Football: Fabregas sends Spain into Euro 2012 final

Spain became only the second team to reach the final of three successive major tournaments by defeating Portugal 4-2 on penalties in Donetsk tonight after their UEFA EURO 2012 semi-final ended goalless after extra time.

It was Cesc Fàbregas who scored the winning penalty after Bruno Alves missed for Portugal in a dramatic penalty shoot-out in which Cristiano Ronaldo did not even get the chance to step up after being chosen to take the last spot-kick.

It was the second match in a row that our Getty team of photographers were involved in a shoot-out after covering a similar match in Kyiv between England and Italy. This time we were in different positions on the pitch but having been through the drama of penalties in the previous match we knew what to expect and what each of our jobs were.

It was decided that the two photographers who were already in place either side of the goal at the penalty kick end would stay in place while the others would move into better positions down the side of the pitch. Martin Rose was one the photographers behind the penalty kick end and he knew that when it came down to the deciding penalty that his focus was to turn on the players waiting in the centre circle of the winning team as they celebrate.

The other photographer, Laurence Griffiths, was to concentrate on the penalty taker as from his position the angle was much better to Martin's. From past experience we know that the players are likely to run down the pitch to the winning goalscorer and this can lead to some crazy celebration shots.

As you can see from the picture below, this is exactly what happened as soon as Fàbregas's shot went in off the post to make it 4-2. Martin was in the perfect position to capture the Spain team as they mobbed their hero of the moment.
Alex is an award-winning photographer who came to Getty Images in 1997. He has covered the FIFA World Cup and the UEFA Champions League final, and his work has been published in many of the world's leading publications. Alex is based in Manchester, England, and UEFA EURO 2012 will be his third UEFA European Championship with Getty Images.