock boss Steve Clarke hands one of his old charges a Scotland debut tonight. The 23-year-old striker Eamonn Brophy pulls on a dark blue shirt for the first time, having finished the season strongly with winners for Killie against Hibernian and Rangers. David Marshall meanwhile returns in goal, taking over from Scott Bain after a three-year wait for another cap.

6.49pm BST

Scotland: Marshall, O’Donnell, Mulgrew, McKenna, Robertson, McGinn, McLean, McGregor, Forrest, Brophy, Fraser.
Subs: Bain, Palmer, Souttar, Findlay, McTominay, Russell, Armstrong, McNulty, Cairney, Burke, Taylor, McLaughlin.

Cyprus: Pardo, Kousoulos, Nicholas Ioannou, Laifis, Margaca, Spoljaric, Artymatas, Makris, Efrem, Sotiriou, Michalis Ioannou.
Subs: Petrou, Vasiliou, Katelaris, Antoniou, Mitidis, Avraam, Antoniades, Costi, Georgiou, Pittas, Michael.

12.24pm BST

It’s fair to say Scotland haven’t got off to a flyer in the Euro 2020 qualifiers. A risible 3-0 loss in Kazakhstan was followed by an extremely uncertain 2-0 win against San Marino, a team that has avoided defeat once in the last 15 years, and Big Eck was sent on his way. So we’d love to say today’s match against Cyprus - who have won just once in 14 away games, and that against the might of Gibraltar - was a shoo-in. But, well, y’know.

History is very much on Scotland’s side, though. They’ve won all five of their previous matches against the Cypriots, by a healthy aggregate score of 20-4, although that total has been slightly skewed by an 8-0 thumping in 1969. And for all their recent travails, they’ve only lost two of their last 12 competitive games. (It’s friendlies that really stump the Scots, with six defeats in the last seven.) Also, by winning Nations League Group C1, they’ve already secured a safety net should things go badly wrong in Qualification Group I: a shot at reaching the Euro 2020 finals through the play-off route.

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Croatia 2-1 Wales: Euro 2020 qualifier – as it happened

Ivan Perišić was the star as Croatia won in Osijek, though Wales asked a few questions of the World Cup runners-up towards the end of an entertaining match.

4.31pm BST

Related: Ivan Perisic pounces for Croatia to put early dent in Wales’ Euro 2020 hopes

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No word from Ryan Giggs. Sure he’ll be talking later. So that’s your lot for this MBM. More live action coming up immediately at the Women’s World Cup. Thanks for reading!

Related: Spain v South Africa: Women's World Cup 2019 – live!

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So the three points put Croatia top of Group E on six points. Wales are third on three. Hungary can leapfrog them both if they win big in Azerbaijan later this afternoon.

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And that’s that. Croatia deserve the win over the 90 minutes, but my goodness Wales asked some questions during the closing stages. No points today, but their character and determination against a very good team will give Ryan Giggs hope going forward.

3.56pm BST

90 min +5: Skoric has a dig from the edge of the Wales area, but it’s blocked.

3.56pm BST

90 min +4: That Brozovic booking, followed by the substitution, has eaten up plenty of time ... and more importantly nixed that end-to-end momentum that was giving Wales a sniff.

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90 min +3: Perisic is replaced by Skoric.

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90 min +2: Brozovic is booked for a loose one on Allen.

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90 min +1: This is wild end-to-end fun! First Kramaric cuts in from the left and sees his shot blocked by Hennessey. Then Bale, up the other end, crosses low from the right, only for Brooks to tickle a shot from the penalty spot towards the bottom left, Livakovic gathering.

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90 min: There will be five added minutes. Roberts goes over in the Croatia area, but he’s not getting a penalty.

3.51pm BST

89 min: What an exciting end to this marvellous match. Brooks crosses long from the left. Livakovic, under no pressure but strangely hesitant, very nearly allows it to fly out his box on the right. Wilson was arriving on the scene. But the keeper grabs it on the line.

3.50pm BST

88 min: Bale crosses deep from the left. Wilson’s racing in at the far post. He heads high and wide, rashly so as he might have had time to take that down and size up the situation from there. It was a hellishly difficult chance to convert first time, put it that way.

3.48pm BST

87 min: Kramaric is once again sent free, Modric wedging a stunning pass down the inside-right channel. It’s begging to be hit as it drops over the striker’s shoulder, a la Jamie Vardy, but Kramaric allows it to bounce, then slices one wildly wide.

3.47pm BST

85 min: Kramaric scampers into space down the right. He’s got men in the middle, but can only dribble a low cross to Lawrence, who clears after a fashion. Both sets of players seem painfully aware that this is in the balance, and the next few minutes will make such a difference to Group E.

3.45pm BST

83 min: Modric slides Perisic into space down the left, but the winger shoots wildly behind. Croatia are fading badly in this second half, just as they had in the first.

3.43pm BST

82 min: Croatia are sitting back and inviting pressure. The Welsh fans are in fine voice right now, singing their hymns and arias.

3.42pm BST

81 min: Wales are pushing Croatia back. The hosts are beginning to look nervous, and a loop into the mixer leads to a corner on the left. Mepham meets the set piece, but his header is weak and gently wafts into the arms of Livakovic.

3.41pm BST

80 min: That’s the last act for James, who is exchanged for Matondo.

3.41pm BST

79 min: Jedvaj goes down after a garden-variety challenge by James, taking the opportunity to draw a little of the sting from the situation. Classic game management.

3.39pm BST

A huge slice of luck for Wales! Brooks, to the right of the Croatia D, switches his feet and shoots for the top left. The ball clips off Vida’s head and flies into the top right, with Livakovic going the wrong way! Wales, who had edged their way back into the game during the previous few minutes, are still in this!

3.37pm BST

76 min: Badelj comes on for Kovacic.

3.37pm BST

74 min: Bale creams a shot towards the bottom left from 25 yards. Livakovic does well to turn the dipping, swerving ball around the post. From the corner, Allen causes some mild panic amid a bustling box, but Croatia eventually clear their lines.

3.35pm BST

73 min: Allen plays a cute reverse pass down the inside-left channel and nearly releases James. The new United winger is eased out of it by the old Liverpool defender Lovren ... but only just. James hasn’t seen much of the ball today, but has looked threatening on the few occasions he has.

3.34pm BST

72 min: Head tennis in the centre circle. Put your foot on it, someone, will you.

3.32pm BST

70 min: A cooling break. Delicious water, tasty water.

3.31pm BST

68 min: James sprints after a lost cause down the left. It’s going to be a throw to Croatia. But he draws a foul from Vida, who slides in recklessly, and pointlessly seeing the ball’s out of play. That’s a yellow card, and more succour for Manchester United supporters, who will enjoy watching this pacy, skilful winger next season.

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66 min: And then a second Welsh substitution as Ampadu replaces Vaulks. Croatia respond by swapping Brekalo for Pasalic.

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65 min: Brooks prepares to come on for Smith. Before that can happen, an agitated Allen throws hands at Barisic. Wilson getting involved too. But it all quickly calms down.

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63 min: All a bit scrappy now. The players on both sides perhaps dreaming of the upcoming cooling break.

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61 min: Thing is, Wales have had their chances this afternoon. It’s not a stretch to say they could easily have scored three. They’ve been second best for the majority of the match so far, but even so they’ve caused problems for a very fine team.

3.21pm BST

59 min: Allen scoops a fine pass down the inside-right channel for Bale. He’s two on one, with Wilson to his left, totally free. Bale opts to take on the shot himself, cutting inside and softly curling into the arms of Livakovic. That’s a poor effort, and not a much better decision, as Wilson was in acres. Though to be fair, it was a decent opportunity on its own terms, and he is Gareth Bale, so.

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57 min: Croatia re-establish control with some sterile domination in the middle of the park.

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55 min: Bale can’t keep the resulting free kick down. Over the bar it flies, as he looks for the top left.

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54 min: Lovren is livid. He rises above Bale to win a header on the edge of his own box. His arms are out as he jumps, and one of them brushes the top of Bale’s head. It looks a fairly won header, but the referee considers it a foul, and furthermore books the defender. That’s a bit harsh, but then Jedvaj got away with one big-style a couple of minutes ago, so it’s swings and roundabouts.

3.14pm BST

52 min: So much for Welsh momentum at the end of the first half. It’s all Croatia again. An awful lot of passing, this way and that. Then suddenly Kovacic slips a ball down the inside-right channel to release Kramaric into the area. He’s free, but the flag goes up. That was an extremely tight decision, Kramaric looked level. But once again Wales get the benefit of the doubt.

3.12pm BST

50 min: Jedvaj is booked for an extremely unpleasant tackle on Allen. Studs on shin, and he really should be walking for that. Allen is lucky that he’s not seriously injured.

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But they don’t get the luck here. A little bit of pinball in the Welsh box, and Modric forces the ball to Perisic on his left. Perisic takes a touch inside, then slams a shot into the bottom left. That really had been coming, because after the disallowed Kovacic effort, Brozovic lifted a 20-yard shot over the bar. Wales up against it now.

3.09pm BST

47 min: Brekalo tears down the right and cuts into the Wales box. Brekalo slams a shot towards the bottom right. Hennessey sticks out a leg to stop it, a fine save, but the ball breaks back to Kovacic on the edge of the area. Kovacic fires a shot into the bottom right, but it’s ruled out for offside, Kramaric standing alone behind the Welsh back line. But he wasn’t in Hennessey’s eyeline, so Wales have arguably got away with one there.

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We go again! No half-time substitutions, and Wales get the second half underway.

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Half-time entertainment. Another Saturday, another superb Barney Ronay column. ¡No pasarán!

Related: England trips are being co-opted by the right but football has resisted before | Barney Ronay

2.51pm BST

That’s that for the first 45. Croatia have been the superior side, Wales at times unable to get a sniff. And yet there’s only one goal in it. In addition, Wales have stung Livakovic’s palms on two occasions, finishing the half strongly. They’ll take some confidence from that.

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45 min: Sadly the corner from Vaulks is dismal, hung high in the air, an easy one for Livakovic to pluck from the sky.

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44 min: Wales finally have their tails up, Lawrence sending Smith off down the left. He earns a corner. What a time this would be to equalise!

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42 min: And then, out of nothing, Wales nearly equalise! James has his first look down the left, checks back and curls one to the far post. Wilson hooks it back for the incoming Vaulks, who bundles an effort goalwards. Livakovic makes a real mess of the save, nearly clanking it off the lurking Davies and into the goal. But he gathers just in time. Still, much, much better from Wales, and that delicious deep cross from James will have got quite a few Manchester United fans excited.

2.44pm BST

40 min: Bale is showing signs of losing his rag. A couple of minutes ago, he bumped chests with Livakovic as the keeper gathered a long punt. Now he’s shanking a wild pass up into the air in the midfield. A hot day alright.

2.42pm BST

38 min: Brozovic rolls a cheeky pass down the middle for Modric. The Croatian captain has no right to get in between the Welsh centre backs, but very nearly does so. His persistence doesn’t quite pay off, as Mepham fights as hard as he can to ensure Modric can’t flick a shot away. But that was close, and Wales really need to hear the half-time whistle.

2.40pm BST

36 min: Croatia are this close to a second. Allen loses the ball just inside the Croatian half. The hosts break with great purpose, Modric rolling a pass down the left for Kramaric, who strides towards the box, cuts inside, and sends a power curl towards the top right. Hennessey is beaten all ends up, but the ball whistles inches over the bar. That would have been a pretty picture.

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34 min: Some more very slick possession play by Croatia. Wales can’t get a touch. Faintly mesmeric under the hazy summer sun.

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32 min: Perisic launches a diagonal pass towards Brekalo on the right. Brekalo’s one step away from being able to keep it in play and hook it into the centre, but can’t quite wrap his foot around the ball and it slices out for a goal kick. Once again, Wales are being burned down the flanks.

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31 min: Bale has a little probe down the right, but to no great effect. The hosts are looking pretty comfortable.

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29 min: The pace of the game has dropped suddenly, and significantly. Were members from the 1990 Argentinian World Cup squad at those drinks bottles?

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27 min: Vaulks slips a pass down the inside-right channel with a view to releasing Bale, but the Wales captain is clearly offside. Up goes the flag. But at least Bale is moving freely after that injury scare.

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25 min: And then a cooling break. Time out for drinks

and cucumber sandwiches
.

2.29pm BST

24 min: Bale has his toes flattened by the clumsy Kovacic. For a second it looks serious as he drums the ground with his fist in agony. But he’s up again quickly enough, to great Welsh relief.

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22 min: Croatia aren’t too shabby down the right wing, either. Brozovic has a look along the flank, and his cross causes mild panic before it’s hacked away.

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20 min: Wales take the sting out of the game a little by faffing over a throw in the midfield. Time to regroup after the shock of conceding.

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18 min: Croatia are causing havoc down this left wing. They’re looking for Perisic short, they’re looking for him long. And finding him most times. Roberts has a real job on today, and he’s not getting too much support.

2.22pm BST

Bale nearly wins a long ball on the edge of the Croatian box, but can’t bring it down under pressure from Vida. Wilson tries to pick up the scraps, but is bowled over. A very light tug from Kovacic. He wants the foul, but he isn’t getting it. And the non-decision really costs Wales, because the hosts stream up the other end. A long ball down the left sends Perisic away in acres. He reaches the box and contemplates a shot, but fires a low cross into the six-yard box instead. Lawrence, rushing back, takes his eye off the ball as it clanks onto his shins and into the net. To be fair, Kramaric was lurking, he had to do something.

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15 min: Croatia continue to hog the ball. Barisic and Perisic combine well down the left, but Davies mops up in the middle and his keeper can gather.

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13 min: Croatia work a short corner to Modric, who slips a pass inside for Perisic, just to the left of the D. It’s half a chance, but he hoicks his shot wide left and screams in frustration. This has been a pleasingly open encounter so far. Both teams are trying to play their football.

2.16pm BST

12 min: Modric dances past a couple of half-arsed challenges in the midfield, then sprays a glorious pass wide right for Brekalo. A low cross fizzes through the six-yard box, and Mepham is forced to knock the ball out for a corner near his own left-hand post.

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10 min: And so, after all that, it’s Wales who get the first meaningful shot on target! There’s some very quick thinking by Bale, who takes a quick throw from the right, near the halfway line. It’s a long, athletic launch, and it finds Wilson on the edge of the box! Wilson gives the bouncing ball a good larrup, but it’s straight at Livakovic, who claims easily enough. That was a very decent chance.

2.12pm BST

8 min: Perisic again. He zips down the left and makes enough space for a shot, albeit from a tight angle. He sends a riser over the bar. Hennessey had it covered. But there was some fizz in that strike. Perisic looks in the mood.

2.11pm BST

7 min: Wales win a throw in the midfield, a Lovren pass going astray, and the away fans erupt in good-natured irony. Their team has been chasing shadows on this very sunny day. Croatia are soon coming back at Wales, though, Kramaric nearly beating Mepham in a footrace down the inside-left channel ... but the Welsh centre-half holds his position well and shepherds the Croatian striker out of play. Goal kick.

2.08pm BST

5 min: More from Perisic, who is extremely busy in these opening exchanges. A shimmy and a shake, and both Roberts and Vaulks are sent the wrong way on the left. His cross is easy pickings for Hennessey, though. Wales will need to weather an early storm by the looks of it so far.

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3 min: Wales haven’t had a touch of note yet. There’s a fine atmosphere at the Gradski vrt ... the City Garden. No time for Wales to stop and smell the flowers, though, as Perisic has another sniff down the left wing. His ball inside is cleared by Roberts.

2.04pm BST

A minute’s silence in memory of erstwhile Uefa bigwig Lennart Johansson ... perfectly observed ... and we’re off! The hosts get this qualifier underway, and they’re quickly on the front foot, Perisic making good ground down the left. There’s a little bit of pinball in the Welsh box, but the visitors resist. Just 89 minutes and 30 seconds left to hold out.

1.57pm BST

Here come the teams! The Welsh second kit is predominantly white, so Croatia politely change out of their iconic red-and-white chequerboard shirts and into their own alternative of black-and-navy check. Wales in red. Anthems are trilled, pennants are swapped, hands are clasped, and we’ll be off before you know it!

1.44pm BST

Ryan Giggs speaks ... and it’s fairly clear he wants to play a possession-based game. “The conditions are going to play a part. It’s hot, so we need to keep the ball. But we must recognise we’re away from home, so we need to be solid. At times, dig in. But we want to keep the ball too. We’ve got players who can hurt any opposition, so we want to get the ball to them as quickly as possible. Obviously if you’re not keeping the ball, and you’re constantly running about, it’s going to affect you more than if you keep the ball and you get your rest when you have the ball. So a big emphasis on that. It’s not going to be easy, it’s good that we have water breaks, that’ll help. But it’s the same for both teams. We’re ready, we’ve had good preparations, and we’re up for the challenge.”

1.09pm BST

Daniel James, on his way from Swansea City to Manchester United, starts after scoring the winner on his competitive debut against Slovakia in March. Wales make one change from that match, Will Vaulks coming in for David Brooks.

Croatia made three changes from the team that went down 2-1 in Hungary three months ago. Ivan Rakitic and Ante Rebic are injured, while goalkeeper Lovre Kalinic drops to the bench; Dominik Livakovic, Mateo Kovacic and Josip Brekalo take their places.

1.06pm BST

Croatia: Livakovic, Jedvaj, Lovren, Vida, Barisic, Modric, Brozovic, Brekalo, Kovacic, Perisic, Kramaric.
Subs: Kalinic, Melnjak, Caleta-Car, Skoric, Benkovic, Pasalic, Halilovic, Caktas, Badelj, Petkovic, Bartolec, Sluga.

Wales: Hennessey, Roberts, Mepham, Jamie Lawrence, Ben Davies, Wilson, Allen, Smith, James, Vaulks, Bale.
Subs: Ward, Gunter, Neil Taylor, Ashley Williams, Vokes, Levitt, Brooks, Matondo, Ampadu, Tom Lawrence, Lockyer, Adam Davies.

12.00pm BST

Croatia haven’t really been at the races since becoming the second-smallest nation in history to reach a World Cup final last summer. In the aftermath of being dispatched by France in Moscow, they’ve only won two competitive fixtures out of five: a rollercoaster 3-2 Nations League win over Spain in Zagreb that was comprehensively offset by a 6-0 defeat on the Spaniards’ own turf, and a slim victory at home against Azerbaijan in their first Euro 2020 qualifier. All a bit post-Lord-Mayor’s-show.

That 2-1 win over the Azerbaijanis was swiftly followed by defeat in Hungary against a team, it’s safe to say, still in transition in the wake of their 1954 World Cup heartache. Zlatko Dalic’s men need to get back on the horse quicksmart if the 2018 World Cup runners-up aren’t to miss the Euro 2020 party.

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Netherlands 3-1 England (aet): Nations League semi-final – as it happened

Defensive mistakes cost England dear as the Dutch advanced to a Sunday showdown with Portugal

11.50pm BST

Related: Netherlands 3-1 England: Nations League player ratings | Dominic Fifield

11.11pm BST

With the manager’s verdict in, it’s time for this MBM report to wind down. Congratulations to the Netherlands, who progress to the final against Portugal. Commiserations to England, who will try to end their season on a bittersweet high by winning the third-place play-off against Switzerland. It promises to be a super Sunday as the first Nations League reaches its climax. Thanks for reading. Nighty night!

Related: England extra-time misery after John Stones’ blunder lets in Netherlands

11.06pm BST

Gareth Southgate’s verdict. “An incredible evening, really, with the twists and turns of the match. I think we’ve learned so much by playing against a top-quality team posing different problems to ones we’ve played in the past. We got to grips with those issues, we had a threat throughout, but obviously we’ve conceded really poor goals. At any level you can’t concede those types of goals. We also had a couple of really good opportunities to score, and you have to take those chances. So it’s difficult to put into complete context at the moment because there’s so much going through your head. On 82 minutes, you thought you scored to put ourselves in an incredible position. But the matter that was disallowed, and the manner their second one went in, really deflated the team at a moment when their energy was running low. We have to play out better. I don’t think it’s a case of stopping doing what we are doing. The Dutch pressed really well, and we weren’t quite as sharp in some of our decision-making. But we’ll be stronger for our experiences. We can’t have too many of these high-level matches. And we’ve got to give a really good account of ourselves on Sunday.”

10.54pm BST

Harry Kane speaks. “Obviously it’s a massive disappointment, having been ahead at half-time. I thought we came out a little bit slow in the second half, dropped too deep, and it took them to equalise for us to step it up again. And when we did I thought we played really well. Of course we scored a goal that we thought was going to be the winner, but that’s the fine margins in big games like this. It didn’t go our way today. We know we made mistakes but that’s part of learning as a team and we take that on the chin, because that’s the way we want to play. Of course we’re disappointed, but every disappointment we have to learn from and get better.”

10.41pm BST

Daniel Taylor was our man at the Estádio D Afonso Henriques in Guimarães. Here’s his verdict on another night of semi-final despair for the Three Lions.

Related: England extra-time misery after John Stones’ blunder lets in Netherlands

10.36pm BST

Sterling makes a strong point. If you’d told anyone this time last year that England would contest both the World Cup semi-finals and the Nations League semi-finals within 11 months, you’d have been told to put the pipe down. But this England team are now operating at the business end of big tournaments. There’s still plenty of work to do, and while tonight’s defensive calamities will get all the attention, the lack of midfield control needs addressing as well. But they’re heading in the right direction, and there are worse places to finish than third or fourth, right? Or maybe it’s still too raw for talk like this. “Not bothered anyway,” sniffs Christopher Lee. “Stupid tinpot made-up trophy anyway. Not even bothered. YOU’RE CRYING.”

10.30pm BST

A word with a reflective Raheem Sterling. “I thought at times we soaked up pressure really well. Towards the end of the second half I thought we were the better team. But if you make silly mistakes at this level you get punished for it. VAR is one of those things. One day it might help us, but today it didn’t. We’re disappointed. They got their pressing right on the night, and we made a few mistakes. We tried but it didn’t work. We have to keep trying. It just wasn’t to be. I think we’ve still made progress to get to this stage, and it’s all about kicking on now, and trying to achieve the last bit.”

10.24pm BST

England’s 53-year wait for a major final will go on. The Netherlands will play Portugal in the very first Nations League final! England face another third-place match, this time against Switzerland.

10.23pm BST

120 min: Depay nearly latches onto a loose ball down the right, but Pickford is out quickly to gather on the edge of his box. A 4-1 scoreline would have been harsh on England.

10.22pm BST

119 min: The English fans have been the noisiest for most of the evening, but now it’s only the Dutch who can be heard. They give it the olés as the oranje ping it around.

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117 min: Kane has a shot from distance. It’s deflected over for a corner, from which nothing occurs. England’s shoulders collectively slump.

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116 min: England have been the architect of their own downfall. Depay looks to add to their misery with a shot from 30 yards, but it flies over the bar. It’s not going to matter.

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Another Dutch goal, another English defensive fiasco. Stones, deep as can be, passes upfield to Barkley, on the edge of his box facing his own goal. A heavy touch allows Depay to scoot off with the ball down the inside-left channel. He draws Pickford, then cuts back for Promes, who lashes into the empty net.

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113 min: The Netherlands make their final change. De Jong makes his way to the far side of the pitch, because he’s the one being hooked. Strootman comes on in his stead, once he leaves.

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112 min: Walker slings in a fine cross from the right. Kane’s up in the hope of winning the header, but he’s too eager and bashes into a well-positioned De Ligt. A free kick, and the clock is now England’s sworn enemy.

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111 min: England have to take chances now, and there are gaps at the back. Holland nearly exploit this state of affairs when Depay screams down the right, but his ball inside, with Wijnaldum free, is too strong for his team-mate.

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110 min: Alli needlessly drags down De Jong, and Holland take their own sweet time to restart the match. Textbook game management, and very frustrating for England, who have no option but to suck it up.

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108 min: Kane bustles around the edge of the Dutch box, then turns on a sixpence and bursts down the inside left. He nearly breaks through but De Ligt slides in at the expense of a corner. No great loss, because Henderson’s delivery fails to clear the first man.

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106 min: Van de Beek is booked for coming straight through the back of Barkley.

10.07pm BST

And we’re off again! England use up their bonus extra-time substitution, going for broke by replacing Declan Rice with Dele Alli.

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England needed to hear that whistle. They were going nowhere. And they need a goal desperately.

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103 min: An awful lot of aimless stuff in the middle of the park. This benefits Holland much more than England, the scoreline being what it is.

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101 min: A free kick for Holland out on the left. Depay fizzes it from a tight angle towards the bottom left. Pickford gathers. England counter through Sterling down the right. He’s sent free but miles offside. The flag doesn’t go up immediately, though, and England’s fans want a penalty as De Ligt bowls Sterling over. But they’re not getting it. Up goes the flag, and that’s that.

9.59pm BST

99 min: Holland have their tails up. A corner on the left. Depay flashes a header goalwards at point-blank range. Pickford saves instinctively, brilliantly. Another corner, which Van Dijk meets with a header that’s going into the bottom left. Kane clears off the line.

9.58pm BST

What a complete farce! Maguire plays the ball back to Stones, who faffs around on the edge of his own box. He’s stripped of possession by Depay, who is clear! Pickford parries the shot magnificently, but the ball breaks left. Promes is getting there ahead of both Pickford and Walker. His attempt to bundle home is going wide left, but he’s knocked the ball against Walker’s outstretched leg, over Pickford and in!

9.54pm BST

95 min: And so Depay takes. But he doesn’t get it anywhere near the top right corner, where he was aiming, and it’s an easy claim for Pickford in the middle of goal.

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94 min: Stones miscontrols and then hacks De Jong to the floor. A free kick just to the left of the D. Depay fancies it.

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93 min: Space for Dumfries down the right. He curls into the centre. Van de Beek winds his neck back to head. Stones gets in the road to divert the ball out for a corner. From the set piece, Van Dijk rises highest and plants a header towards the bottom right. Kane clears off the line!

9.51pm BST

91 min: Lingard is quickly scampering down the right, and gets two opportunities to cross. Neither is taken.

9.49pm BST

Here we go again! England get extra time underway. The Netherlands were the better team for most of the second half, but England will take heart at their strong finish to the game. So this is going to be some 30 minutes. Holland swap Bergwijn with Propper.

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Extra time it is, then! It was always going to happen, wasn’t it? It’s a semi-final. This is how England roll.

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90 min +6: And now here he is sashaying in from the left and grazing a shot off the top of the crossbar! England yet again so close to the final!

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90 min +5: England have been much improved since the equaliser, and the introduction of Henderson, who has given them better shape. Sterling has been much more involved.

9.42pm BST

90 min +4: England escape. Maguire is caught napping near the left-hand corner flag, at the edge of his own box. Bergwijn robs him and pulls back for Depay, who leans back and slices the ball high and horribly wide with the goal gaping. For a second, that looked like it.

9.40pm BST

90 min +3: Lingard dribbles hard at the Holland back line. He’s got them retreating. Once he reaches the edge of the box, he opens his body and tries to guide a shot into the bottom right. It’s just wide.

9.39pm BST

90 min +2: A free kick for England out on the left. Chilwell loops it towards the Dutch box. Maguire concedes a free kick by mounting Blind on the edge of the area, and there goes that pressure.

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90 min +1: The first of seven added minutes - thanks to VAR - passes reasonably quietly under the circumstances. But the tension in Guimaraes is palpable.

9.36pm BST

90 min: The ball bobbles around the edge of the Dutch area. It breaks to Kane, who spins and whistles a first-time shot towards the bottom left. It’s just wide. Cillessen had it covered.

9.35pm BST

88 min: Phew. Say what you will about VAR, it certainly delivers drama. Both of those decisions were correct. But England were so, so close to the final there. Millimetres away.

9.34pm BST

87 min: Nope. The ball clearly hit his back, not his arm. But England still got away with one there, because the ball had broken off Chilwell to Bergwijn, who really should have scored from ten yards, but sent a poor effort off target.

9.33pm BST

86 min: And then, adding to the VAR drama, Dumfries cuts in from the right and smashes a cross into Chilwell. Could this be a handball?!

9.32pm BST

85 min: Lingard was indeed a boot offside. It’s all level again.

9.31pm BST

84 min: But there’s a VAR check. A suspicion that Lingard was a smidgen offside.

9.30pm BST

England split Holland apart with ease! Chilwell bombs down the left and cuts inside. He passes infield for Sterling, who flicks back for Barkley. The midfielder slips an instant pass down the middle to release Lingard, who draws Cillessen and slips the ball into the bottom right!

9.28pm BST

81 min: Sterling has an opportunity to run at the Dutch defence, but inexplicably leaves the ball behind. A few players betrayed by their nerves right now.

9.27pm BST

79 min: This is a wild end-to-end affair now. Sterling nearly releases Kane down the inside-right channel, but just as the England captain shapes to shoot, De Jong slides in to block. Then Dumfries is once again found in acres on the right, but can’t find a team-mate with England light at the back. A real sense, at the end of a long season, that nobody fancies extra time tonight.

9.25pm BST

78 min: It’s not immediately successful, as Van de Beek is afforded a ludicrous amount of space down the middle. He slips a ball wide for Dumfries, who is free just inside the box on the right. The ball comes back to Van de Beek, ten yards out. He’s got the goal at his mercy but leans back and hoicks high over the bar. What a chance!

9.24pm BST

77 min: Henderson comes on for Delph, presumably with a remit to wrest back control of the midfield.

9.23pm BST

76 min: England enjoy their first sustained period in the Dutch half for quite a while. There’s some head tennis on the edge of the box, but the pressure’s relieved when Kane nudges De Ligt out of the way when the player’s in mid-air.

9.22pm BST

75 min: Extra time and penalties, then?

9.20pm BST

This had been coming. The corner’s curled towards the near post. De Ligt, at fault for England’s goal, makes up for it by rising over Walker and bashing a header down and into the bottom right. Unstoppable! Pickford had no chance.

9.19pm BST

72 min: Promes is quickly into the action, and from a position 25 yards out, down the inside-left channel, he curls towards the top right. The ball’s deflected out for a corner, and the set piece comes to nothing. But Holland are beginning to pin England back, and Dumfries earns another corner, out on the right, off Chilwell.

9.17pm BST

70 min: Kane is booked for an agricultural hack on Blind from behind. That was a saucy one. Another referee might have shown him a red, because he wasn’t going for the ball.

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69 min: An England free kick from the left is headed harmlessly wide by Stones. They’ve had their chances since the restart to put this match to bed.

9.15pm BST

68 min: That double change, then. Babel and De Roon are replaced by Promes and Van de Beek.

9.13pm BST

66 min: Sterling is dispossessed in the middle of the park and suddenly Wijnaldum is wheeching towards the England box. But his eventual dig has no oomph, and Pickford can gather it easily. On the touchline, Ronald Koeman is preparing a double substitution.

9.11pm BST

64 min: Dumfries and Depay combine well down the inside-right channel, teeing up De Roon, whose shot from the edge of the box is blocked by one of his own men. A look of pure frustration spreads across De Roon’s face. Holland have all of the ball, but England are holding firm.

9.10pm BST

63 min: Chilwell knocks Dumfries to the ground and concedes a free kick out on the right. The delivery of the free kick is a nonsense. For all Holland’s possession and pressure, Pickford has had very little to do.

9.08pm BST

61 min: Nothing much happens at the corner. Maguire is flattened by De Roon and that’s a free kick for England. Then Sancho, who had that glorious chance to make it 0-2, is replaced by Lingard.

9.07pm BST

60 min: Van Dijk, who is getting pelters from England fans every time he touches the ball, strokes a pass wide right for Dumfries. He can’t get a cross away, but soon Holland earn a corner. From which ...

9.05pm BST

58 min: Holland try to establish a semblance of order by knocking the ball around the middle awhile. England are chasing shadows right now.

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56 min: A real feel of Next Goal Wins. It’s edge-of-the-seat stuff, with both teams giving up chances. It surely won’t end with the scoreline as it is.

9.02pm BST

54 min: What a chance this was for England! Delph crosses from the left, the ball dropping onto Sancho’s head, six yards out. He surely must score, but hammers his header straight at Cillessen. Then up the other end, a great chance for Holland, as Depay strips a faffing Walker of possession, races goalwards, and batters a shot straight at Pickford. He tries to meet the rebound with a spectacular bicycle kick, but takes a fresh-air swipe instead. The England fans enjoyed that one.

9.00pm BST

52 min: Bergwijn cuts in from the right, enters the England box, and runs the ball out of play. But has Chilwell clattered into him illegally? There’s certainly contact, as the full back came across the front of the attacker. But the referee’s not interested, and it’s not so obvious that the VAR chappie is going to get involved. England might have got away with one there.

8.58pm BST

51 min: De Roon bundles Barkley to the floor, and that’s a free kick for England deep in Dutch territory. Kane floats it into the box. It drops to Maguire, just to the right. He should shoot goalwards, but opts to fire it into the mixer instead. After some pinball, Holland clear.

8.57pm BST

49 min: Sterling scampers clear down the left and chips inside for Kane. Cillessen tips the cross out for a corner. But then the flag goes up for offside. That was a very tight call.

8.55pm BST

48 min: Wijnaldum drops deep and assumes the role of playmaker, spraying a pass wide right for Dumfries, who is in acres. But the ball isn’t accurate and flies out for a goal kick.

8.54pm BST

47 min: A ponderous start to the half.

8.52pm BST

Holland get the second half underway. And England have made a change. Marcus Rashford can’t continue after taking that knock late in the first half, and Harry Kane is on in his place. And he’s got the armband back as well. “I’ve still not forgiven England for only winning 4-1 in that match at Euro 96,” admits Simon McMahon. “I think they did it on purpose to ensure that heroic Scotland didn’t qualify. We’re still in the huff about it now actually, resulting in a 23-year self-imposed exile from the Euros. So take that, England.”

8.40pm BST

Half-time entertainment.

Related: Diego Maradona: flight of the enchanter - from the archive, 6 April 1991

8.38pm BST

And the referee blows for half-time. England haven’t been particularly impressive, but Marcus Rashford took full advantage of Matthijs de Ligt’s brain fade, and they’re 45 minutes away from their first final in 53 years!

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45 min +3: ... Stones runs under the ball, but gets away with it as De Ligt heads weakly wide left. A real chance to make up for the penalty, right at the end of the half!

8.36pm BST

45 min +2: Depay thinks he’s been dragged down in the England area by Chilwell, as the pair contest a long ball, but it’s not a penalty. England don’t clear, though, Stones faffing around and gifting Holland possession. Wijnaldum is able to take a snapshot in a crowded box. It’s deflected wide right for a corner. From which ...

8.34pm BST

45 min +1: In fact Chilwell takes the resulting free kick himself, though it’s pretty aimless. The Netherlands clear their lines.

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45 min: Chilwell is being checked for concussion. For a while, it doesn’t look as though he’s going to be able to continue. But with half-time beckoning ... there will be two added minutes ... he plays on.

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44 min: Dumfries receives his overdue yellow card after leaping into Chilwell in a very confused manner. Chilwell’s taken quite a bang there. It was a very poorly timed challenge.

8.30pm BST

42 min: From the set piece, Delph has a bash from distance. Cillessen gathers. Holland counter, and Pickford is forced to race out of his box to clear a long ball down the centre. Depay is coming in to challenge, and the two clatter into each other just outside the area. Free kick for England, though there wasn’t any malicious intent from Depay.

8.28pm BST

41 min: Barkley is enjoying himself. He starts an attack deep in his own half, chipping wide right for Walker, then picks up possession again inside the centre circle. He’s barged over by Wijnaldum. Free kick.

8.26pm BST

39 min: Rashford needs some attention from the physio, having taken a hard but fair knock from Dumfries. He’ll be good to continue, though.

8.25pm BST

37 min: Some high-speed bagatelle in the England box ends with Depay taking a slapshot at goal. Pickford gathers, and the striker was offside anyway. Then England break upfield, and Sancho nutmegs De Ligt, who has had a torrid few minutes. Sancho then slips a ball forward for Rashford, who is about to shoot inside the Dutch box when Dumfries comes in from the side with a wonderfully timed saving tackle. It’s Cillessen’s turn to gather.

8.22pm BST

35 min: Babel, 25 yards out, shoots diagonally towards the bottom-left corner. Pickford saves, and gathers, though he made a meal of that. He was fortunate nobody in oranje was available to take advantage of his loose handling.

8.21pm BST

33 min: That goal came out of nowhere, with Holland having been in control. And to think it was Maguire who looked as though he’d got a catastrophic mistake in him this evening. A steep learning curve for young De Ligt.

8.19pm BST

After a long wait while the referee does his admin, Rashford takes the spot kick as cool as you like! He sends Cillessen to his right with the eyes, then rolls the ball into the bottom right. How cool was that? Harry Kane would have been proud of that one.

8.18pm BST

30 min: What a farce this is! De Roon passes back to De Ligt, to the left of the Dutch D. De Ligt takes his eye off the ball and lets it roll under his foot. Rashford nips in and is then upended as he races past the young defender. The referee points to the spot, and De Ligt goes into the book.

8.16pm BST

29 min: Walker channels his inner Beckenbauer and romps from his right-back position to a central position deep in Dutch territory. It’s all in vain, though, because his pass wide left to Chilwell finds his man offside.

8.15pm BST

27 min: As if to illustrate that fact, Maguire takes a free kick just inside his own half and blooters it straight out of play near the corner flag. Nowhere near a team-mate. If nothing else, it’s good to know he’d have a future in rugby union should his football career ever go south.

8.14pm BST

8.13pm BST

25 min: De Ligt takes the ball off Stones and breezes down the right. He crosses towards nobody in particular and Pickford is able to pluck the ball from the sky without fuss. But England are second best right now.

8.11pm BST

24 min: Maguire has been very sloppy so far. Now he gets in a muddle with Chilwell, and nearly allows Dumfries to steal away with the ball. The route to the box is shut just in time. Then Bergwijn finds space down the right and loops a cross, but Babel is too far out to power a header goalwards.

8.09pm BST

23 min: So having said that, here’s the first sleepy lull of the game. Pulitzer, please!

8.08pm BST

21 min: Depay dribbles hard down the left and cuts inside. He shoots towards the bottom left. Pickford is behind it all the way. England try to launch a counter, but this time Dumfries has the measure of Sancho down the left with a perfectly timed tackle. It’s an entertaining match.

8.06pm BST

19 min: Chilwell turns on the jets and zips down the right. Dumfries, who has been exposed twice already by Sancho, and looks to be a weak point in the Dutch defence, cynically brings the England left-back down. He should be booked, but it’s just a free kick. And the set piece is a waste of time, as Delph blocks Van Dijk on the edge of the box, releasing the pressure on Holland.

8.04pm BST

18 min: Blind is sent scampering down the left by Babel’s simple pass. He reaches the byline and whips low and hard into the centre. Pickford does extremely well to get down and smother in these slippery conditions.

8.03pm BST

16 min: Holland stroke the ball about for a while. They’re beginning to establish a little control. And whenever they lose the ball, their pressing game forces England into basic mistakes, and the cycle begins again.

8.02pm BST

14 min: Depay, under no pressure whatsoever in the centre circle, sprays one of the wildest passes you’ll ever see high into the stand on the left. That must have been one hell of a rush of blood. Ronald Koeman stares at his striker in the ruminative style.

7.59pm BST

12 min: England get away with one. Maguire and Rice are caught snoozing just inside their own half, and allow Wijnaldum to race into the England half. It’s two on one! But Wijnaldum’s pass to Depay on his left is a little behind the striker, who can’t check or sort his feet out. That’s a huge let-off. Maguire and Rice were truly faffing around there.

7.57pm BST

10 min: Walker runs at Holland with the Dutch light at the back. He tries to slip Rashford away, threading a pass down the middle, but he overcooks it and Cillessen gathers. A promising opportunity passed up.

7.55pm BST

8 min: Now it’s Maguire’s turn to cough up possession. Bergwijn then dribbles down the inside-right channel, where there’s a big gap in the English defence, and batters a shot straight at Pickford. It’s been an open start.

7.54pm BST

7 min: A poor ball crossfield pass from Barkley is miscontrolled by Walker, who gifts Depay the chance of a shot from the edge of the box. Depay takes too long and is closed down.

7.52pm BST

5 min: Now it’s Holland’s turn to look nervous. Sancho again worries Dumfries, who passes back to Cillessen. He slices out of play; the throw comes to nothing. Now both keepers have got away with one.

7.51pm BST

4 min: But it’s England who launch the first meaningful attack of the game. Sancho turns Dumfries this way and that as he scampers down the left wing. He dinks into the middle. Sterling nearly gets a head on it. Blind is forced to hack out for a corner. The ball’s swung in from the right. Maguire volleys hard, but miles over.

7.49pm BST

2 min: But nothing comes of the resulting throw, deep in English territory. A cracking atmosphere in Guimaraes.

7.48pm BST

There’s a minute’s silence for erstwhile Uefa bigwig Lennart Johansson ... and then the second Nations League semi-final is go! England get the match underway. Possession’s given up within 12 seconds, and Holland take the opportunity of passing the ball around the back to make sure everyone gets a feel. Then they launch forward. Chilwell intercepts and passes back down the England right towards Pickford, who slices out of play. A shaky start by England.

7.44pm BST

The teams are out! It’s been tipping down all day in northern Portugal. The pitch is well watered. A fine opportunity for a good slide tackle. England wear their famous white shirts, Holland their equally storied oranje. The national anthems are sung: England go first, then it’s the turn of the Dutch. We’ll be off in a minute!

7.39pm BST

England and the Netherlands haven’t met each other too often in competitive matches. Marco van Basten’s hat-trick saw off England at Euro 88; their current manager’s free kick saw off Graham Taylor in the USA 94 qualifiers; there was a instantly forgettable goalless draw at Italia 90; and of course there was that night at Wembley in 1996. It’s been a while!

Related: When football came home: England’s rapture against Holland at Euro 96

7.35pm BST

And now it’s the turn of Ronald Koeman. “It is a big challenge. We think we have improved from the time we played England in a friendly. They are strong, they’re in a good way. They have the experience of playing in a world championship, we don’t have that one. But we do have great players, and the team has a good balance. We have only two players who were in the Champions League final, and I always say that if you win titles you don’t feel tired, you want to flow. Virgil and Georginio wanted to play.”

7.25pm BST

Gareth Southgate explains his decision to keep the Liverpool and Spurs lads on the bench. “We were always of a mind that the Champions League final would be a hugely intense occasion, as well as the physical efforts. We’ve had a really good group working with us for a couple of weeks, and they’ve had more opportunity to focus on this game. And it gives us some real strength to come from the bench. It’s never easy, but they’re brilliant professionals and are always supportive of the team. They understand the rationale. Everybody’s available. We want to keep developing players, we’re building for next year as well as wanting to win this. Raheem Sterling’s growing maturity and confidence means that the captaincy is a well-deserved honour.”

7.13pm BST

England rest their Liverpool and Spurs contingent in the wake of last Saturday’s Champions League final. All seven - Jordan Henderson, Joe Gomez, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Harry Kane, Danny Rose, Eric Dier and Dele Alli - are on the bench. Tonight’s captain Raheem Sterling will lead out a team with five changes to the side that won 5-1 in Montenegro in March as John Stones, Ben Chilwell, Fabian Delph, Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford step up.

By contrast, Holland go with their new European champions. Virgil van Dijk and Georginio Wijnaldum both start. Ajax, one second away from that final, have three representatives in Daley Blind, Matthijs de Ligt and the Barca-bound Frenkie de Jong. And up front there’s a couple of old Premier League pals in Ryan Babel and Memphis Depay, the latter in the middle of a fecund creative period for club and country, having either made or scored 21 goals in his last 20 games.

6.55pm BST

Netherlands: Cillessen, Dumfries, de Ligt, van Dijk, Blind, de Roon, F de Jong, Wijnaldum, Bergwijn, Depay, Babel.
Subs: Vermeer, Bizot, Hateboer, Ake, Propper, Promes, van Aanholt, de Vrij, Strootman, Vilhena, L de Jong, van de Beek.

England: Pickford, Walker, Stones, Maguire, Chilwell, Rice, Delph, Barkley, Sancho, Rashford, Sterling.
Subs: Butland, Heaton, Rose, Dier, Lingard, Henderson, Kane, Gomez, Keane, Alli, Wilson, Alexander-Arnold.

6.47pm BST

That’s much-deserved reward for Sterling, who leads his country out on his 50th international appearance. The naked eye will tell you that the Manchester City winger is a world-class act, there’s no need for stats. Then again, the numbers don’t hurt either: having scored just twice in his first 45 matches for England, games 46 to 49 have produced another six goals. That includes a hat-trick against the Czechs, a couple in Spain, and a satisfying goal stuffed down the throats of the Montenegro supporters giving him abuse. Throw in a domestic treble and the FWA Footballer of the Year award, and it’s safe to say he’s on a roll.

6.37pm BST

Harry Kane hasn’t made it, so Raheem Sterling will captain England tonight. Full team news to follow, but here’s the England starting XI: Pickford, Walker, Stones, Maguire, Chilwell, Rice, Delph, Barkley, Sterling, Sancho, Rashford.

6.36pm BST

Style guide.

5.20pm BST

England have only contested five major semi-finals in their entire history. The 1966 World Cup. The 1968 European Championship. The 1990 World Cup. Euro 96. And of course the 2018 World Cup, Harry Kane, Kieran Trippier, Gareth Southgate’s waistcoat, all that. Last summer seems like yesterday.

You’ll have noticed that their hit-rate hasn’t been too clever. Just the 20 percent. They’ve lost their last four semis on the bounce. Put another way, they’ve not reached a final for over half a century. Oh England!

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The Fiver | Telling Half-fit Harry to sit quietly on the bench and like it

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On Thursday evening, at the Estádio D. Afonso Henriques in Guimarães, England will resume their quest to join Argentina, the Soviet Union, Uruguay, Egypt, Uruguay again, South Korea, New Zealand, the USA! USA!! USA!!!, Costa Rica and, er, Great Britain in the pantheon of countries to have won the inaugural staging of a major international tournament. We of course refer to the first winners of the Confederations Cup, the Euros, the World Cup, the African Nations Cup, the Copa América, the Asian Nations Cup, the Oceania Cup, the Gold Cup, the CCCF Cup and the Big Sports Day, and yes, if you were to push us, we’d agree that inaugural champions isn’t really a thing, but The Fiver’s written them all down now so there they are. Anyway, England just need to beat the Netherlands, then Portugal on Sunday, and the brand-spanking-new Uefa Nations League will be theirs! What a glorious nation! What a green and pleasant land! Brexit, please!

Related: Violent England fans an embarrassment to the team and not welcome, says FA

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Jeongeun Lee6 wins 2019 US Women's Open – as it happened

Jeongeun Lee6 won her first major title at CharlestonOfficial USGA leaderboard

12.05am BST

Jeongeun Lee6 survived a late wobble to win the US Women’s Open at the Country Club of Charleston.

The South Korean, who began the day two shots behind joint overnight leaders Celine Boutier and Yu Liu, carded a final-round 70 to win by one.

12.02am BST

And that’s your lot ... though a lovely wrap-up report will follow in due course. Congratulations to Jeongeun Lee6, commiserations to Celine Boutier, and thanks to you, dear reader, for joining us here. Next up, the Women’s PGA at Hazeltime in three weeks ... and don’t forget to join us for the men’s US Open on June 13. See you then!

11.57pm BST

Jeongeun Lee6, the 2019 US Open champion, speaks! “I felt pretty nervous on 16, 17 and 18. I know I made two bogeys but I tried the best I could. All my shots were pretty good. I was calm because I knew I could play well. Throughout the year I couldn’t imagine coming this far. I feel proud and I worked so hard.” That was a genuinely sweet interview, because towards the end, Lee6 broke down in tears of happiness ... and that set her translator off too! “I’m sorry,” she paused, “I’m just really proud of her!” That’s a lovely moment, one sure to become a part of this grand old tournament’s rich legend.

11.51pm BST

Jeongeun Lee6 was certainly No1 today. Having stepped on the gas after the turn to take the lead, the young South Korean never gave it up, despite that late wobble. That’s thanks to the cushion she’d built up by playing some sensational golf. She’s the deserved victor. And so to the prize-giving ceremony. First up, Gina Kim of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, who is awarded with the medal for low amateur. Then the gold winner’s medal is hung around Lee6’s neck, and she’s handed the famous old pot!

11.44pm BST

So here’s how the 74th US Women’s Open ended up.

-6: Jeongeun Lee6
-4: Angel Yin, Ryu So-yeon, Lexi Thompson
-3: Gerina Piller, Mamiko Higa, Jaye Marie Green, Celine Boutier, Yu Liu
-2: Ally McDonald, Jessica Korda

11.42pm BST

Boutier chips up gamely from the swale down the side of 18. She’s left with a four foot bogey putt ... and it lips out. A double bogey to start, and another to finish. Her flat stick has really let her down today. A miserable 75, and she looks so deflated. Poor Boutier, who will see that missed putt on 16 when she closes her eyes tonight. She drops out of second into a tie for fifth. Her playing partner and former Duke team-mate Liu ends with a 75 as well, both of the third-round leaders having started abysmally, unable to claw it back.

11.38pm BST

A broad smile spreads across Lee6’s face. Then suddenly emotions take over, as she doubles over, as if in pain, then dissolves into the happiest tears. She’s soon back up and smiling again ... and covered in champagne! She’s embraced by her compatriot Ryu So-yeon, before nipping into the clubhouse, presumably to mop up all that sticky booze.

11.34pm BST

Boutier’s got a perfect lie in the bunker, and plenty of green to play with. But her splash out is awful, only just making it onto the dancefloor, then curling off down the swale to the right. Jeongeun Lee6 is the 2019 US Open champion!

11.32pm BST

Boutier has birdied this hole twice already this week. So it should hold fewer fears for her than the rest of the field. But pressure does funny things. She pushes her approach into the bunker to the right of the green, and so she’ll need to Birdie Kim it from the sand if she’s to force a play-off. Lee6 so close now.

11.29pm BST

Boutier crashes a drive down the middle of 18. Prime position to become only the third player today to make a birdie on this fiendish closing hole. The tension at the Charleston is palpable.

11.26pm BST

Here’s Boutier on 17 with a 30-foot birdie attempt. It’s never going in, always staying on the high side, but that’s a par. She’ll need to birdie the last to force a play-off. Liu’s race is run with bogey at 17; she’s -3. Up on 18, Thompson shows Boutier the way by nearly slamdunking her second into the cup for eagle. That’s a birdie, though, only the second all day at 18! She ends the week at -4. Meanwhile Green finishes with a 74, a disappointing end to an otherwise fine week’s work. She’s -3.

11.20pm BST

Boutier’s tee shot at 17 finds the centre of the green, but it’s not particularly close. She looks gutted, presumably of the mind that she’s thrown away her chance at the last hole. But events on 18 may cheer her up a little, because Lee6 can’t make her par putt. She’s stumbled home after looking so impressive all afternoon, dropping two strokes in the last three holes. But she’s still in the lead, and only two players can stop her. Not an ideal finish - bogey-par-bogey - but there are worse places to be in.

-6: Lee6 (F)
-5: Boutier (16)
-4: Yin (F), Ryu (F), Liu (16)

11.15pm BST

Boutier’s only three feet from the cup at 16 ... and she shoves her short birdie putt, the ball horseshoeing out. Just a par. Those early-round putting woes are back with a vengeance. The gap at the top is still two, though Lee6 has plenty to do to save her par at 18 ... and her chip up isn’t great, but it isn’t bad either. A little bit short and eight feet to the right of the cup. A real test to finish. Then again, winning the US Open isn’t supposed to be easy.

11.11pm BST

Lee6 does indeed get a free drop. But she’s still dropping into the thick rough, and her ball sits right down in the cabbage. She’s 161 yards from the hole, and doesn’t look too confident, happy to take full instruction from her caddie. She lashes out and sends her ball greenwards ... but it stops just short of the fairway. Another test to get up and down for par, her third in a row. The nerves have certainly kicked in on this closing stretch.

11.07pm BST

Lee6’s drive at 18 bounds over a bunker down the left of the fairway, and plunges into deep rough. Much may depend on the lie. And she doesn’t have a good one. But her stance may be impeded by a nearby drain cover, so she’ll be having a word with the match referee I’ll be bound. Especially as Boutier has just creamed her second at 16 to a couple of feet. That’s quite wonderful, and this tournament is back in the balance!

11.02pm BST

Lee6 has left herself a puzzle of a putt. Downhill and with the grain, then uphill and against it. There’s a fair bit of left-to-right movement as well. What she’d give for a two-putt par. But she nearly drains it! A couple of joules of energy less, and that would have dropped, but it horseshoes out. She’s left with a three footer - a tricky little one under the circumstances - and it’s calmly converted. That’s a superb par. Boutier meanwhile can’t make her birdie putt on 15, so the gap remains at two. Liu nearly joined her at -5 but her birdie putt died to the left one turn short.

-7: Lee6 (17)
-5: Boutier (15)
-4: Yin (F), Ryu (F), Green (15), Liu (15)

10.55pm BST

A 7-iron for Lee6 at the 157-yard par-three 17th. She pulls it, and though it finds the green, she’s left herself a long two putts for par. Meanwhile back on 15, Boutier’s third is nothing better than average, and she’s left facing a good 25 feet for the birdie she desperately requires.

10.53pm BST

Lee6 chips up to six feet on 16, but her par putt slips by. That’s her first bogey since the opening hole, all down to that poorly judged approach shot. The lead at the top is now just two, with second-placed Boutier in prime position down the par-five 15th after two straight ones. If she birdies that, the pressure is really on Lee6, who hasn’t got a tour victory, never mind a major, to her name yet. Will doubts creep in?

-7: Lee6 (16)
-5: Boutier (14)
-4: Yin (F), Ryu (F), Green (15), Liu (14)

10.50pm BST

Pars for Thompson and Green on the par-five 15th. At -4 and -3, their slim chances are pretty much gone, unless we’re about to witness something very dramatic. Meanwhile Ryu So-yeon signs for a final round of 71. The 2011 champion ends the week at -4.

10.45pm BST

A rare mistake by the leader. Lee6, sending a wedge into 16 from 120 yards, leaves herself well short, and the ball topples off the false front and rolls back down the fairway, 9th-at-Augusta style. A testing up and down coming up. And a test of her nerves. Elsewhere, it’s a three-putt bogey for Jessica Korda on 16. She’s -3. And Yu Liu bogeys 14, the result of a poor approach and underhit putt; she’s -4.

10.38pm BST

Green can’t make the par save on 14. That might be her race run, because Lee6 wedges delightfully to five feet at 15, and makes a precious birdie that gives her a big cushion at the top.

-8: Lee6 (15)
-5: Boutier (13), Liu (13)
-4: Yin (F), Ryu (17), J Korda (15), Green (14)
-3: Piller (F), Thompson (14)

10.30pm BST

Green elects to putt up again ... and this time she underhits it. She’s left with another test from eight feet. Meanwhile a stroke of luck for Lee6 on 15, as she sends her second, a fairway wood, a little off line, towards the bunkers to the right of the fairway. But her ball takes a bounce back in, and she ends up on the short stuff. A sign that this is going to be her day?

10.27pm BST

Another poor wedge in from Green. This time it’s after a perfect drive at 14, her ball disappearing down a slope to the left. Thompson finds the dancefloor, though, despite sending her drive into the thick stuff down the right. Par for the big-hitting Jessica Korda at 15; she really needed something there. She remains at -4.

10.21pm BST

Thompson’s second into 13 falls off the back of the green. Three putts coming back, and her hopes of a first US Open look gone for another year. She’s -3. But Green makes her par saver, and stays within two of Lee6, who can’t make her birdie putt on 14. Meanwhile Jessica Korda is back up to -4, where she started, after clipping her second at 14 to kick-in distance.

-7: Lee6 (14)
-5: Green (12), Boutier (12), Liu (12)

10.17pm BST

Lee6 wedges straight at the flag from prime position in the centre of the 14th fairway. It’s a bit short, and her ball threatens to topple backwards off the green’s false front, but it hangs on and she’ll have a look at birdie from 15 feet. The 23-year-old tour rookie isn’t showing any nerves yet ... unlike Green, who sends an appalling wedge into 13 from 120 yards, miles from the flag. Her long birdie putt ends up six feet wide; she’s faced with a tester she’ll really need to make if she’s to keep any pressure on the leader.

10.07pm BST

Birdie for Ryu So-yeon, who very nearly eagles 15 after knocking her second to 15 feet. The putt dies off to the left and it’s just a birdie. She’s -4 and the two-time major winner will be ruing that double bogey on the opening hole. Meanwhile a miserable finish for Charley Hull, who double-bogeys the long 18th, all her good work mid-round undone. A 72 and she finishes level par for the championship. The difference between a top-ten and top-20 finish.

10.04pm BST

A dropped shot for Celine Boutier at 11, the result of sending her tee shot long, then failing to hit the uphill 12-footer she’d left herself. She’s -5. Meanwhile Jaye Marie Green’s second into 12 topples off the left-hand side of the green and down a swale. She’s left with a tricky up and down to save her par. Out comes the putter, and she flies he ball up the hill and ten feet past. She can’t make the one coming back, and suddenly a gap’s developed at the top!

-7: Lee6 (13)
-5: Green (12), Boutier (11), Liu (11)

9.56pm BST

Jeongeun Lee6 is making her move! A wedge from 100 yards at 12 to four feet, and in goes the putt. That’s back-to-back birdies for the player whose fan club back home in Korea is called Lucky 6. She’s already got top-ten finishes under her belt at the Evian, the US Open and the ANA. This could be Lucky 6’s lucky week, because currently Lee6 is No1.

-7: Lee6 (12)
-6: Green (11), Boutier (10)
-5: Liu (10)

9.50pm BST

Green is one dimple away from rolling in a monster birdie putt on the par-three 11th. She stays in a tie for the lead at -6. But her partner Thompson drops a stroke, the result of finding the bunker to the left of the green. Shortsided, and with the ground sloping away viciously, she does extremely well just to hold the green. It’s a hell of a bunker shot. But she’s left with a 25-footer coming back, and her ball shaves the hole. She’s -4.

9.46pm BST

A stunning up-and-down by the co-leader Celine Boutier on 10. She’s long and right, down the swale, and faced with a tight lie under some hanging branches. So she bundles her chip into the face of the bank, taking much of the sting out of the shot, and rolling her ball to six feet. In goes the par saver, and that’ll feel like a birdie. She remains at -6.

9.44pm BST

Lee6 is going round with Mamiko Higa, who is in the process of carding a final round as bad as her opening round of 65 was superb. The Japanese debutant has already bogeyed 3, 6, 8 and 10, and now she’s yipped a tiddler at 11, having hit a tee shot that made Lee6’s aforementioned effort look distinctly average. What a miss. But when it’s not your day, it’s not your day.

9.40pm BST

Thompson makes a par at 10 that feels like a birdie. Out of position from the tee, she ends up facing a nervy ten-footer to scramble par. In it goes, and that’s two momentum-saving putts in a row. She remains a shot off the leaders, whose number now include Jeongeun Lee6, the South Korean rookie having caressed a 7-iron to six feet at the par-three 11th. This tournament is really hotting up!

-6: Lee6 (11), Green (10), Boutier (9)
-5: Thompson (10), Liu (9)
-4: Yin (F)
-3: Piller (F), Ryu (13), J Korda (11)

9.33pm BST

Angel Yin finds the 18th green in two big strokes. She started the day six back, and if she ends up winning this, it’ll be a US Open record. With that in mind, she gives a long birdie putt plenty of oomph - no point dying wondering - and leaves herself a little five-foot tester coming back. And she can’t make it. She gave that a bit too much, too. Hey, it’s better than leaving them short. Such a shame, her first and only birdie of the day at the very last. It’s still a brilliant 68, but though she’s the new clubhouse leader at -4, chances are she’ll come up short.

9.28pm BST

Liu prods gingerly at her eagle putt, and it’s always dying on the low side. Such a shame. But a kick-in birdie isn’t to be sniffed at. She moves to -5, repairing more of that early damage. Par for Boutier. Meanwhile Jeongeun Lee6 - so called because there are five other players on the Korean tour with the same name - has one of those is-it-good-or-bad-luck moments at 11. She’s over the back of 10, and sends her chip trundling straight at the flag. It hits the stick but fails to drop, stopping just beside the hole. But she’ll make her par, and that would have gone sailing 20 feet past had it not hit the stick. So it’s swings and roundabouts. She stays one off the lead at -5.

9.23pm BST

If Green’s second into 9 was good, Liu’s is simply sensational! She draws back her fairway wood and gives the ball a smooth skelp from 272 yards. Arrowed straight at the flag, it ends up ten feet past, and she’ll have a great look at eagle! Good luck guessing which way this tournament is going to go, because after all that early nonsense, the best players in the world are beginning to play their shots. Coming up, ladies and gentlemen: major championship golf, Sunday, the back nine!

9.19pm BST

Thompson is faced with a monster putt up the 9th. The best part of 100 feet. Her pace is almost perfect, her direction less so, the ball breaking a good 12 feet to the left of the hole. But she knocks in the birdie putt. That took moxie, because she’d just witnessed Green’s eagle effort shaving the left of the cup. Green shows a little frustration at not converting after that stunning second shot, but she’ll take the birdie that gives her a share of the lead. Both players seem pretty happy as they swan off to the 10th. Meanwhile Yin nearly drains a long one on 17 but will have to settle for par to remain one off.

-6: Green (9), Boutier (8)
-5: Yin (17), Lee6 (9), Thompson (9)
-4: Liu (8)

9.12pm BST

Gerina Piller has missed her fair share of short putts since the turn. But she makes missable par savers on 17 and 18, and she’s signing for a very fine 68. It won’t be enough to win, but she’s the clubhouse leader right now.

-6: Boutier (8)
-5: Yin (16), Lee6 (9), Green (8)
-4: Thompson (8), Liu (8)
-3: Piller (F), Korda (9), Higa (9)

9.09pm BST

Jaye Marie Green sends a pearler of a 3-wood into the heart of the par-five 9th. It’s one of the shots of the day, rolling serenely onto the putting surface, past the pin, then curling back towards the cup off the backstop. She’ll have a look at eagle from 15 feet or so. Lexi Thompson is between clubs, so opts for 4-iron and only just makes the front of the green. But birdie is on.

9.05pm BST

Angel Yin drains a 35-footer on 16 to get to within one stroke of the lead! She’s currently putting together a flawless four-under round, and the score she could end up posting would ask several testing questions of the jittery folk making up the final few groups. Meanwhile it’s a 72 for Ariya Jutanugarn, who ends the defence of her title At +2. She’ll always have Shoal Creek.

8.56pm BST

Jessica Korda finds herself in a bunker guarding the par-five 9th. She can only flop out weakly into another bunker just in front. She hammers the sand in anger, but cools her boots quickly, splashing the second bunker shot out to 15 feet, a decent result from a very difficult lie. But she can’t make the par saver, and that’s a costly six on a hole that’s been giving up birdies today. She’s -3. Meanwhile Thompson and Green both go very close to birdie at 8, but stay at -4 and -5 respectively.

8.50pm BST

Putts are beginning to drop! Birdie for Lexi Thompson at 7. She’s a little unlucky with her approach, which looks good for a minute but takes a big hard bounce through the green. But no matter, because she sends a putt from the fringe straight into the cup. She’s -4 again. Birdie for the ANA Inspiration champ Ko Jin-young, and she’s -3. That’s a fine response to yipping a short birdie putt on 9. A third birdie of the day for the big-hitting Angel Yin at 15; she’s suddenly in the mix at -4. But bogey for Green at 5, and now Boutier has the sole ownership of the lead. This is going to chop and change all afternoon, isn’t it.

-6: Boutier (6)
-5: Lee6 (8), Green (7)
-4: Yin (15), Korda (8), Thompson (7), Liu (6)
-3: Piller (16), Ko (10), Madsen (9), Higa (8)

8.41pm BST

Liu’s tee shot at the par-three 6th topples down the bank to the right. A heavy-handed chip up costs her another shot. She’s back to -4. But her playing partner - and former title-winning team-mate at Duke University - Boutier rolls in a 15-footer for birdie. Reward for a lovely 5-iron in! She’s turned this around magnificently after a dreadful start, and grabs back a share of the lead.

-6: Green (6), Boutier (6)
-5: Lee6 (7)
-4: J Korda (8), Higa (7), Liu (6)

8.37pm BST

Gerina Piller will be cursing her putter. For the third hole in a row, she misses a putt from less than ten feet. The last two were for par, this one at 15 was for birdie. She remains at -3, two off.

-6: Green (6)
-5: Lee6 (7), Boutier (5), Liu (5)
-4: J Korda (7), Higa (7)
-3: Piller (15), Yin (14), Thompson (6)

8.32pm BST

Are the final pair turning it around? Celine Boutier finds greenside sand at the par-five 5th in two, then splashes a long bunker shot to two feet. Birdie. Yu Liu makes birdie too, and the pair are back to -5, just one off Green’s lead. Jeongeun Lee6 continues to go along very nicely: the rookie of the year opened bogey-birdie, but since then it’s been drama-free pars all the way. The latest comes at 7, and she’s sitting very nicely at -5.

8.29pm BST

The last nine pairings are currently +23. That’s the pressure of trying to win your first major, the task set for the vast majority of these players. But Jaye Marie Green could be good for this, you know. She’s missed the cut in her last four tournaments, but the one before that was the ANA Inspiration, and she tied for 12th there. She’s on record as saying she loves to grind out a score, and that’s why she enjoys the majors. She tied for 18th at the PGA last year, and for 15th at the British Open. A solid par for her at the par-three 6th, and she remains a shot in the lead at -6.

8.23pm BST

This is absurd. Now it’s Mamiko Higa’s turn to slip out of the leading group, letting a ten-footer slip by at 6. Then Lexi Thompson fails to commit to an eight-footer at 5 and has to settle for par. But finally someone makes a positive move! Jaye Marie Green sticks her approach at 5 to kick-in distance, and that’s a birdie that gives her the outright lead of the US Open!

-6: Green (5)
-5: Lee6 (6)
-4: J Korda (7), Higa (6), Boutier (4), Liu (4)
-3: Piller (14), Yin (13), Thompson (5)

8.18pm BST

Yet another dropped shot by Liu, this time at 4. Her friend from Duke and playing partner Boutier stops the bleeding with par, very nearly draining a 50-footer for birdie. The 54-hole leaders are both three over for their rounds, now one off the lead at -4.

8.14pm BST

Charley Hull is going along very nicely today. The 23-year-old from Kettering was out in 35, birdies at 7 and 9 offsetting bogey at 6. She finished this tournament in a tie for tenth place last year, and another high finish is on the cards, especially the way the leading groups are playing. She’s -2 through 11, just three off the lead. If Hull, Piller or Yin posts a target, the rest of the field will have some serious thinking to do.

8.11pm BST

Piller’s momentum has deserted her. In more ways than one. A straight uphill ten-footer for par at 14 isn’t given enough welly, and that’s back-to-back bogeys. She’s -3. She allows herself a wry smile; she knows she got spooked by the sight of her name suddenly at the top of the leader board. Shades of Patrick Cantlay at this year’s Masters.

8.08pm BST

A miserable three-putt bogey on the par-four 13th puts a stop to Piller’s gallop. She slips back to -4. But as things stand, she’s one of only two players in the top ten currently under par for their round today. The other is the 20-year-old Californian Angel Yin, who was out in 34 after birdies at 5 and 9. Boutier meanwhile drops another shot at 3, while Thompson makes it three bogeys in the first four holes, three-putting from the back of 4. This is carnage. Nobody can make a putt right now!

-5: Lee6 (4), Higa (4), Green (4), Liu (3)
-4: Piller (13), J Korda (5), Boutier (3)
-3: Yin (11), Ryu (7), Thompson (4)

7.58pm BST

Jessica Korda misreads an eight-foot birdie putt on the par-five 5th. A big right-to-left break not factored in at all. A good chance to share the lead spurned on the easiest hole on the course. She remains at -4. One of the tour’s biggest hitters, Korda should be making hay around Charleston, but her putter has been stone-cold all week. She took 37 putts yesterday. By the looks of things, her flat stick is conspiring against her again today.

7.51pm BST

Piller’s birdie putt at 12 shaves the hole. No four in a row; no share of the lead. She remains at -5. But staying put is absolutely fine, because everyone else is heading the wrong way. Liu can’t get up and down from greenside vegetation at 2, and she’s opened with back-to-back bogeys. Meanwhile Thompson overrules her caddie on the 182-yard par-three 3rd, selecting an 8-iron instead of the proffered 7-iron. Probably just as well, because she whistles it through the green and into a deep bunker at the back. She can’t get up and down to save par. Green also fails to scramble from the sand, and all of a sudden Gerina Piller, who started seven back today, is tied for the lead!

-5: Piller (12), Lee6 (4), Green (3), Boutier (2), Liu (2), Higa (4)
-4: J Korda (4), Thompson (3)
-3: Yin (10), Ryu (6)

7.40pm BST

The 1st has been playing the toughest on the course, so it’s no wonder so many players have been shedding shots on it today. Throw in the tension of the final day at the US Open, and there you have it. Boutier looked particularly nervous, though. By all accounts she missed a series of short putts on the practice green, which doesn’t augur well at all. But here’s somebody who isn’t looking nervous: Gerina Piller, who has just made it three birdies in a row, this time at 11. She’s five under for her round, and on exactly the same mark for the tournament, just one off the lead!

-6: Green (2), Liu (1)
-5: Piller (11), Lee6 (3), Higa (3), Thompson (2), Boutier (1)

7.36pm BST

Boutier’s second at 1 is dreadful, a hybrid pulled into thick grass down the left. She’s zig-zagging down this opening hole, her nerves betraying her. The following wedge into the green is overly conservative, and she’s got a long putt left for par. She can’t make it, then yips the bogey putt. A double. Meanwhile her playing partner Liu sends her second down the swale to the left of the green ... and she can’t get up and down. Bogey, and a very shaky start by the 54-hole leaders.

7.29pm BST

Thompson can’t make her par saver and she slips to -5. Par for Green. A bounce-back birdie for Lee6 at 2; she’s -5 again. Meanwhile the leaders tee off. Celine Boutier’s drive leaks off a little to the right, but Yu Liu sends a calm one down the middle. And there’s another birdie for Gerina Piller! She’s already got a top-ten finish at the US Open to her name, in 2016. Now -4, another could be on the cards this year. Back in the groove after taking a sabbatical in 2018 after the birth of her first child.

7.21pm BST

Thompson is right up against the lip of the bunker, and has no chance of reaching the green. She takes her medicine and advances the ball as far as she can, before knocking a wedge pin high. But she’ll be left with a 25-footer across the green to scramble par.

7.16pm BST

Meanwhile on 1, par for first-round leader Mamiko Higa, but bogey for Jeongeun Lee6. While back the tee Lexi Thompson has pulled her opening drive into the sand down the left. Her playing partner Jaye Marie Green splits the fairway.

-7: Liu, Boutier
-6: Higa (1), Thompson, Green
-4: Korda (1), Lee6 (1)
-3: Piller (9), Lopez (1)

7.14pm BST

Everyone, that is, with the exception of Gerina Piller. The 34-year-old from Roswell, New Mexico, is an identifiable flying object this afternoon. She’s out in 33, after making birdie at 3, 5 and 9. That’s sailed her up the leader board to -3.

7.03pm BST

Here we go, then! A fast start is essential if the chasing pack want to hunt down Yu Liu and Celine Boutier. But that’s not what the 2011 champion Ryu So-yeon has made. A double-bogey six at the opening hole, and her challenge looks pretty much kaput from the get-go. She’s -1. The opening hole has also taken little chunks out of Nanna Koerstz Madsen and Minjee Lee, both of whom have started out with bogey. They’re both -2. And it’s a bogey at 1 for Gaby Lopez as well; the 25-year-old Mexican slips to -3. Everyone heading the wrong way.

5.28pm BST

Welcome to our live coverage of the second major of the year: the US Women’s Open at the Country Club of Charleston in South Carolina. Sit tight, because this promises to be quite a ride. Here’s how the top of the leader board looks after three rounds:

-7: Yu Liu, Celine Boutier
-6: Lexi Thompson, Jaye Marie Green, Mamiko Higa
-5: Jeongeun Lee6
-4: Gaby Lopez, Jessica Korda
-3: Nanna Koerstz Madsen, Minjee Lee, Ryu So-yeon

Continue reading...

Chelsea beat Arsenal 4-1 to win Europa League final – as it happened

Eden Hazard was the star turn as Chelsea flattened Arsenal in a one-sided second half to deny them a Champions League place

12.11am BST

Related: Chelsea 4-1 Arsenal: Europa League final player ratings | Paul Doyle

Related: Old failings rear up in Baku to leave Arsenal’s ambitions shipwrecked | Amy Lawrence

Related: ‘I think it’s goodbye’: Hazard ready to leave Chelsea after Europa League heroics

11.00pm BST

Related: Chelsea win Europa League after Eden Hazard inspires thrashing of Arsenal

10.53pm BST

No word from Maurizio Sarri. But let’s give the man some space, he’s earned this post-match ciggie. A trophy at long last for the 60-year-old Chelsea boss; many congratulations to him and his deserving team. Commiserations to Arsenal, who will have another shot at this competition next season. All that’s left is to remind you that Dominic Fifield’s report is live, and thank you for reading this MBM. Nighty night!

10.40pm BST

Unai Emery speaks! “Firstly, congratulations to Chelsea. In the first half, we worked hard and made some chances to score. The match was going well. The first goal changed all, and the second goal made it difficult for us. We could not find the capacity to score.”

10.13pm BST

Dominic Fifield was our man in Baku. His report has just landed ... and here it is. Click now to enjoy!

Related: Chelsea win Europa League after Eden Hazard inspires thrashing of Arsenal

10.11pm BST

Cesar Azpilicueta and the outgoing Gary Cahill lift the Europa League trophy! As Queen blasts from the PA, the Europa League champions hand the silverware to their manager. Yesterday he was kicking his cap around in frustration; today he’s hoisting the cup in celebration. What a difference a day makes! Quite literally in this final, given there wasn’t much between the two teams in the first half, but an absolute chasm after the clock ticked past midnight. It’s lovely to see Sarri’s joy after the difficult season he’s had. A European trophy, third place in the Premier League and a domestic cup final ... it wasn’t too bad in the end, was it?

10.06pm BST

Unai Emery, the colour drained from his face, ushers his team up to collect their runners-up medals. Chelsea form a guard of honour as they glumly trudge up to the podium. Nobody seems happy to have the medal draped around their neck, as you’d imagine. Emery walks off ahead of his team, then stands well apart from them. He’s either lost in contemplation, or simply fuming. Or both. My money’s on both. Expect some changes in the summer ... though it’s a harder job now, with no Champions League next season, and the Thursday-Sunday grind to look forward to.

10.00pm BST

Olivier Giroud speaks! “I think it was a good final. We were better and more efficient in the second half. I am very proud because this team deserved to win something. We lost the League Cup against City, but this one is special, the second-best European championship. Obviously I left so many friends in Arsenal, the club changed my life, gave me the opportunity to live my dream of playing in the Premier League. I owe them a lot, so I will never forget and that’s why I didn’t want to celebrate. But on another side, I am so proud to win this trophy with Chelsea, I’m now a true blue. I feel blessed.”

9.58pm BST

On the touchline, Unai Emery strokes his chin pensively and stares at the floor. He’s won this competition three times with Sevilla, but now feels the sting of defeat. Chelsea are bouncing around in celebration, though their joy will be somewhat tempered by the interview Eden Hazard has just given to BT Sport on his future. “I don’t know yet, we will decide in a few days. I’ve made my decision already. It’s depending on both clubs. We will know in a couple of days. I think it is a goodbye, but in football you never know. Maybe it is time for a new challenge.”

9.51pm BST

CHELSEA WIN THE 2019 EUROPA LEAGUE! The whistle goes, and Maurizio Sarri holds his arms out in triumph! The first trophy of his managerial career! To a man, Chelsea erupt in joy; Arsenal crumble en masse to the grass.

9.49pm BST

90 min +1: Iwobi sends the ball towards Aubameyang, to the right of the Chelsea goal. Aubameyang’s shot is flying wide left. Lacazette hooks it back into play, only for it to pinball back off Willock and out for a goal kick. It’s been that kind of evening for Arsenal.

9.48pm BST

90 min: There will be three added minutes of bonus pain for Arsenal.

9.47pm BST

89 min: But there’s to be no hat-trick. Hazard is replaced by Zappacosta, and departs to the warmest ovation from the Chelsea faithful. If he is going to Real Madrid, he’s leaving with their blessing after seven years of top-drawer service. If he’s really going ... what a way to sign off!

9.45pm BST

88 min: Hazard is over, having been clipped by Willock. He looks in a bit of pain, but he also looks like he wants to continue.

9.44pm BST

86 min: A free kick for Arsenal, 30 yards out. Lacazette fancies it. He curls hard towards the top left, but it’s always high and wide. “Apart from being listed on the team sheet, your first mention of Ozil was his substitution,” notes Robert Shrimplin, the post-mortem already underway. “Same with the BBC online commentary. Sky Sports was more generous with a total of three mentions. So much for being Arsenal’s playmaker.”

9.42pm BST

84 min: It’s not breaking news, but this is not Arsenal’s night. Lacazette slips Willock into the area down the left. Willock opens his body and sends a lovely fierce curler around Kepa ... and inches wide of the top right. Two great chances in a couple of minutes, both spurned.

9.41pm BST

82 min: Corner for Arsenal on the right. It’s worked back to Iwobi, who thinks about shooting but chips carefully down the right channel for Lacazette, in space in the box. His shot is saved by Kepa, and the rebound falls to Aubameyang, who can’t sort his feet out in time. Christensen blocks the eventual shot and Chelsea clear.

9.38pm BST

81 min: From the corner, Hazard tickles a lovely pass down the inside right to spring Azpilicueta into space. The Chelsea captain lashes a shot across Cech and inches wide of the left-hand post. A little curl on that and it would have been five.

9.37pm BST

80 min: Chelsea are looking to put some serious hurt on Arsenal. Barkley flicks a lovely pass down the inside-right channel to release Willian into space. Willian smashes a first-time shot from just inside that box; it’s deflected out for a corner.

9.36pm BST

79 min: Willian dribbles hard down the inside-right channel and enters the area. For a second, it opens up for him. He fires low towards the bottom left. Cech does extremely well to get a fingertip to the shot, turning it round for a corner, from which nothing comes.

9.34pm BST

77 min: Willock comes on for Ozil, who has achieved very little today. Ozil has the good grace to look embarrassed as he trudges off.

9.33pm BST

76 min: Barkley comes on for Kovacic.

9.33pm BST

75 min: Aubameyang has a frustrated lash from the right wing. It flies harmlessly high and wide.

9.32pm BST

74 min: Arsenal have the look of a team who just want to go home. Hazard and Giroud combine well down the left. Hazard, on a hat-trick now, curls hard towards the bottom right. Cech saves well.

9.31pm BST

So much for that dramatic comeback. Hazard wins the ball off Aubameyang near the centre circle. He bustles goalwards, then slips a pass to the left. Giroud draws his man, then chips it back into the centre for Hazard, who sweeps the ball into the bottom right. That was wonderful from Chelsea’s perspective; not so impressive from Arsenal’s.

9.28pm BST

71 min: Kante nearly releases Giroud with a fine curled pass from the right. Koscielny stretches to divert the ball away, last ditch. Corner. Before it can be taken, Willian comes on for Pedro. And then the set piece comes in to little effect. But once again, no matter, because ...

9.27pm BST

Some head tennis in the box. The ball breaks to Iwobi, to the right of the D. The sub meets the dropping ball with the side of his foot, and creams a stunner into the top left, Kepa with no chance! What a goal that was! This can’t be on, can it? They couldn’t, could they?

9.25pm BST

68 min: Iwobi’s first act is to tear down the left and draw a foul for Christensen, who is booked for his cynicism. And from the resulting free kick ...

9.24pm BST

67 min: Arsenal played very well yesterday.

9.24pm BST

66 min: Arsenal respond by making a double change. Monreal is repalced by Guendouzi, while Torreira - in floods of tears - makes way for Iwobi.

9.22pm BST

Hazard sends Cech one way, then rolls the penalty into the left-hand side of the goal. Could that be a final parting gift? Arsenal have fallen to bits.

9.22pm BST

64 min: Kovacic is allowed to dribble miles, left to right. It nearly opens up for him, but Pedro takes up possession instead, heading back to the left across the front of the box. He slips a ball down the channel for Giroud, who is clumsily bundled over by Maitland-Niles. A no-brainer for the referee.

9.20pm BST

62 min: On the touchline, Emery jigs around in high irritation. He’s not happy with the way his team have twice allowed Chelsea to suddenly press on the accelerator and score in a flash. His counterpart Sarri hides in his dugout, nervously scribbling on his notepad. He can almost touch the first trophy of his career.

9.18pm BST

Another simple but fine goal, and Chelsea are in control in Baku! Kovacic works well down the left, and shuttles the ball forward for Hazard, who slips a pass back inside for Pedro. A first-time swipe, and Pedro whips the ball into the bottom right, Cech with no chance.

9.16pm BST

59 min: They ask a question here, though. Maitland-Niles works his way down the right. The ball is cut back to Torreira, who batters goalwards from the edge of the box. Kante blocks, but the ball loops towards Aubameyang, preparing to execute a bicycle kick. Christensen sticks his head in bravely to clear, and wins the free kick to boot.

9.14pm BST

57 min: Arsenal have enjoyed plenty of possession since going behind, without creating too much. Chelsea seem happy enough to sit back and wait for the opportunity of a counter-attack. The pattern, one senses, is already set.

9.13pm BST

55 min: Lacazette twists and turns just inside the Chelsea box, but can’t quite make enough space for a shot. Chelsea clear their lines. Pedro then falls over, and he’s furious about some garden-variety challenge. It’s a disproportionate response to not very much, and he’s booked for dissent.

9.11pm BST

53 min: Hazard tests himself in a footrace with Sokratis, knocking it past the defender down the left. The Arsenal man does just enough to stay on Hazard’s shoulder.

9.09pm BST

51 min: Arsenal try to respond immediately, winning a free kick down the left, Xhaka swinging it into a crowded box. That results in a clumsy brouhaha and a free kick for Chelsea, the pressure immediately lifted.

9.08pm BST

Chelsea come back at Arsenal, who fail to clear their lines. And when the opening goal comes, it’s so simple! Emerson curls in from the left. Giroud stoops and flashes a header into the bottom left, under pressure from Koscielny. Brave, too, because Koscielny was trying to hoof clear. What a header that was! A goal out of nothing, and Giroud keeps the celebrations to a minimum against his old club.

9.06pm BST

48 min: Hazard dribbles down the centre and slips the ball left for Giroud, whose shot is deflected out for a corner on the right. The set piece doesn’t clear the first man. Hazard wanted a free kick at the end of his dribble, incidentally, having been blocked cynically by Monreal. He had a point. It’d have been a free kick right on the edge of the box. But it doesn’t matter! Because ...

9.04pm BST

47 min: Kante works his way down the right and nearly nips past Xhaka, but the Arsenal man stands his ground and shepherds the ball out for a goal kick. A nice open start to the half.

9.03pm BST

46 min: Aubameyang immediately tears down the right and looks for his partner Lacazette in the centre. His low cross is deflected and nearly creeps into the bottom right but Kepa adjusts well to smother. That would have been quite the dramatic start to the second half.

9.02pm BST

Right, it’s just gone midnight in Baku. Time for the second half, then! Chelsea get the party restarted. No changes!

8.52pm BST

Half-time entertainment. Another big tournament coming up this summer! Once this match and the Champions League final are out of the way, attention shifts to the Women’s World Cup. If you’re not yet up to speed, the Guardian’s network of experts will see you right. Click and enjoy!

Related: Women's World Cup 2019 team guide No 1: France

8.47pm BST

It’s not a classic. Yet. But neither is it one for the purists. It’s been entertaining enough, with both keepers forced into action. Set up just so for an entertaining second half.

8.46pm BST

45 min: There will be ... six added seconds of play. There goes the whistle for half-time!

8.44pm BST

43 min: Hazard romps upfield and slips the ball wide left for Emerson, who wins a corner off Maitland-Niles. Ah hold on, the flag’s gone up for offside. Emerson went too early, needlessly so. Chelsea are finishing the half strongly, though.

8.42pm BST

41 min: Chelsea come again at Arsenal. A couple of corners that don’t really cause too much fuss. This game is deliciously poised, though, both teams taking turns to apply a bit of pressure before being forced to soak some up themselves.

8.41pm BST

39 min: Chelsea open Arsenal up down the middle with some lovely one-touch play. Hazard to Jorginho, who pings it to Giroud, to the left of the D. Giroud shoots low and hard towards the bottom right. Cech saves brilliantly at full stretch and Monreal is on hand to batter the loose ball clear.

8.40pm BST

38 min: Emerson has a wee nip at Lacazette while the Arsenal man is on the floor. He’s probably lucky to get away without a booking, after making some wanton contact.

8.38pm BST

36 min: Arsenal ping it around awhile, seemingly going nowhere. Then suddenly Xhaka spreads play down the left for Kolasinac, who curls dangerously into the box. Kepa once again punches awkwardly, and once again gets away with it. The keeper’s nerves have betrayed him once or twice tonight.

8.35pm BST

34 min: Jorginho flicks a pass down the inside-left channel to release Emerson into the box. Emerson has another dig. Cech spreads himself and parries. Hazard picks up the rebound and drives at Arsenal down the left. He’s well shepherded away from danger by Maitland-Niles.

8.33pm BST

32 min: Kolasinac is once again found in plenty of space down the left. He shoots. The ball balloons off Azpilicueta and nearly loops over a stranded Kepa into the top right. But it flies wide, just. The keeper was rooted to the spot there, he was never getting to that. It’d have been an outrageous fluke, though. The resulting corner ... well, you can file them with the rest. Not very good. No danger.

8.32pm BST

31 min: Here, that Xhaka shot was even closer than I thought. It shaved the top of the crossbar. It really was a wonderful effort, it’d have been a goal fit to grace any final.

8.31pm BST

30 min: The corner isn’t anything to write 2,500 miles home about.

8.31pm BST

29 min: Now Chelsea come back again. Pedro is in an awful lot of space down the right, with Hazard free in the middle. Koscielny does very well to block the pass inside, or that’d have been the opening goal surely. Hazard does get second-phase possession, though, and slips a pass down the left for Emerson, who looks for the bottom right with a diagonal fizzer. Sokratis slides in to divert the on-target shot out for a corner.

8.29pm BST

27 min: This is a very entertaining final now. Aubameyang dribbles down the right but can’t find anyone in the middle with his cute cross. Azpilicueta does extremely well to eyebrow clear. Torreira nearly bursts through the centre. Not quite. Then Xhaka nearly scores a screamer, sending a rising shot towards the top left from 25 yards. It’s beaten Kepa but flies millimetres over the bar. That would have been a sensational opener.

8.27pm BST

25 min: Xhaka whips the free kick into the mixer. Sokratis can’t quite get any purchase on his effort on goal, the ball looping into the sky, easy pickings for Kepa. Then Chelsea launch their first attack for a while, Kante sent into a lot of space down the right. He curls in low for Giroud at the near post. Giroud tries to ... well, what? Trap? Flick? Backheel? Whatever his intention, the ball bagatelles between his knees and clanks harmlessly out for a goal kick. On the touchline, Sarri holds his head in theatrical despair. That was a good chance.

8.25pm BST

24 min: Arsenal continue to pile forward. Monreal bursts down the left and is barged to the floor by Pedro. A free kick out on the wing, and a chance to load the box.

8.23pm BST

22 min: Torreira launches long down the middle. Lacazette nearly latches onto it, but Azpilicueta battles hard and manages to stay in between opponent and ball. Kepa comes out to gather, and is clattered by his own man for his trouble. But he’ll be fine to continue. Good play all round.

8.22pm BST

20 min: Maitland-Niles gets the better of Emerson down the right. He looks dangerous, and he’s worrying Chelsea. He forces a corner, which Luiz heads clear easily enough. Arsenal are beginning to get the upper hand here.

8.20pm BST

18 min: Lacazette gets in ahead of Azpilicueta down the left. He looks as though he’s going to get the ball. Kepa comes out, spreading himself. The ball goes past the keeper. Lacazette rounds Kepa, then goes over. He wants a penalty, as do the Arsenal faithful, the volume turned up at last. But there doesn’t seem to be much contact. Neither the referee or the chap behind the VAR machine consider it a spot kick, and we play on.

8.18pm BST

16 min: Arsenal go up the other end, Kolasinac sent scampering into acres down the left by an excellent Xhaka ball from deep. He’s got both of his strikers in the middle, but can’t find them with his low cross, Azpilicueta sliding in to deflect out for a corner. The set piece is a non-event. That was a fine chance.

8.17pm BST

15 min: Koscielny stands on Giroud’s foot as the Chelsea striker makes his way down the left wing. The resulting free kick is floated in, and the whistle goes immediately, a result of Luiz blatantly shoving Torreira in the chest. Arsenal can clear their lines.

8.15pm BST

13 min: Chelsea knock it around the back some more. A slight testimonial feel to this at the moment, a consequence of the lack of partial support in Baku. It’s pretty quiet for a final.

Related: Arsenal v Chelsea: the 4,970-mile round trip to see a London derby

8.12pm BST

11 min: Hazard looks in the mood for this. No wonder, if reports suggesting this could be his last game for Chelsea ahead of a transfer to Real Madrid are correct. He one-twos with Giroud down the inside-right channel and nearly bursts clear into the box, but opts to go over in the environs of Torreira and Koscielny, hunting for a free kick. He’s not getting it.

8.10pm BST

9 min: Suddenly Maitland-Niles turns on the jets down the right. He reaches the byline and fires low into the centre. Kepa panics and punches a ball he really should gather. It falls to Aubameyang, just to the right of the D. The striker’s first-time slapshot curls well wide left. Kepa off the hook after a dreadful bit of keeping.

8.09pm BST

8 min: A lot of aimless midfield faffing.

8.08pm BST

6 min: Hazard goes a-dribbling down the left, and can only be stopped by Torreira clattering into his back. Chelsea go backwards from the free kick. Then Lacazette turns Luiz and is hauled back. Another foul, another free kick. All a bit scrappy at the minute, as both teams slowly work their way into this final.

8.06pm BST

4 min: Arsenal finally enjoy a little possession, and take the opportunity to give a few of their men a touch. “All English final?” splutters Patrick Kelly. “I make it one English starter out if 22 on the field.” Ah now, let’s not start pulling too hard at threads.

8.04pm BST

2 min: Chelsea are hogging the ball in these early exchanges. Luiz sends another pass forward, this time down the left, and Sokratis takes a fresh-air swipe while attempting to clear. He nearly lets Hazard in as a result, but the ball, fortunately for Arsenal, flies out of play. A slightly nervous start by Arsenal.

8.02pm BST

And we’re off! Arsenal get the ball rolling. They give up possession quickly, allowing Kante to have a couple of early ginger touches. Then then ball’s worked back to Luiz, who creams a long pass down the inside-right channel and very nearly releases Pedro into an absurd amount of space. Cech reads it well and comes to the edge of his box to claim.

8.00pm BST

The teams are out! It’s an aesthetic delight, because both teams are playing in their first-choice colours. Chelsea in their famous blue shirts, Arsenal in their storied red with white sleeves. Emery and Sarri embrace warmly on the touchline, the genuine respect between the pair obvious as they have a friendly chat before the hostilities commence. We’ll be off in a minute!

7.58pm BST

There’s a preposterous pre-match DJ set and contemporary dance performance taking place right now. Uefa should leave this sort of thing to the NFL, who are much better at it. So while we wait for the teams to take to the pitch, let’s have a quick dip into the postbag. “Arsenal should have spelled Baku Olympic Stadium in Armenian,” suggests geopolitical satirist Matthew Stephens.

7.41pm BST

Unai Emery speaks. “The trophy, this title is the first in our target. We want to enjoy it, and play for that. We want to do something in the current history of Arsenal. And after this title, we’ll consider the possibility to play in the Champions League next year, which is our second target. Petr Cech has played all the matches in this competition, with good performances. He has played with a big commitment and given us his quality. He deserves to play today. I am not thinking about his last match.”

7.39pm BST

“Did you notice that Arsenal went with Azerbaijani spelling of the stadium name on their pennant, whereas Chelsea opted for the English translation?” Gabriel Piller there, talking my kind of language, addressing the really pressing pre-match issues. While we’re stuck in the dressing room, let the record state that each player has been given a goody bag by Uefa. Not sure what gratis treats are packed into it. The match programme probably. A newly launched cologne perhaps. A sleeve of golf balls? A bottle of single malt? 200 JPS?

7.29pm BST

Maurizio Sarri speaks ... and it sounds like he’s rolling the dice with Kante. “We don’t know exactly how fit N’Golo Kante is, but he is better. We are not sure, but we will try during the warm-up. We have prepared against their three defenders.” As for yesterday’s cap-flinging show, he explains: “I think you were not able to understand yesterday. If my players are aggressive in training I am happy, not disappointed. I was only disappointed because I wanted to try our solutions on set pieces, but after 15 minutes of training the cameras were there. So we were disappointed for the situation, not for the players.”

7.19pm BST

Pennant watch. Here’s what Cesar Azpilicueta will be handing over during the pre-match pleasantries ...

7.08pm BST

The big news for Chelsea: N’Golo Kante passes a late fitness test on his knee. That’s a huge boost for the Blues, especially as the French midfielder has been struggling with a hamstring injury as well. Olivier Giroud is selected up front ahead of Gonzalo Higuain. That’s Giroud’s reward for his performances in this competition: he’s currently the joint top scorer this season with ten goals, alongside Luka Jović of Eintracht Frankfurt.

6.57pm BST

Chelsea: Arrizabalaga, Azpilicueta, Christensen, Luiz, Palmieri, Kante, Jorginho, Kovacic, Pedro, Giroud, Hazard.
Subs: Caballero, Alonso, Barkley, Higuain, Zappacosta, Willian, Cahill, Ampadu, Gallagher, McEachran, Cumming.

Arsenal: Cech, Papastathopoulos, Koscielny, Monreal, Maitland-Niles, Torreira, Xhaka, Kolasinac, Ozil, Lacazette, Aubameyang.
Subs: Leno, Elneny, Lichtsteiner, Iwobi, Mustafi, Welbeck, Jenkinson, Guendouzi, Nketiah, Willock, Saka, Iliev.

6.54pm BST

Pre-match post-modern architecture, anybody? Tribal rivalries were set aside this afternoon as fans of both clubs congregated outside the Heydar Aliyev Center, a building once called “as pure and sexy as Marilyn’s blown skirt” by an expert from the London Design Museum. Anyone desirous of drooling over more examples of the legendary Zaha Hadid’s amazing work could do a lot worse than clicking on this gallery.

6.40pm BST

Baku’s been a bit of a trek for fans of both clubs. A labour of love, shall we say. Here’s how a few folk have pinballed their way around the continent to get to Azerbaijan. Odysseus got nothin’ on this. Homeric.

Related: Arsenal v Chelsea: the 4,970-mile round trip to see a London derby

6.35pm BST

Video entertainment. The pre-match mood from both camps, in all-action, moving picture form.

6.31pm BST

And finally the current Fairs Cup / Uefa Cup / Europa League roll of honour. For the completists among us. I can’t be the only one.

5: Sevilla
3: Barcelona, Juventus, Internazionale, Valencia, Liverpool, Atlético Madrid
2: Leeds United, Borussia Mönchengladbach, Tottenham Hotspur, Real Madrid, IFK Göteborg, Parma, Feyenoord, Porto
1: Roma, Real Zaragoza, Ferencvárosi, Dinamo Zagreb, Newcastle United, Arsenal, PSV Eindhoven, Eintracht Frankfurt, Ipswich Town, Anderlecht, Bayer Leverkusen, Napoli, Ajax, Bayern Munich, Schalke, Galatasaray, CSKA Moskva, Zenit St Petersburg, Shakhtar Donetsk, Chelsea, Manchester United.

6.25pm BST

That 1972 Uefa Cup final, then. The last, and to date only, time England faced England in the final of Europe’s secondary tournament. Wolverhampton Wanderers versus Tottenham Hotspur. It was effectively decided by Tottenham’s Martin Chivers in the first leg. I appreciate Spurs may not find it easy to win hearts and minds with the vast majority of this particular MBM’s readership, but fair’s fair, will you take a look at that shot!

6.20pm BST

As previously mentioned, both of these clubs have won Uefa’s secondary competition before. Here’s what Chelsea did to Benfica in the 2013 Europa League final ...

Related: Benfica 1-2 Chelsea | Europa League final match report

6.15pm BST

On the subject of Unai Emery ... should the former Sevilla coach win his fourth (!) Europa League title this evening, he’ll be elevated alongside Jose Mourinho, Jupp Heynckes, Vicente del Bosque, Helenio Herrera, Johan Cruyff, Raymond Goethals and Rafa Benitez in the European pot-gathering managers’ pantheon. Not bad company to be keeping. By comparison, Maurizio Sarri would be more than happy to lift the very first trophy of his entire career.

7: Carlo Ancelotti, Sir Alex Ferguson, Giovanni Trapattoni
6: Arrigo Sacchi
5: Bob Paisley, Zinedine ZIdane, Pep Guardiola, Nereo Rocco, Louis van Gaal

6.10pm BST

There’s plenty at stake tonight. Chelsea, who became the first English team to have won all three major Uefa competitions with their Europa League triumph of 2013, have five European titles to their name: the Cup Winners Cup in 1971 and 1998, the aforementioned Europa League win, the 1998 Super Cup, and of course their Champions League win in 2012. So if they prevail tonight and win their sixth European bauble, they’ll draw level with Manchester United as England’s second most successful club on the continental scene.

Arsenal’s European haul consists of the 1970 Fairs Cup and the 1994 Cup Winners Cup. Should they win tonight, they’ll move into a tie with Tottenham Hotspur, Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa, all of whom have three of Uefa’s various titles to their name. More pertinent to the future: a magic ticket into next year’s Champions League! So this is a fork in the road for Arsenal, one that determines how much leverage Unai Emery has in the transfer market this summer.

11: Liverpool
6: Manchester United
5: Chelsea
3: Tottenham Hotspur, Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa
2: West Ham United, Leeds United, Newcastle United, Arsenal
[This list includes stuff like the Super Cup and Intertoto Cup, as well as the big ones. No point complaining, it’s just the way it is. It’ll also be thoroughly out-of-date come Saturday evening, whatever happens in the two finals.]

2.22pm BST

Arsenal don’t much like meeting English opposition on the continental stage. They’ve done it three times before, and lost the lot. In 2008, they were cashiered from the Champions League quarter-finals on a wild night at Anfield, Emmanuel Adebayor, Ryan Babel, all that. Then a year later Manchester United did for them at the semi-final stage, Cristiano Ronaldo scoring a particularly memorable free kick from a position near the Waitrose halfway down Holloway Road. And of course, most painful of all, there was the Champions League quarter-final of 2004, Wayne Bridge popping up with a late goal against the Premier League’s Invincibles, Chelsea’s first big statement of intent ahead of their mid-noughties imperial phase.

Not that Chelsea have always had it their own way when facing teams from their own country in Europe. Sure, they beat Manchester City en route to lifting the 1971 Cup Winners Cup, and they’ve put Liverpool out of the Champions League a couple of times. But those wins over future beloved coach Rafa Benitez’s redmen were only paybacks for two harrowing semi-final defeats in 2005 and 2007, when all the smart money had gone on the blues advancing to the final. And they let the big one slip against Manchester United in 2008. Oh Captain, oh leader, oh legend! How could you!

Related: Why should football fans dislike their club's local rivals?

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The Fiver | A shiny pot and an evening to remember for eternity thrown in

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Arsenal and Big Cup: they used to go together like a horse and carriage. Remember when they’d qualify for the competition season after season after season after season? Glory days, heady times. In a good year, they might manage to limit the opposition in the first knockout stage to 10 goals or so. In a great year, eight or nine. One time they even made the final, only to blow it late in a manner that makes you wonder where they get off describing things as Spursy. But times change, and for the last two years they’ve been flailing around, down on their luck, slumming it in Big Vase. Oh grand club of the establishment! How did it ever come to this!

Related: Arsenal v Chelsea: the 4,970-mile round trip to see a London derby

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