Sarina Wiegman names England squad for Women's Euro 2025
Sarina Wiegman has recalled Lauren James and named teenager Michelle Agyemang her squad for England's Women's Euro 2025 campaign.
Several shock withdrawals threatened to overshadowed the build-up to Wiegman's announcement, with Chelsea skipper Millie Brighton deciding to step away from the international stage for 'mental and physical' reasons.
In the preceding days, Mary Earps and Fran Kirby both called time on their England careers having fallen down the pecking order with the Lionesses.
All three players – boasting a combined total of 218 caps – started the final three years ago at Wembley as Wiegman's side defeated Germany to be crowned European champions for a first time in their history.
It means there is some inexperience amongst the travelling party and Wiegman will no doubt be looking to the likes of Lucy Bronze, Keira Walsh and Alex Greenwood to be leaders, alongside captain Leah Williamson, in Switzerland.
The reigning champions kick off their group-stage campaign in exactly a month's time against France at Zurich's Stadion Letzigrund.
The Lionesses return to the same stadium four days later to lock horns with the Netherlands, before facing Wales in their final Group D match at the Kybunpark in St Gallen on July 13.
Goalkeepers: Hannah Hampton, Khiara Keating, Anna Moorhouse
Defenders: Lucy Bronze, Jess Carter, Niamh Charles, Alex Greenwood, Maya Le Tissier, Esme Morgan, Leah Williamson, Lotte Wubben-Moey
Midfielders: Grace Clinton, Jess Park, Georgia Stanway, Ella Toone, Keira Walsh
Forwards: Michelle Agyemang, Aggie Beever-Jones, Lauren Hemp, Lauren James, Chloe Kelly, Beth Mead, Alessia Russo
The Lionesses' confidence may have taken a slight knock ahead of this summer's tournament after missing out on the Nations League semi-finals with a 2-1 defeat to Spain on Tuesday evening. More Trending
Alessia Russo opened the scoring with a composed first-half strike in Barcelona, only for Claudia Pina to come on and turn the game on its head with two goals in the space of ten minutes.
England's fringe players will have one last chance to put their hands up for selection when Jamaica travel to Leicester's King Power Stadium for a final warm-up match on June 29.
More to follow.
MORE: England star Fran Kirby announces international retirement before Euros
MORE: Lionesses icon blasts Mary Earps over 'awful' timing of shock England retirement
MORE: Ian Wright aims dig at Arsenal men's team after Women's Champions League win
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Reuters
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Sinner faces defending champ Alcaraz in hotly anticipated French Open final
PARIS, June 7 (Reuters) - The French Open men's singles tournament will culminate with a blockbuster clash in Paris on Sunday. World number one Jannik Sinner faces defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in the most eagerly anticipated men's singles final since the start of the Rafa Nadal era 20 years ago at Roland Garros where the results were largely a foregone conclusion. Italian top seed Sinner has been impressive since his return from a doping ban last month, charging into Sunday's final without dropping a single set in his six matches in Paris. The 23-year-old outclassed 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in their semi-final to confirm his superb form on clay after also reaching the final in Rome in May in his first tournament back from his ban. He was beaten there by Alcaraz in straight sets. Any doubts that Sinner was lacking match practice were quickly dispelled by the ruthless efficiency with which he has dispatched all his opponents in Paris to set up a mouth-watering final against arguably the most gifted claycourt player since 14-time French Open champion Nadal. Sinner had never before reached the final in Paris but he will be looking to add the Roland Garros title to his rapidly growing list of majors, which already includes two Australian Open crowns and last year's U.S. Open. He is on a 20-match winning streak in Grand Slam tournaments after lifting the trophy in New York last year and then clinching the title in Melbourne at the start of this year. "It doesn't get any bigger now," Sinner said of his burgeoning rivalry with the 22-year-old Alcaraz, who has seven wins and two defeats against the Italian in their head-to-head. Alcaraz, who is attempting to become only the third man to retain his Roland Garros title this century after Nadal and Gustavo Kuerten, has won the last four encounters with Sinner. "Grand Slam finals against Carlos, it's a special moment for me and for him, too. He won here last year, so let's see what's coming," Sinner said. "But for sure, the tension you feel before the match and during the match is a little bit different because we are both very young, we are both different, but talented. So let's see." Alcaraz's progression to the final has not been equally smooth, with the Spaniard dropping a set in four of his six matches, including in his semi-final against Italian Lorenzo Musetti, who retired injured at the start of the fourth set. But his occasional lapses of concentration during his matches in Paris barely mask his lethal force on the surface. He won the claycourt tournaments in Monte Carlo and Rome while also reaching the final in Barcelona in a near-perfect preparation to Paris. "If I want to play against Jannik, he's the best tennis player right now. I mean, he's destroying every opponent through (to) the semi-final," Alcaraz said. ORDER OF PLAY ON SUNDAY (prefix number denotes seeding) COURT PHILIPPE CHATRIER (not before 1300 GMT) 1- Jannik Sinner (Italy) v 2-Carlos Alcaraz (Spain)
Daily Mail
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Revealed: The 'three people allowed to visit Michael Schumacher' - with F1 icon not seen in public since horror skiing accident in 2013
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The Independent
an hour ago
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The Carlos Alcaraz problem Jannik Sinner faces in mouthwatering French Open final
In the early days of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz 's electric rivalry, as the two young men established themselves as the best players in the world, a prominent theme of their matches was the spectacular, highlight-reel points that would light up social media feeds in an instant. During the Indian Wells semi-final in 2024, after Sinner and Alcaraz chased down drop shots and angled volleys to shrieks from the crowd, the young rivals turned to each other and laughed across the net, sharing not only their disbelief but also the joy of pushing themselves to new heights. As Sinner and Alcaraz now prepare to battle for the French Open title, in their first grand slam final, it is clear that their rivalry has evolved into a generational one. While both players will hope to enjoy the moment of facing each other for one of the sport's biggest prizes, there is also now much more at stake. On Sunday, Alcaraz, 22, will bid for his second consecutive Roland Garros title and fifth grand slam. Sinner, 23, has the chance to win a third consecutive major, as well as fourth overall and first outside of the hard-court tournaments. It will also be the first grand slam final played between two men born in the 2000s, as Novak Djokovic, who was beaten in straight-sets by the World No 1 Sinner in Friday's semi-final, left the stage for the young rivals to fill. 'Definitely great for tennis, both of them,' Djokovic said. 'I think their rivalry is something that our sport needs, no doubt. I'm sure that we're going to see them lifting the big trophies quite often.' Over the past 18 months, Sinner has dominated the men's ATP Tour while rising to an undisputed World No 1. He has made the French Open final in just his second tournament since returning from a three-month doping suspension without dropping a set and showed immense mental strength to close out his victory over Djokovic, denying the 38-year-old and the crowd to close out a gripping semi-final in over three hours. 'He showed why he's No 1 in the world,' Djokovic said. 'He's the best player right now,' Alcaraz said. 'He's destroying every opponent.' Sinner - who will bid to become the first Italian Roland Garros champion since Adriano Panatta in 1976 - has won 20 consecutive grand slam matches, through his US Open and Australian Open title wins, and will aim to become just the fourth man, after Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, to win three grand slam titles in a row this century. Sinner also became the first player in history to record four consecutive victories over Djokovic, the greatest of all time. But Sinner has a problem in the French Open final, and that is Alcaraz. He has lost his last four matches in a row to the Spaniard, including his last two grand slam matches against him - both of which went to five sets. Additionally, while Sinner has gone 47-0 against the rest of the world since August, he is 0-2 against Alcaraz, who is starting to make a habit of snapping Sinner's winning streaks. His last victory over Sinner, in last month's Rome final, ended a run of 26 consecutive victories. So what makes Alcaraz so different to everyone else? While Alcaraz has played an extremely consistent clay-court season, establishing a 21-1 record while winning titles in Monte Carlo, Rome and reaching the Roland Garros final, the Spaniard lacked the consistency Sinner has shown while the No 1 was serving his doping suspension. Alcaraz was in disarray and looked lost without Sinner to play against. The presence of Sinner, on tour and across the net, raises Alcaraz's level. 'If I don't play at my best, 10 out of 10, it's going to be impossible to beat him,' Alcaraz said after his straight-sets win over Sinner in the Rome final. 'That's why I'm more focused when I'm playing against him, or I feel a little bit different when I'm going to face him than other players. He has that aura. When you're seeing him at the other side of the net, it's kind of different.' So far in their rivalry, Alcaraz's peak, or his 10 out of 10, has been higher than Sinner's, who has the higher floor. That can be the difference in the tightest matches when they go the distance. At the same time, Sinner admitted to feeling a certain pressure against Alcaraz. 'It's fun and not fun,' he smiled. 'The tension you feel before the match and during the match is a little bit different, in a way. We are both very young, we are both different, but talented.' Sinner, for example, is yet to show any signs of nerves in any of his three grand slam finals: coming from two sets down to defeat Daniil Medvedev in the 2024 Australian Open final before easing to victories over Taylor Fritz at the 2024 US Open and Alexander Zverev in defending his Australian Open crown earlier this year. But the Italian suffered from cramps when he played Alcaraz in a five-set French Open semi-final defeat last year, and has struggled when the Spaniard has pushed him over the distance. Like the best champions, Sinner has displayed a tendency to learn from tough moments and come back stronger. 'He's a player who makes me a better player,' Sinner said of Alcaraz. 'He pushes me to the limit. We try to understand where we have to improve for the next time I play against him.' Sinner has already displayed progress on the red dirt, progressing to his first major final on the surface, where he will face a true natural clay-court player in Alcaraz. Sinner and Alcaraz are yet to lose a grand slam final, amassing a 7-0 record between them, and are guaranteed to make it six grand slam titles in a row on Sunday. As the French Open brought the end of the Big Three, as Nadal waved farewell to Roland Garros and Djokovic hinted that he may soon do the same, a new era is well underway, though any comparisons remain premature. Djokovic laughed at the suggestion. 'They need to play against each for at least 10-plus years nonstop in order to be part of the same discussion,' he said. But on Sunday a rivalry will take its next step and both Sinner and Alcaraz will face their toughest test yet.
