Old rivals England and Germany will meet on Tuesday in a Euro 2020 last-16 tie at Wembley following a dramatic finish to the group stages with the Germans within minutes of exiting the tournament before they grabbed a late equaliser against Hungary.
Whereas England made steady, if unspectacular progress through their group, culminating in the 1-0 win against the Czech Republic on Tuesday, Joachim Low's side hit the heights by beating Portugal but were ragged at times in the face of a determined Hungary side.
In search of a crucial goal they threw caution to the wind, players appearing in all positions but although it paid off, England will surely take heart from the goals that Hungary scored, the second almost immediately from the restart that followed Germany's first equaliser.
One twist in the tale may be that Bayern Munich starlet Jamal Musiala's cameo role, almost the last throw of the dice for Low as national team manager having announced he will step down after the Euros, could earn him a starting berth against the country who he played for at Under-21 level.
40,000 fans will be attendance while a 5pm kick-off will surely see many more finish work early to book their seat on the sofa or in front of a big screen as the tournament really begins (and hopefully not ends too soon) for England.