Prince William hails last-minute Watkins goal

Ollie Watkins secured England's place in the Euro 2024 final with a goal in the 90th minute

The Prince of Wales has praised Ollie Watkins after his last-minute goal took England through to the Euro 2024 final.

In a post on X, Prince William, an Aston Villa fan wrote: "What a beauty, Ollie! Congratulations England!"

Aston Villa striker Watkins, who came on as a substitute in the semi-final against Netherlands, secured victory for England on Wednesday with a 90th minute goal.

Gareth Southgate's side will now face Spain in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin on Sunday.

Watkins's last-ditch goal comes after Stourbridge-born Jude Bellingham kept his team in the game against Slovakia with a late equaliser earlier in the tournament.

Dozens of fans gathered to watch the semi-final at Stourbridge FC's Glassboys Sports Bar on Wednesday evening.

England fan Kevin Freckleton told the BBC he thought the team's performance was "excellent" considering had had "no faith in them up to this round."

"I'm well confident," fan Steve Young added.

The Prince of Wales, pictured at an Aston Villa game in May, praised Ollie Watkins

Other fans said England's win had not come as a surprise, as they had thought they were "going to win in the first place."

"It was amazing, I was really happy," Ruby said.

Speaking of the upcoming final, she added: "We're going to win this time. It's going to be 1-0 I think."

In Birmingham city centre on Thursday morning, locals praised England's performance and Watkins' goal.

"If it weren't for that... I think we would have won it in extra time to be honest," one man told BBC Radio WM.

Phil Foden was "unlucky" not to score and was "man of the match", he added.

"I just hope Sunday we do it full time, that we don't go to penalties."

"It's our time I think," he said, adding: "It's going to be a tough match, I think it could be something like 2-1."

Luka Heintzman, from Toca Social, an interactive football and dining venue in Birmingham said the crowds erupted when the second goal for England was scored.

"The atmosphere was absolutely amazing.

"I think when that goal went in in the 90th minute, I think I saw grown men crying and jumping up on tables followed only by a local DJ playing It's Coming Home and we had those fans with us until we closed."

The venue only opened in June but England's progress through the tournament had led to positive trading with people continuing to spend money and book again for the final on Sunday, he said.

Lyle Bignon, Night Time Economy Ambassador in the city, said it was too early to get a definitive picture of trading for pubs and restaurants, but anecdotal feedback was that trade and footfall was up, helped by local players leading the way on the pitch.

"We know that it could be a temporary reprieve, there are very challenging conditions in the market at the moment, but thanks to England, thanks to the Euros for helping our industry get back on track for a period of time," he said.

"It's really important for us here in Birmingham to have that civic pride and certainly players like Jude Bellingham who play a really important role in the city can really help us lift our civic pride."