
The comeback queens - these Lionesses never give in
The comebacks queens, always coming back for more.
And now into a third consecutive final with a chance to defend their European crown.
But even Sarina Wiegman feared they would be flying home today when the clock hit 88 minutes in the semi-final with Italy and they were still trailing 1-0.
Just why had the defence been picked apart too easily again in the first half to concede to give Barbara Bonansea the space and time to score?
Just why were Alessia Russo and Lauren Hemp, in particular, not clinical enough?
0:25
Maybe that is a recipe for success rather than a desperate rescue mission.
Because when Wiegman saw there would be seven minutes of stoppage time, suddenly there was hope again.
Especially as five minutes earlier, the manager had brought on Michelle Agyemang.
It's a lot to rely on a 19-year-old. But this is a striker who scored 41 seconds into her international debut as a substitute in April.
And she scored the equaliser that sent the quarterfinal into extra time last week before England beat Sweden on penalties.
Now the weight of the nation was on her shoulders again - and she delivered in the sixth of the seven minutes of injury time.
"She has something special," Wiegman said. "She's very mature, she knows exactly what she has to do.
"When you talk about little things that she picks up straight away, because she's not only in the 18-yard box very dangerous but when we have to go to her as a target player, she keeps the ball really well too."
The Arsenal forward even hit the crossbar in extra time before the Wembley winner from the final three years ago showed again why she's a super-sub.
Just when it seemed England would need to win another shootout, Beth Mead was brought down and now they had one penalty to win it.
Chloe Kelly was denied but alert to pounce on the rebound.
And with a 2-1 win, England will go the distance for a third tournament in a row. No England team has ever previously enjoyed such a deep run.
For Kelly it will be a second final of the year after winning the Champions League with Arsenal.
But it is a year that began despondent at Manchester City before securing a move to the Gunners.
"The moments when in January I felt like giving up football makes you so grateful for these moments here today, and this makes you enjoy every minute of that," Kelly said.
"I think confidence comes from within, but from around you as well. The players that we stand side by side with on the pitch, give confidence in each other."
And England will certainly feel confident.
These Lionesses never give in. How many teams would want to bottle up that fighting spirit and resilience?
"When it finishes like this I am enjoying it but it's a little bit dramatic," said Wiegman, who has now reached an unprecedented five tournament finals with the Netherlands and England.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Daily Mail
27 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Alejandro Garnacho sends two-word message to Marcus Rashford after Barcelona move - as star becomes first Man United 'bomb squad' member to depart
Alejandro Garnacho offered two-word reaction to celebrate Marcus Rashford sealing his move to Barcelona from Manchester United. Rashford's move to Barcelona was confirmed on Wednesday with the forward joining on an initial season-long loan. Barcelona will have the option to sign Rashford permanently for around £30million at the end of the season. Rashford had been one of five players placed in Man United 's 'bomb squad' this summer, with Ruben Amorim determining them to have no future at the club. Garnacho is among those to have been told to stay away from first team training and left out of the club's tour to the United States to seek a move elsewhere. The group also includes Jadon Sancho, Antony and Tyrell Malacia. Rashford become the first member of the 'bomb squad' to leave Man United by sealing his move to Barcelona, with Garnacho quick to respond. The forward responded to a joint Instagram post by Barcelona and Rashford, confirming the deal, with the message 'Lets gooooo'. Garnacho's message was accompanied by two emojis mirroring Rashford's goal celebration, which has previously seen him point to his head. The winger, who was told to find a new club by Amorim at the end of last season, has already attracted attention for his social media posts this summer. Fans had expressed anger last month after Garnacho shared photos from his holiday to Ibiza, one of which included a picture of him wearing the Aston Villa shirt worn by Rashford on his loan last season. Supporters had hit out at the winger for wearing another Premier League clubs shirt while a Man United player, while some viewed it as defiance to Amorim after his decision to cut ties with Rashford. Amorim had informed Garnacho that he should find a new club days after their Europa League final defeat against Tottenham in May. The Argentine winger had been unhappy to be left on the bench for more than 70 minutes of the final, while his brother Roberto had accused Amorim of 'throwing him under the bus' in Bilbao. Garnacho and his brother appeared to signal their disagreement with the team selection on social media posts before the match, while he had apologised for expressing disappointment at his substitution in an Instagram post back in February. Mail Sport reported that Man United would consider offers of around £40m for Garnacho this summer. Garnacho had been valued at around £70m when Napoli made an approach for him in January. The 21-year-old wants to stay in the Premier League and there is interest from Chelsea, Tottenham and Aston Villa.


The Guardian
33 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Tour de France: Pogacar backlash builds while Milan wins stage 17 sprint
Jonathan Milan won a rain-soaked sprint finish in Valence to take his second stage win in this year's Tour de France, after a treacherous finish from which race leader Tadej Pogacar, and his nearest rival Jonas Vingegaard, both emerged unscathed. In what was probably the final stage of the 2025 Tour suited to the sprinters, others were not so fortunate after a downpour made the final kilometres through suburban Valence horribly greasy. When the inevitable touch of wheels came it took down half a dozen riders, including the stage three winner, Tim Merlier, and Biniam Girmay, winner of the points classification in 2024, who somersaulted down the wet road into the barriers. As Milan celebrated his stage win, a predictable backlash was gathering pace against Pogacar, with just four days of racing to come, as Jean‑René Bernaudeau, the Total Energies team manager, accused the Slovenian's UAE Emirates XRG squad of arrogance. 'They're arrogant towards those who just want to live simply alongside them,' the Frenchman said of Pogacar's team. 'I expect their team manager to make that point to them.' Pogacar was dismissive of the Frenchman's comments. 'Arrogance is something, trying to win the Tour de France is another thing. I think a lot riders would see us as arrogant because we want to control every single kilometre of this race. We don't try to be arrogant, we just try to make our race as easy as possible. I think – this will sound super arrogant – but some guys can stay quiet.' On a day when pro-Palestinian activists waved flags and unfurled banners in Dieulefit as the peloton passed through, Pogacar was also questioned about his feelings on human rights in the UAE. 'I ride for UAE Team Emirates and if you go there you'll see how the sport is growing,' he said. 'Kids love us, the locals love us when we ride with them. The sport is growing in the UAE, which I guess is why they have the team, to promote a healthy lifestyle.' In the roadside protest houses were draped with Palestinian flags with reports of protesters holding up 'Starving is Killing' banners as the riders passed through. Dieulefit was honoured for sheltering Jewish people during the second world war. Last Wednesday a protester ran onto the finish line in Toulouse, wearing a T-shirt stating 'Israel out of the Tour.' He was tackled by Tour staff and is scheduled to stand trial for endangering the riders. After that incident, the Israel-Premier Tech team said that it 'respects everyone's right to free speech which includes the right to protest.' If Pogacar remains in a league of his own, with Vingegaard clinging to his coat-tails, the battle for the final podium spot is likely to become intense in the next 48 hours, with Scotland's Oscar Onley the meat in a Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe sandwich. The German team's Tour debutant Florian Lipowitz is securely placed third overall, with Onley two minutes behind. But his teammate, Primoz Roglic, the most insouciant Grand Tour champion in the race, has now crept into the top five. Not everyone has been thrilled to see Roglic's re-emergence over the past few stages. 'Won't be buying Red Bulls any more,' Onley said on Strava, after the Slovenian moved 38 seconds behind him, following the Mont Ventoux finish. 'Not funding those attacks.' Meanwhile, volatile weather is predicted for the two remaining mountain stages, toThursday's high altitude finish on the Col de la Loze, at 2,304 metres and Friday's climb to the ski station at La Plagne, topping out at 2,o52 metres. As rain fell heavily on Valence and the Rhone valley, Francois Lemarchand, of race organisers ASO, said that change was in the air. 'A few days of cooler weather are coming and we could see a swing of 20 degrees. It will go from very hot to very cold, from one day to the next.'


The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Spain to face England in Euro 2025 final after Bonmatí's extra-time strike sinks Germany
The rain drenched Spain's players in this wide, sweeping bowl but nobody was in any rush to leave the pitch. They were still out there more than two and a half hours after they had begun their shot at history, waving at their exultant families and reliving what had just passed. A first European Championship final awaits on Sunday, which may have felt inevitable for three weeks but feels no smaller a milestone for that. England present a familiar last hurdle and what a tie it should be between two sides that, in different ways, had to squeeze over the line. In the end it had to be Aitana Bonmatí. Extra time was drifting to a conclusion and, for the first time this summer, Spain were screaming for a spark from the world's best player. They had plenty of chances to win inside 90 minutes but, against an outstanding Germany side, could so easily have been vanquished too. Had their keeper, Catalina Coll, not made a remarkable double save at the end of normal time they would finally have reckoned with mortality. Bonmatí, for one, did not fancy playing so loosely with the odds again. A customary stroke of genius or the spoils of sloppy goalkeeping? The debate will rage about Bonmatí's winner and a fair reading would err towards the former. Ann-Katrin Berger had been immaculate between the posts for Germany and did not look in immediate danger when Athenea del Castillo played Bonmatí, who had let the ball run through her legs and darted to meet it, through towards the right byline. Presumably Berger had set herself for a cross; she could not react in time to the thrashed first-time strike inside her near post that few players would have dared attempt in the circumstances. Nobody could doubt the scorer's intention, either. Afterwards Bonmatí explained Spain had been perfectly aware that Berger was predisposed to leaving that area of her goal exposed. This was the same Bonmatí who, a month previously, had been hospitalised by viral meningitis in a turn of events that severely clouded Spain's preparations. Back then it would have taken an admirable level of optimism to imagine her going the distance in a tense, rugged, enthralling last-four clash and ultimately waving the magic wand. England must find a way to cope with her and the rest of a team that, while short of its best here, remains a notch above any other contender at this competition. A rerun of the 2023 World Cup will hold few surprises. 'I know what they can do,' said the midfielder Mariona Caldentey of England's qualities as sheets of water continued to teem down. 'It will be a hard game. They're in the final even if they haven't played the greatest football yet. It's something we have never won and is something we are missing. We respect England, but we will go for it.' For long periods it appeared that, against the pre-match odds, Germany's muscle memory could win out. They have ruled the continent eight times and it feels a trick of the light that their drought will now extend 16 years to Euro 2029. Even if it takes a colossal stretch to cast them as plucky underdogs they could make that case here, weakened by injuries and suspensions while on the back of a remarkable win over France in which they had ground through 113 minutes with 10 players. This was a side that, similarly light on numbers for an hour, lost 4-1 to Sweden here 11 days previously. It helped that they kept a full complement against Spain and the frustration for Christian Wück's players will be that they played the occasion perfectly. The balance between defensive resolve and attacking thrust was cleverly poised; they knew Berger would be leaned on at intervals but it would have been no scandal had the dice rolled their way. Sign up to Moving the Goalposts No topic is too small or too big for us to cover as we deliver a twice-weekly roundup of the wonderful world of women's football after newsletter promotion The irrepressible Klara Bühl, an almost unplayable outlet on the left, had numerous attempts at deciding matters in their favour and missed a presentable early chance to set them on their way. She tested Coll in the second half and arrowed a free-kick just wide but it was a deflected shot from Elisa Senss that, with almost the final action before the additional period, almost broke through. A backpeddling Coll had to scramble the ball from under her bar and, when Carlotta Wamser followed up, reacted to block on the line. It was a defining moment to match Bonmatí's later flourish. Earlier Berger, hero of that epic against France, could count a spectacular tip-over from Esther González among a number of interventions. She was beaten when Irene Paredes headed against her left post but, beyond a flurry before half-time, Spain were kept at arm's length. They were rarely fluent, at least by their peerless standards, against opponents who had expected to run hard and did exactly that. Now their modern rivalry with England travels from Sydney to Basel with two years and, for those who took in both Euro 2025 semi-finals, several lifetimes in between. 'We had the correct mindset at the right moments,' Bonmatí said. Nobody exemplifies it more.