England Condemns Pointing Out Saka To Take Decisive Penalty, Roy Keane: There's Sterling And Grealish, They Should Take It

JAKARTA - Roy Keane says teenager Bukayo Saka should not be tasked with taking their fifth decisive penalty in their loss on penalties to Italy in the Euro 2020 final.

Saka (19) was demanded to succeed in order to proceed to sudden death, but his shot was blocked by Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. The Italian goalkeeper also saved Jadon Sancho's shot after Marcus Rashford's shot hit the post.

Keane, the former Manchester United captain, said it was the more experienced players who should step up to take responsibility.

"If you're (Raheem) Sterling or (Jack) Grealish you can't just sit there and let a little kid (Saka) come forward to take the penalty," the former Ireland international told ITV.

"They are more experienced, Sterling has won trophies, they should have progressed more than the young lad."

AS Roma manager Jose Mourinho agrees with Keane.

"For Saka to carry the fate of the whole country on his shoulders, I think it is too much for a child to put everything on his shoulders," Mourinho told talkSport.

"But I don't know if I should ask (coach) Gareth (Southgate) or not. Because often what happens is that players who should be there aren't there. Players who should be there are running away from responsibility."

Meanwhile, Grealish admitted that he wanted to take a penalty kick.

"I told you I wanted to take it!!!!" he tweeted. "The coach has made so many right decisions throughout this tournament and he did it tonight! But I'm not going to make people say I don't want to take penalties because I said I wanted to."

Former England defender Gary Neville said the decision on who took the penalty was made long before Sunday's final.

"They will train for the last few weeks in the camp, have sessions there, see who scores the most goals, and get the best record," he said. "It's scientific, it's data-driven."

Former England defender Rio Ferdinand said no one could "blame and blame" a player for missing a penalty, while Alan Shearer said the players should be commended for daring to come forward.

"For the young kids who say, 'yes, I'll take the penalty'... you have to respect them for that," Shearer told the BBC. "But for now it will be tough for them. Hopefully, they can handle it."