Bukayo Saka hugged by Prince William as England star receives royal seal of approval

Bukayo Saka was the man of the moment last night (Sunday) as England scraped through their Euro 2024 quarter-final against Switzerland with a dramatic 5-3 win on penalties

Prince William congratulated Bukayo Saka in the tunnel after England’s win over Switzerland

Bukayo Saka is receiving the royal seal of approval after an impressive performance for England against Switzerland on Sunday evening.

The Arsenal midfielder, 22, was one of the stand-out performers as the Three Lions scraped through to the Euro 2024 semi-finals after a dramatic penalty shootout win in Dusseldorf. Saka was among the successful spot-kick takers, laying to rest the demons from three years earlier when he missed an important penalty against Italy in the Euro 2020 final.

The heartbreaking moment at the time led to vile racist abuse, but he was able to step up and slot home his kick this time around and clearly enjoyed the moment as he cupped his ears in celebration towards the England fans.

Saka clearly enjoyed the moment ( 
Image:
Icon Sport via Getty Images)
He was far from the only one enjoying the moment, either, with a number of players, fans and friends taking to social media to share their delight. Among them was Prince William, who praised the pacy winger for his performance, which also saw him grab the vital equaliser during 90 minutes with a beautiful curling shot from outside the box.

The Prince of Wales paid special tribute to Saka as he embraced him in the aftermath of the win. Images of the elated pair showed William, 42, hugging the star in the tunnel following the tense shootout.

William, who is also the president-designate of the Football Association (FA) had been in the crowd cheering on the team and was up on his feet after Saka’s initial equaliser.

Prince William also celebrated on Instagram

Saka’s partner Tolami Benson was also in the crowd ( 
Image:
PA)

The senior royal also posted on his Instagram Stories which he shares with his wife, Princess Kate. Uploading an image of the final penalty shoot-out score and tagging the official England page, William wrote: “Nail biting to the very end. Well done @england! Semi-finals here we come! We believe. W.”

It remains to be seen whether William will once again be in attendance to watch as England take on the Netherlands on Wednesday evening. The game is to be held in Dortmund and 8pm UK time and the winner will go on to face either Spain or France in Sunday evening’s Euro 2024 final.