LONDON - Sunday's Euro 2020 final will determine whether football is indeed coming home, but England have never looked more primed to receive their long-awaited visitor.
Gareth Southgate has always said that this young side is different from its predecessors: instead of being burdened by history, they see an opportunity to create their own. And here it is: England have reached their first Euro final and first tournament showpiece since winning the 1966 World Cup.
Just as some misunderstand the sentiment behind "Three Lions", this year's biennial summer anthem provided additional poignancy as it comes 25 years after its debut at Euro 96, England said on Wednesday. A 2-1 extra-time win here at Wembley in Denmark could be interpreted as premature.
The entire team and backroom staff gathered with touchlines to attend a shortened version of Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline", a more recent addition to the team's soundtrack, dancing in front of their family and friends with whom they had no one. Didn't have direct contact for weeks as a result of being in his coronavirus-safe bubble.
"I've never heard of this new Wembley like that, and it's so special to be able to share it with everyone at home," Southgate said.
Cynics could argue that it was too much, too soon - there is no trophy for a semi-final win, but it was not a show of arrogance. This is a team that is fully embracing the challenge of tournament football, uniting with a fan base for the cause that finally gave it something solid to believe in.
"Three Lions" is about hope against the odds. Past failures are not insurmountable obstacles to future successes. That cycle of despair can be broken.
Southgate understands this most deeply, occupying an unwanted place in the scourge of decades that has been etched in the national psyche. Yet the 50-year-old manager is redefining his own place in history, not only as the player who missed a penalty on the night England came closest to Euros success (1996), but now also the manager who gave him This tournament has advanced further than anyone before that.
And Southgate spoke on Tuesday about the barriers his team needs to break down in these finals, and they have done so at every turn. Winning their first game at Euros for the first time, beating Germany in a knockout game for the first time since 1966, securing their biggest tournament knockout win over Ukraine in Saturday's quarter-finals 4-0, and now this. There were 66,000 fans here on Wednesday; Perhaps this was an omen in itself.
Those fans watched a team and manager learn from past mistakes. England reached the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup, being defeated in extra time by Croatia's side, which improved the pace.
"I think we will accept that we could have made changes during that game to improve the situation," Southgate said. "But equally, we weren't as brave with the ball once we got ahead... Fatigue definitely became a factor in the second half."
But England were brave here, a point made all the more important as they were left behind for the first time in the tournament.
After a fine start from England, Denmark began to enjoy a sustained period of pressure, culminating in a fine 30th-minute free kick from Mikel Damsgaard. Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, who had just moments earlier surpassed Gordon Banks' all-time national record of 721 minutes without a goal, would be disappointed to lose in the middle of his goal, but Damsgaard's effort was struck brilliantly nonetheless.
It then became a test of nerve, a previous England team having consistently failed. Too often they stop playing, paralyzed by technical shortcomings exposed under fear or pressure. But not this time. Here, he played from behind, sticking to his pattern of play.
As the tournament progressed, Harry Kane was already beginning to resemble his Tottenham as the tournament progressed, and he was here to join Bukayo Saka and Raheem Sterling.
After falling nine minutes behind, Kane played in Saka, who squared off for Sterling. The Manchester City winger would certainly have scored, but Danish defender Simon Kejer did the work for him by turning the ball into his own net.
As of the second period Denmark began to tire. His coach, Kasper Hjulmond, made five changes before the end of the 90 minutes to put on a fresh foot, while Southgate opted to swap Jack Grealish for Saka.
Thoughts again turned to 2018 and Southgate admitted to conservatism with regard to using his bench; But Phil Foden and Jordan Henderson came on five minutes into extra time, after England advanced Kieran Trippier replaced Grealish.
And he did so by staying positive. Sterling excelled throughout, as he has been throughout the tournament. He completed 10 dribbles in the game; Only four players have registered higher numbers in the entire tournament. One of them ended with a drive into the box and a challenge by Joachim Mahle, which was misjudged by Dutch referee Danny McKeely. The Danish protested fiercely. Replays also showed a second ball on the pitch, which, had it been noticed, would have stopped play before a decision was made.
But luck appears to be with England, currently, Kane can afford to miss the resulting spot kick - certainly one of the worst he has ever hit - and still convert the rebound. It was harsh for Kasper Schmeichel, who defied England admirably, but it was no less deserving of England.
He didn't even die physically. Southgate has used 21 players in this tournament to help share the physical and mental load. Even his game management was better, placing the ball expertly late in the second period of extra time - especially between minutes 116 and 119 - for the spectators anticipating this scintillating heat. To ease the tension somehow ended up painful. The first ones
He sang "It's Coming Home" before full-time as a mantra of self-confidence, as if the repetition would somehow make it come true. He sang it afterwards, bursting with hope from what was before his eyes, but equally terrified at first.
This is the eternal struggle of a supporter of England. Now only Italy stands in the way of being redefined for a generation.