Fury at idiot fan who shone laser in Kasper Schmeichel’s face during Harry Kane penalty

There’s this little thing called sportsmanship which means treating your opponents with grace and respect.

But one idiot fan - which UEFA has confirmed to be an England supporter - proved they haven’t heard of it at the most pivotal moment in last night’s semi-final clash.

Denmark’s star goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel was preparing for Harry Kane’s extra-time penalty when suddenly a laser was pointed at his eye from somewhere in the crowd.

It’s unclear if he noticed and, ever-dignified and poised, Schmeichel carried on regardless and managed to block the shot – before Kane hit the rebound into the net, securing his team’s place in the Euro 2020 final.

UEFA later announced that it had opened disciplinary proceedings following Wednesday’s match - not just for the laser offence, but also supporters booing during Denmark’s national anthem.

It listed the charges against England as: “Disturbance caused by supporters during the national anthem, the lighting of fireworks by supporters, and the use of a laser pointer by supporters.”

The case will be dealt with by the association’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body (CEDB) in due course, it confirmed.

In a separate statement the FA – which runs Wembley Stadium, where the match took place – made clear that it had been unable to indentify the source of the bright green beam, but stressed: “Anyone found with a laser device inside the stadium will be removed from the ground.”

ITV showed footage of the incident after the game, with presenter Mark Pougatch saying: “Whoever they are they’re an idiot... it’s stupid and he doesn’t deserve that. That sort of thing, nobody wants to see.”

The unknown fan’s actions have been met with fury and opprobrium on social media, with Twitter users demanding that, if their identity is ever uncovered, they be banned from matches for life.

Others condemned the perpetrator for letting the Three Lions down with their thoughtless act.

Former Liverpool and England striker Stan Collymore tweeted:

Here’s what other commentators had to say:

And though some suggested that it didn’t make any difference anyway, others insisted this was no justification:

A number went as far as to suggest England should be disqualified as result of their suspected fan’s behaviour:

While others condemned supporters’ conduct throughout the tournament:

In its full statement on the Schmeichel incident, the FA said: “We were first made aware of a report of a laser device being used within the Stadium during the first half of extra time

“The on-site FA team in conjunction with UEFA looked to identify and locate the specific location as to where this originated from, but no source was able to be identified

“Post-match at the request of the Police Match Commander, the UEFA Match Manager was asked to speak to the Danish FA representative to ascertain whether any official complaint was to be made in respect of this

“The Danish FA representative confirmed to the UEFA Match Manager that they did not wish to take the matter any further. Anyone found with a laser device inside the stadium will be removed from the ground.”

All we can say is we hope fans do England’s boys proud as they take on Italy in Sunday’s historic showdown at Wembley.

No one wants to see joyous occasions spoiled by childish and reckless behaviour, least of all Gareth Southgate and his squad.