English fan and Danish wife ‘still alive’ after 1-1 draw at Euros

An England football fan, who watched his team face Denmark at the Euros with his Danish wife, said the atmosphere at home was “interesting” but joked they are “still alive” and have not “fallen out”.

Michael Wild, 74, from Colesbourne, Gloucestershire, and wife Joan watched England draw 1-1 with Denmark in Frankfurt, Germany, missing the chance to top their European Championship group with a game to spare.

The England supporter and his Denmark-supporting wife sat in their front room together to watch the game, each displaying opposing reactions but joked they remain on good terms.

Mr Wild told the PA news agency: “We’re all fine. We’re still alive and nobody’s fallen out.

“We watched it at home sitting next to each other in adjacent chairs making our own comments as we went along.

“It was interesting listening to comments of ‘that was good’ or ‘that was awful’ coming out at the same time.”

Asked about his thoughts moments after the match, he added: “My reaction was ‘oh dear’ and the wife’s reaction was ‘oh great’ and I’ve been getting messages (from family) of ‘you were rubbish’.

The football fan predicted watching England face Denmark would be “a bit of fun” but admits his wife is “a lot happier than I am”. Both agreed “Denmark probably deserved to win it and England was pretty poor”.

Mrs Wild waved the Danish flag post-match while Mr Wild looked “particularly glum” on his living room chair but said a trip to his local pub helped his mood.

“Best thing to do is come and relax over a quiet pint and a cigar at the garden of my local pub,” he said.

Mr Wild said the 1-1 outcome was not as he expected but agreed to offer his support for both England and Denmark throughout the tournament.

“It was not what I’d expected or it’s not what I’d hoped for, but now I can go through the rest of the tournament quite happily supporting Denmark when they play and England when they play and hopefully they won’t meet each other again,” the England supporter said.

Before the match, Mr Wild predicted England would win 2-1 but described their performance on Thursday as “appalling”.

“I thought it was a pretty appalling performance but it’s no different than what we’ve seen over the last few games,” he said.

“Harry Kane’s goal was Harry Kane doing what Harry Kane does best. In a 90-minute game, if you only give him one opportunity don’t expect miracles.

“I thought his goal was great, somewhat fortuitous, but well taken.”

He also feels England manager Gareth Southgate could do more to “move England forward”.

“Not that I know anything at all about football tactics but I don’t think Southgate has got the balance at all right. The midfield seems to be a non-entity,” he said.

“My own personal view is he’s been in the role for eight years and he hasn’t moved England forward.”

Mr Wild described the group-stage game as somewhat poignant as it came 40 years after the Danes beat England in a Euro 1984 qualifying match at Wembley.

Mr and Mrs Wild recalled being on their honeymoon in France during the football tournament.

Now, 40 years on, the couple watched as England drew 1-1 against Denmark in a result Mr Wild did not expect.

He joked: “At the end of the day, it’s a sport and it’s a bit of fun. Don’t let it affect your relationship.”