Spain may dominate final but England's name could be written on the trophy

The Guardian

3 days ago

England-Spain is the final everyone predicted before the tournament and it is a great match-up. An England victory would be an even bigger achievement than when they won Euro 2022, because this is a harder final than the one against Germany at Wembley.
England should be the favourites purely because they are the holders and have had the experience of winning it. Their belief that they can always get back into a game, no matter how indifferent they've been, is the one thing that stands out about England. Sometimes it pays to be lucky rather than good, but we shouldn't dismiss that or talk it down. Their resilience is their superpower, and although they haven't always been free-flowing, they've found ways to win, which is down to the character of the players and, most importantly, the 'finishers' from the bench demonstrating that England have a lot of quality and depth.
That does not mean Sarina Wiegman should necessarily change her starting team because, as good as Michelle's Agyemang's impact has been with her three goals in four caps, it is another jump up to do it from the start. There is so much a starting centre-forward has to do other than score goals, including to set the press, and Alessia Russo knows that role inside out. I cannot see Sarina changing that, and the strategy of players coming from the bench is working, even if the time for them to make an impact is getting shorter and shorter.
We sometimes say 'your name's written on something' when things go in your favour: a bounce of the ball, a referee's decision, that little rub of the green. England are scraping over the line and that may take them all the way, but this is their biggest test yet. Although Italy were good, they're not at Spain's level.
Spain 2-1 England, 3 June 2025, Barcelona
England were knocked out of the Nations League after going ahead through Alessia Russo in the 21st minute. In the second half, Spain's Clàudia Pina made an instant impact from the bench, scoring two minutes after coming on, then doubling her tally 10 minutes later as Spain secured victory. The Lionesses would have qualified for the semi-finals at Spain's expense with a win.
England 1-0 Spain, 26 Feb 2025, London
A Wembley crowd of 46,550 watched England defeat Spain in the teams' first meeting since the World Cup final, in Nations League A Group 3. Jess Park's 33rd-minute goal secured victory for the Lionesses. Lucía García's first-half attempt that rattled the crossbar and second-half chances for the winger Salma Paralluelo were the highlights of Spain's attacking play but England held on.
Spain 1-0 England, 20 August 2023, Sydney
Spain became world champions with a dominant performance. Lauren Hemp hit the bar from outside of the box early on but that was the pinnacle of England's first-half chances and Olga Carmona ensured Spain went into the break ahead with a clinical finish past Mary Earps. Earps produced a fantastic 70th-minute penalty save from Jenni Hermoso and made further stops to keep England in the game but Spain deserved their win. Eze Obasi
Spain's route to the final has been relatively uneventful compared with England's. The world champions have controlled the vast majority of possession. Teams do get big chances against them, though, because they commit such numbers going forward. They leave space behind them because of their playing style, and that's where their vulnerabilities are, down the sides of their centre-backs, as Germany's chances in their semi-final showed. Belgium scored twice against Spain and could have scored more, Italy scored against them and there's a vulnerability to Spain that did not exist a few years ago, so the opportunity to score against them is greater.
Sunday's contest depends on who Spain start with, because when they play Clàudia Pina and Mariona Caldentey, they're not pacey players who are going to get in behind. Is Montse Tomé going to start with a team that will dominate the ball but won't stretch England in behind? Or will she start with the pace of a Salma Paralluelo? That is interesting, because Spain have often been kept at bay for quite a while – their knockout matches were both 0-0 at half-time – but when games become more stretched, their chances grow.
There have been distinct differences watching Spain this year. I've never seen Aitana Bonmatí so wide, and that's because of having Alexia Putellas in the 10 position. But it means you get situations such as Bonmatí's winning goal in the semi-final, which was 100% a shot. Ann-Katrin Berger has demonstrated throughout the tournament she's a world-class goalkeeper, but she has a tendency to step forward and leave a small gap at the near post, and I don't think many players can score that goal. Aitana scores it because she's Aitana. That was genius play and crucial because Berger is the best goalkeeper in the world at saving penalties, so the smart money would have been on Germany in a shootout.
In terms of Spain's threats, what I find fascinating is they are very good at set pieces. They're well rehearsed. We always talk about Spain's quality in possession but their quality out of possession is the best in the world. They're the best counter-pressers. Oh my God, they're unbelievable. And because they have a system and shape that puts bodies in such close proximity, it means if you can't break out of the sides of their press, they just swarm you again and again and again. They don't get the credit they deserve for the amount of defensive effort they put in. Their total team game is exceptional. And I've studied them, trust me.
There has been up and down in England's results over the past 18 months but Sarina is a smart woman, a world-class manager who's been there before. The team's resilience is key. They were 90 seconds from going out against Italy and it looked as if the luck had run out, but it hadn't.
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I coached a Chelsea team that always had resilience so I've been in those situations thinking: 'How did we do that, how did we keep on winning?' You have to talk about the mentality of all the players, to be able to keep finding a way even when they haven't been at their best. In my last year when we shouldn't have won the title because Manchester City should have, you can sit there and say: 'Oh, is that because Man City blew it?' Well, we still had to go and win it. If you score one more goal than your opponent, you're the winner. This isn't a game of fairness and England simply scored more goals than Italy.
Spain are prolific but I expect a close game. There may be moments for England and then complete Spanish dominance, but that doesn't mean Spain will win. Just because you're not the most dominant team doesn't mean you cannot win. England must use all their experience.
Overall, this has been a tournament about goalkeepers and the rise of so many good ones. Berger, Italy's Laura Giuliani and England's Hannah Hampton have stood out. This has also been a tournament about the strength of teams' benches, because there has been much more quality from substitutes for so many teams. It is going to be a great final in Basel and a great showcase for the sport.