21 Photos from 2021
England men's senior team photographer Eddie Keogh selects his favourite shots from what was a memorable year for the Three Lions
Phil Foden's corner
Albania v England, 26 March 2021
On this occasion I was told I had to stay in the red zone and couldn’t sit pitchside with the other photographers. This worked out well as it meant I could shoot from high up on a balcony. I really like this composition with the corner flag markings as Phil takes a corner.
Mason Mount and Declan Rice boxing
St. George's Park, 11 June 2021
It’s no secret these two are best friends and spend a lot of time together. So it was great to get this shot of them play-sparring in the gym. They are both really into boxing too…I saw them both at the Joshua v Usyk fight at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last September.
Mason Mount's dunk
12 June 2021, St. George's Park
Without doubt the most popular place in camp was the basketball court installed by Nike in the reception area of the Hilton hotel. When you’re in the same camp for nearly five weeks, this is a welcome diversion as Mason Mount proves. Shooting from a low angle really makes it look like he’s taking off.
Harry's roar
England v Germany, 29 June 2021
I love the composition of this picture and how a roaring Harry Maguire emerges from the pile of players after Harry Kane scored the second against Germany. A massive moment for England and I was lucky to have a wide angle lens close to hand as they celebrated right in front of me.
Raheem and son
England v Germany, 29 June 2021
It’s a lovely moment for Raheem after the Germany game. Seeing his family in the crowd, his son obviously wanted to say hello and hug his dad. I just asked if I could get a quick picture and it turned into a sweet moment as his son copied his hand gesture.
Gareth's redemption
England v Germany, 29 June 2021
This was obviously a big moment for Gareth. It was redemption for him after that penalty miss against Germany in 1996. Plus, there’s no better feeling than beating Germany in a tournament.
Rashford's shake
St. George's Park, 30 June 2021
This was when they were in the pool playing volleyball after the Germany game and I noticed that whenever Marcus emerged from the water, he shook his head. To really freeze the movement of the water I used a very fast shutter speed and I really like how the beads of water are frozen as they come off his head.
Bath time
St. George's Park, 1 July 2021
This was also after the Germany game, so it’s all about resting and recovery. The players obviously have incredible physiques so they are not bothered if I take pictures off them around the pool. They were both watching the other players in the pool and something happened to make them smile.
Two Lions roar
Ukraine v England, 3 July 2021
We talk about the Three Lions’ roar, and Hendo and Jadon have really got the roar going here! If Harry had been doing the same, it would’ve been a pretty special picture. This was a lovely moment for Hendo as he doesn’t score that often for England and it also confirmed we were in the semis.
The unicorn returns
St. George's Park, 5 July 2021
This is just a really fun picture, Saka is a really lovely lad and so popular among the team. The unicorn became iconic after Russia with Harry Maguire and Jordan Pickford racing on them in the pool, so it was only right to get them out once more after the quarter-final win.
Foden's Gazza tribute
St. George's Park, 9 July 2021
Phil’s obviously got the Gazza haircut going on at this stage, so it’d be crazy not to get a photo with that. It was a cool picture for Phil too, alongside someone who was a boyhood hero for him.
Pickford's save
England v Italy, 11 July 2021
This was the save from Jorginho’s penalty in the EURO 2020 Final. Had we won that game, this picture would’ve been famous as it’s normally the goalkeeper who's the hero in penalty shootouts. It’s shot from the side and it’s fortunate that he’s diving towards me, you’ve got the eyes, the save, he’s off the ground and you can just about see the Italian goalkeeper in the background.
Hail Mary!
England v Italy, 11 July 2020
This was taken at half time of extra time in the Final, and it’s what’s known as a ‘Hail Mary’ shot when we hold the camera up, manually set the focus and hopefully point it in the right direction. You can see the intensity of the moment, something we don’t normally see, so this is access no other photographer was getting and as England team photographer, I feel responsible not to waste that opportunity.
Sunbeam over Southgate
St. George's Park, 3 September 2021
This is a portrait of Gareth taken during training. I saw the sun rays coming through so rested my camera on the ground in order to see him against the sky. There’s a hint of ‘the chosen one’ about it, but that's definitely not something Gareth would agree with.
Grealish's spray play
St. George's Park, 6 September 2021
Jack is a bit of a practical joker and had seen the lads walking off the pitch after training, so turned the spray back on them. I’m pretty sure they got him back
Andorran afternoon
Estadi Nacional, 8 October 2021
When we play abroad one of the first pictures I will try to send back is a scene setter to tell the story of where we are. Andorra is set in the Pyrenees mountains and this was the backdrop to the pitch where England were having a team talk before the start of training. Strangely enough, it wasn’t long after this that the dug out behind them was on fire with concern that the game could possibly be called off.
The three amigos
Spurs Lodge, 11 October 2021
The three of them always get on so well together when they’re in the squad. Conor and Tyrone are big mates and when James is around, he’s part of their crew.
Mings' leap
England v Hungary, 12 October 2021
I thought this was a cool picture of Tyrone celebrating our goal against Hungary at Wembley. It’s not actually his goal, John Stones scored in that game, but Tyrone ran towards me and celebrated as he jumped.
Sancho signs
St. George's Park, 5 July 2021
Nike were filming Jadon signing a fish-eye lens for a piece of content. As he’d already signed it, I just asked him to pose with the pen in front of the lens. Its important to grab opportunities like these to get different images.
All tied up
St. George's Park, 10 June 2021
This was when we were doing the official team picture in their M&S suits before the EUROs and everyone was getting ready. Jack was having problems with his tie so Jordan came over and helped him. It’s that look of respect that he’s giving Jordan which really makes the picture.
Cool as ice
St. George's Park, 16 June 2021
During the EUROs, they brought an ice cream van in twice just to give the players something different after lunch. Here, Raheem just looks like a little kid deciding which ice cream he could have. I just really like it, it’s so unusual to see a professional footballer in this context.
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