England substitutes click again as Lionesses reach Euro 2025 final
Barbara Bonansea stunned the England support into silence when she opened the scoring in the 33rd minute for the underdog Italians, who had reached their first European semi-final in 28 years.
The Lionesses, in their sixth straight major tournament final four appearance, were on the brink of elimination when 19-year-old Michelle Agyemang once again came off the bench and rescued Sarina Wiegman's side with a second-half stoppage-time equaliser.
England were gifted a penalty late in the second period of extra time and, though Kelly's initial attempt was saved, the Arsenal forward made no mistake with her second opportunity when she emphatically buried the rebound.
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Broken bones, bloodied noses and never-say-die spirit… and this lot win trophies too – Lionesses are pride of England
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) STUART PEARCE was lauded for trying to 'run off' a broken leg for ten minutes while playing for West Ham against Watford in 1999. After England's Lionesses successfully defended their Euros crown, Lucy Bronze revealed she had played throughout the tournament with a fractured shinbone. 6 Lucy Bronze played throughout the Euros with a fractured shinbone Credit: AFP It's not scientifically true that women have higher pain thresholds than men. But the full-back — whose full name is genuinely Lucy Roberta Tough Bronze — clearly isn't bound by such trivialities as medical science. Keeper Hannah Hampton - who was told she could never be a professional footballer due to an eye condition - is another Lioness who laughs in the face of the doctoring profession. Hampton suffered a nosebleed and played with a tampon up one nostril during the quarter-final victory over Sweden — drawing comparison with Terry Butcher's blood- spattered England shirt while facing the same nation in a 1989 World Cup qualifier. READ MORE ON LIONESSES ROARING HOME Lionesses pose on red carpet outside Downing Street after lifting Euros trophy England played 360 minutes of knockout football at these Euros and led for less than five of them — roaring back from behind in all three fixtures. So while Joey Barton and a dwindling number of Sid The Sexists on social media continue to howl the word 'woke' at the moon, it's hilarious the Lionesses have triumphed thanks to the attributes traditionally regarded as the strengths of the English men's game. Physical bravery, stoicism, never-say-die spirit. Three comebacks, two penalty shootouts, broken bones and blooded noses. CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS And this lot actually win trophies, too. Unlike in the last Euros on home soil in 2022, England weren't the best team in the tournament — that was runners-up Spain. England's Lionesses depart Zurich following their Euro 2025 victory There was some pleasing sour grapery among the beaten finalists about English 'luckiness'. But when you keep on doing something over and over again, it can never be down to luck. England prevailed because they were mentally and physically tougher than any other side. They became the first English senior team to win a major tournament on foreign soil and they drew the highest TV audience of the year. Women's football is now an integral part of the national sporting landscape and that is a tribute to everyone who has helped to promote it during the move into professionalism over the past couple of decades. There have been elements of positive discrimination in this. For a while, the game was over- exposed by the FA and much of the media, in comparison to the numbers of those who paid to watch it. But anyone uncomfortable with this needs to remember that women's football was banned in this country for half a century until 1971. 6 England celebrate consecutive European Championship wins Credit: Reuters 6 Hannah Hampton was told she could never be a professional footballer due to an eye condition Credit: EPA Which sounds as weird as the fact beer was banned in Iceland — the nation, not the freezer shop — until 1989. But it legitimises all of the efforts to grow the women's game, which is now increasingly able to stand on its own feet. European club champions Arsenal have attracted sell-out crowds of 60,000 for matches at the Emirates. And, from this coming season, they will hold all of their Women's Super League fixtures at the club's stadium, which will boost their average gate of 29,000. Watching a women's match live is a family-friendly experience, with the anger and hatred of the men's game largely absent. The game is different, the atmosphere is different, comparisons are tiresome and needless. Nobody feels the need to distinguish between men's and women's events when tallying up the gold medals won at an Olympics. Keely Hodgkinson didn't have to suffer any sniping that she wouldn't have qualified for the men's 800m final when she won gold in Paris last summer, because women's athletics has been established over decades. Women's football is reaching a similar status. 6 Sarina Wiegman made it consecutive Euros wins Credit: AP And manager Sarina Wiegman has ensured we will never again see a 'big name' man like Phil Neville parachuted into the women's game to coach the Lionesses. After a promising start, Neville quit in 2021 after a run of seven defeats in 11 matches. The women's game will never be patronised in such a way in future. As part of this process, BBC TV pundits have sounded less like cheerleaders than in previous women's tournaments. And there wasn't much media soft-soaping of the Lionesses when they opened their Euros campaign with a deserved defeat by France. This is as it should be. We are talking about elite international competition, not a school sports day. Chloe Kelly — the scorer of England's final winner against Germany three years ago, as well as the clinching penalty in Sunday's shoot-out in Basel — is a hugely likeable character. 6 Chloe Kelly scored the winning penalty Credit: EPA 6 Kelly was criticised by Spanish media for the cockiness of her celebrations Credit: Getty But there is nothing nicey-nicey about her on the pitch. Criticised by Spanish media for the cockiness of her celebrations, here is the kind of supremely confident player any team needs in the intense environment of tournament football. She marked England's latest success by sniping at critics on social media. And all of her team-mates will have similar stories. 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19 minutes ago
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Lionesses were in crisis going into Euro 2025 as critics turned on Sarina Wiegman… England boss is owed an apology
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SARINA WIEGMAN is owed an apology. By any and all who doubted her ahead of this, a third straight women's Euros triumph for the 55-year-old. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 5 Sarina Wiegman was doubted heading into Euro 2025 Credit: Alamy 5 Now the three-time Euros winner is owed an apology Credit: Getty 5 Mary Earps was ruled out of the Euros Credit: Getty 5 As was Fran Kirby Credit: Getty Wiegman, cemented now as one of the greatest managers in the history of women's football, described Euro 2025 as the most chaotic tournament she had ever experienced. But even before England arrived in Switzerland to defend their title, the Dutchwoman was facing intense scrutiny. After the influential duo of Mary Earps and Millie Bright ruled themselves out just weeks before the tournament and Fran Kirby retired from international football after being told she would not go to the Euros, faith in Wiegman was on the wane. Crisis had struck and many questioned if the woman in charge could handle the fallout and whether she had caused it. READ MORE ON LIONESSES ROARING HOME Lionesses pose on red carpet outside Downing Street after lifting Euros trophy Had she lost her touch? Was she too direct or brutally honest with her players? Those questions looked foolish as the Lionesses flew back home yesterday, trophy in hand for a second time. Wiegman's players were in awe of her in Switzerland, a manager who kept her cool with the team on the brink more than once. The ex-Netherlands boss told the squad they had almost killed her twice, with last-gasp comebacks against Sweden and Italy in the quarter-final and semi-final. CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Wiegman had to stand and watch three spells of extra-time — the first time any side has gone the distance in three games at a women's Euros. She also had to endure two penalty shootouts, which both swung dramatically from one side to the other. 'This is the most chaotic and ridiculous tournament we have played' says Sarina Wiegman Wiegman insisted there was no lack of belief during those nervy knockout ties — but the manager did admit there were brief moments when she thought they were going home. While there was a calm exterior throughout every close call, she was 'having a heart attack' inside. Despite that, she always found the right words for the moment. Delivering emotional and inspirational speeches when they were needed most. Those messages all had an edge. The Lionesses boss said she could not repeat some of the language from her team-talks, while sales of the 'b**tches get s*** done' washbags will surely skyrocket. Having kept her cool throughout, the moment Chloe Kelly fired home the winning shootout penalty against Spain in the final, things finally cracked. Wiegman said: 'I just started running. I'd been screaming for three minutes. I just could not believe that we won it. 'When she went to take that penalty, her conviction again — and she just loves these moments.' Players were shown clips of their finest moments out here, one last confidence boost to get over the line when hope appeared lost. Wiegman showed faith in the likes of teenage striker Michelle Agyemang unknown to all but the most ardent Women's Super League fans before this tournament. She's bloody amazing. She's an incredible woman. What she's done for this country, we should all be so grateful for. Chloe Kelly on Sarina Wiegman Agyemang, 19, is a new favourite, scoring the leveller against Sweden after England were 2-0 down, before the most dramatic of injury-time equalisers to set up the semi-final win against Italy in extra-time. But the resolve and determination which has defined England's heroines all stems from their coach, also a Euros winner with her native Holland in 2017, and her staff. There are so many of this squad who have faced adversity, did not think they would be here or had struggles throughout the tournament. Kelly, England's finals icon, feared she would not even make the squad after falling out of favour at Manchester City earlier in the season. But Wiegman stuck with her. A loan move to Arsenal followed, where she won the Champions League with victory over Barcelona — before scoring or assisting in every Euros knockout game and hitting the winning spot-kick. Kelly said of the Lionesses boss: 'She's bloody amazing. She's an incredible woman. What she's done for this country, we should all be so grateful for. 'What she's done for me individually, she gave me hope when I probably didn't have any. 'She gave me an opportunity to represent my country again. 'What she's done for the women's game, not just in England, in the Netherlands she's done it, she's taken it to a whole other level. 'Are you sure?' 'The work doesn't go unnoticed from the staff behind her, they're incredible people.' Jess Carter was dropped for the semi-final against Italy after some shaky performances. And the Chelsea defender's misery was compounded by some horrific racist abuse from online trolls. But Wiegman showed the faith to restore her in Basel — and Carter delivered the performance of a lifetime against Spain. The centre-back, 27, said: 'We went into training and she sat me down and said, 'I'm thinking of starting you on Sunday'. I said, 'OK, thanks'. 'After, I was thinking, 'Are you sure?' To have that faith from Sarina to put me back in the squad and that she believed I could help this team to a trophy was amazing. 'It gave me a lot of confidence going into this game.' Wiegman revealed ahead of the final that she had fallen in love with England. There can be few who will argue the feeling is not mutual.
