Mark Noble is desperate to avoid history repeating itself when England play for a place in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship final on Friday evening.
The West Ham United midfielder and U21 captain was part of Stuart Pearce's squad at the same competition two years ago when England came up against host nation the Netherlands at the semi-final stage. The 22-year-old was left in tears after the Dutch triumphed 13-12 in a thrilling yet ultimately disappointing penalty shoot-out in Heerenveen, despite the Hammers' youngster netting two successful spot-kicks himself.
Two years on and Noble could be forgiven for thinking someone was playing tricks on him as England again prepare to face the host nation in the last-four. This time Sweden will form the opposition, and Noble is eager to erase the tearful memories he suffered in 2007 this Friday in Gothenburg.
"I can't wait for the game," Noble told theFA.com. "It's great that we're playing Sweden, the hosts. I'll have some family coming over to watch the game and I hope they can see us get another win and reach the final."
After being named man-of-the-match in England's opening Group B 2-1 win over Finland and impressing again in the 2-0 victory over Spain, Noble was rested for the final opening stage fixture against Germany, which ended in a 1-1 draw on Monday evening.
The West Ham player is expected to be handed the armband again when Pearce's side take on the in-form Swedes at Gamla Ullevi. The host nation have scored nine goals in three matches so far, with FC Groningen striker Marcus Berg scoring five times, including a hat-trick in the 5-1 success against Belarus.
Noble is confident England will prevail, however, and is hoping to share his success with club-mate James Tomkins. The 20-year-old appeared as a late substitute against the Finns before completing the full 90 minutes against Germany as Pearce named a shadow side.
While Tomkins is expected to be back among the substitutes on Friday, the skipper believes the West Ham defender is more than capable of stepping into the starting eleven again if called upon by former Hammer Pearce.
"I was really pleased with Tonka's display at the back," said Noble. "He passed well, he didn't miss a header and he was composed when he had the ball. But playing with him every week, I expected nothing less, he's a class player.
"It was great to see him out there, I would love to have had a run out with him but the game was about finishing the group unbeaten. It's given us a few days to prepare for the semi final, which we now know will be in Gothenburg."
Italy take on Germany in Helsingborg in Friday's other semi-final, with the winners meeting in the final in Malmo on Monday evening.
England have won the European U21 title twice before in their history, in 1982 and 1984. Italy have won the tournament five times since its inception in 1976, but neither Germany nor Sweden have ever lifted the trophy.