England used all the tools at their disposal to beat Germany in the European Championship final, including a couple of occasions where they employed some dark arts.
Ella Toone's second-half goal had put Sarina Wiegman 's Lionesses on the verge of victory, only for Lina Magull to send the game to extra-time with a late equaliser. However, Toone's fellow substitute Chloe Kelly made the difference in the added period, poking home the decisive goal.
While the goals and the big goalkeeping display from Mary Earps caught the eye, those weren't the only highlights. The smart game management also helped England seal the deal, while there was plenty of love for another substitute, Alessia Russo, attempting to sneak a look at Germany's tactics during the game.
Russo had impressed for her exploits in front of goal earlier in the tournament, scoring a stunner against Northern Ireland and a wonderful backheel against Sweden. Against Germany, though, some of her other antics caught the eye.
As Germany responded to Kelly's goal by bringing Lena Lattwein off the bench, the substitute handed a written note to teammate Kathrin Hendrich. First, Toone attempted to intercept the note, and then Russo could be seen peering over the shoulder of opponent Sara Doorsoun after she was handed the same piece of paper.
"Absolutely creasing at Toone and Russo trying to read the German tactics note," wrote one viewer. Another said "Russo trying to read the note will never not be funny".
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Broadcaster Sue Perkins, meanwhile, described the moment as her favourite part of the final. "So many extraordinary moments, but current fav is... when German sub comes on with a piece of paper showing the manager’s instructions. Russo marches over to read it before remembering she doesn’t speak German," Perkins wrote.
Once England got themselves ahead during extra-time, there were plenty of examples of Wiegman's team disrupting any momentum from the German side. Jill Scott was particularly astute, delivering some timely tactical fouls to ensure Germany were unable to get anything going.
With time running out, England refused to give Germany a sniff. They kept the ball in the corner brilliantly, with match-winner Kelly impressing in that sense in particular, to ensure there was barely even a threat from the opponents, let alone a big late chance.
"England have been brilliant at game management this tournament," one fan wrote on Twitter. "Just look at the last ten minutes of extra time in the final. Almost entirely made up of throw ins near the German corner flag."
Another suggested Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola could learn a thing or two from England boss Wiegman after the result. Guardiola's team had a similar situation in their Champions League semi-final, defending a lead against Real Madrid, but were unable to keep their opponents at bay.
