Netherlands v England: The key battles that could decide Euro 2024 semi-final – BBC Sport

As well as playing every minute in Germany, Rice has done his best to cover every blade of grass in the country.

The England midfielder has covered the greatest distance – 63.9km – of any player at Euro 2024, and grown in influence on the tournament as it has progressed.

Following the nadir of an under-par performance against Denmark, where every pass seemed to be going astray, Rice has been the reliable midfield metronome in the knockouts.

He has attempted the sixth-highest number of passes (393) of all Euro 2024 players, and the third-highest total from a midfielder – after Toni Kroos and Granit Xhaka – and has done so with an impressive 93.2% passing accuracy.

Rice also plays an essential role as the midfield destroyer, and is fourth in the individual player rankings for balls recovered (35) and tackles made (14).

The battle for the midfield at Signal Iduna Park will be fought between Rice and Tijjani Reijnders, a name perhaps unfamiliar to English audiences but who has been one of the tournament’s most eye-catching players.

The 25-year-old AC Milan midfielder has stepped into the void left by the injured Frenkie de Jong, playing nearly every minute and carrying Netherlands forward from midfield with the ball at his feet.

Comfortable in possession and with a knack for a line-breaking pass – 38 of them at Euro 2024 before the quarter-finals – Reijnders must be reined in for England to have a chance.

Whenever Switzerland defender Michel Aebischer sleeps over the next few months, he will dream of Bukayo Saka going past him.

The England forward beat Aebischer again and again in their quarter-final tie – four times in the first half alone, more than any player had beaten another in any Euro 2024 game to that point.

Saka was man of the match by some distance in Dusseldorf, not least for his terrific equaliser, scored when he cut in from the right and fired in off the far post with his left foot.

The Arsenal man has played on the right for England throughout the Euros, including in an unusual wing-back role against the Swiss.

That will leave it up to the left side of the Dutch defence to stop him. Step forward Nathan Ake, who has started all five games in Germany at left-back. Ake has quietly had a fine tournament, continuing his strong season at club level for Manchester City, and will need to be at his best to stop Saka.

Against Switzerland, Southgate changed the 4-2-3-1 deployed in their first four matches to match the Swiss up with a 3-4-2-1.

This included playing Saka and Kieran Trippier as inverted wing-backs, while Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden were dual number 10s.

The experiment was a qualified success. Saka was excellent and England progressed, but Foden struggled to maintain possession and frequently dropped too deep, while the Three Lions struggled to get the ball to Bellingham to allow him to fully influence the match – a recurring problem throughout Euro 2024.

The Dutch also changed their formation for their quarter-final, switching from 4-3-3 to 4-2-3-1. It allowed Xavi Simons to play closer to central striker Memphis Depay, with Reijnders and Jerdy Schouten providing the midfield base.

Whether Southgate persists with the 3-4-2-1 and its marginal improvements in England’s flow, or again chooses to match up strong opponents, could prove decisive as to who makes the final.