‘Firm steps forward': Irene Paredes praises Spain progress before Euros final

The Guardian

2 days ago

Irene Paredes feels Spain have broken down barriers for women in their society since lifting the World Cup two years ago but the Euro 2025 finalists still have work to do.
Spain have reached their first women's European final and are hoping to inspire more change at home, with 3.3 million viewers watching their semi-final victory over Germany.
Before 2023's World Cup final victory over Sunday's opponents, England, Paredes had said: 'Many of us have grown up thinking that playing football was not our place. At that time, that's how I felt. Since then, firm steps have been taken forward. That way of thinking is disappearing from society.
'We have to keep opening doors and normalising situations. At that time, after the press conference, with the victory, many walls were torn down. There is still work to be done, but we are on the right track.'
In the aftermath of the final in Sydney, Spain's triumph was soured when the Spanish Football Federation's Luis Rubiales kissed the Jenni Hermoso on the lips without her consent. Rubiales was found guilty of sexual assault in February and the conviction upheld in June.
Spain's head coach, Montse Tomé, said she was glad to now be discussing football matters rather than the Rubiales furore. 'We are a team, they are players that have been fighting, working, with energy and now they are able to focus energy on football,' she said.
'I can sit here and answer questions about football – this has changed. This means a lot to me. It shows the change we are getting. Right now, for all the effort I think the squad deserves [to be] winning. In the elite football world it's not always the case [that you win] but we'll do everything to try, tomorrow.'
They beat England in a Nations League fixture in Barcelona in June, although they did lose 1-0 at Wembley in February. Tomé has drawn lessons from those matches. 'I expect a balanced game against a team that is good in attack, they have a very powerful attacking line, in midfield they also have a high level and they're very capable in defence.
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'For these reasons, we have to [apply] pressure. From the Wembley [game], I felt we deserved more, we had the ball, we had moments. From the game in Barcelona, the first half was quite balanced, but then we overcame them because we put lots of pressure on to England,' she said.
'But England are very competitive – they showed during the tournament sometimes, even if they don't play very well, they end up winning. We know it will be hard.'
Tomé, who has been in charge of the national side since September 2023 and is overseeing her first major tournament as the head coach, confirmed she has a full squad of 23 players available for the final at St Jakob Park.