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Daily Mail
16 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Liam Dawson brings control to England's attack - here's how he can put himself right in the Ashes mix, writes NASSER HUSSAIN
We used to have a saying in selection: Pick on character. And I think Liam Dawson has got an abundance of character. He would have been nervous yesterday because you're always a better player when you're out of the side. To come into the team mid-series is not easy, especially when you have been out of it for eight years and a lot of people have been calling for your return. However much he says he is just taking everything as a bonus at his age, it is still playing for England in an iconic series, that the country is taking about and that's started to kick off. So when you're suddenly brought in, you will feel the heat and you have to perform. And he certainly did that yesterday. Dawson is the polar opposite to the man he has replaced, Shoaib Bashir. He is a veteran left-arm spinner with 15 five-wicket hauls in first-class cricket and knows his game inside out. He is the finished article. Bashir, meanwhile, is a young right arm off-spinner who was plucked from nowhere from a social media feed because he has a high release point. What Dawson brings to this England team is control, which Bashir is still seeking and looking for. On the first day at Old Trafford, when it's not spinning a lot, you need to offer your team and your captain that control so that he can rotate the seamers at the other end. Dawson did that beautifully. India's run rate dropped in the second session because of his control. Bashir gets more over spin, drop and bounce because he is taller than Dawson and has that high release point. If you think of Bashir's wicket to win the Test at Lord's, the ball span back and rolled on to Mohammed Siraj's stumps because it bounced up on him. Dawson, with his lower action, may struggle to get that. But he is more accurate and challenges the pad of the right hander, as well as the outside edge of the left hander from that rough and with the drift that he gets. We saw that with his wicket of Yashasvi Jaiswal. Because Dawson is landing it in the rough all the time, Jaiswal didn't know if it was going to spin or not, and his natural variation and drift meant he took the outside edge and it carried to Harry Brook at first was also very good captaincy from Ben Stokes. Jaiswal is a fine player of spin, as Tom Hartley found out in India. But Stokes put a deep point in, which may have made Jaiswal push at the ball and open the blade, trying to get a single to the boundary. What Dawson also has in his favour over Bashir, and another left-arm spinner Jack Leach, is that he is a multi-dimensional cricketer. He is very good in the field and a very good No8. With Dawson batting at eight, Chris Woakes at nine, Brydon Carse at 10 and Jofra Archer at 11, that is suddenly a very good lower order, which is going to be needed not only in the rest of this series, but also in Australia in the winter. My former England coach Duncan Fletcher always wanted complete cricketers in his team. We had to move on from Phil Tufnell, who was a wonderful left-arm spinner and I absolutely loved captaining, because he didn't bat and didn't field, and we picked Ashley Giles, who was very good at gully and got you useful runs. If Dawson has two really good games against India, the debate will be about whether he should become England's No1 spinner and play against Australia. But that's for another time. He's had one good day and he's got one wicket – but he did his role and that's all you can ask of anyone you bring into your team.
CNA
a day ago
- Sport
- CNA
Wiegman echoes Southgate as England take back-door route to final
LONDON :An unprecedented third successive major final appearance engineered by a series of extraordinary comebacks and a manager similarly lauded and hammered at the same time - there is a familiar feel about England at the Women's Euros. Tuesday's 2-1 victory over Italy, secured via a last-gasp equaliser in normal time then a winner two minutes from the end of extra time, propelled the defending champions into a final against either Germany, who they beat to lift the title in 2022, or Spain, who they lost to in the World Cup final two years ago. Under the guidance of the extraordinarily successful coach Sarina Wiegman, England have reached an unprecedented level of consistency, yet, far from lauding the Dutchwoman's influence, there is an undercurrent of feeling that they have somehow made it this far this time despite, not because, of her decisions. Wiegman has been steadfast - some say stubborn - in her selection approach during the tournament despite England's starting team often failing to spark. They trailed Sweden 2-0 in the quarter-finals, looking toothless, until finally she turned to the bench and substitute Michelle Agyemang rescued the match, which England eventually won via a crazy 14-shot penalty shootout. After making only one change to the starting lineup - and that perhaps more due to the racist abuse swirling around Jess Carter than her shaky performance - Wiegman watched in her usual motionless style as hot favourites England were outrun and outplayed by Italy for an hour on Tuesday. Eventually she turned to her bench, throwing on strikers Agyemang and Aggie Beever-Jones with five minutes to go, having introduced 2022 hero Chloe Kelly after 77 minutes. Agyemang, 19, was the saviour again as she equalised deep into stoppage time and, with a penalty shootout that England would definitely not have wanted after missing four of their seven attempts in the quarter-final, Kelly then won it with two minutes to spare. Wiegman said her overwhelming emotion was relief and praised the quality and energy of her substitutes - which of course begged the question of why she took so long to bring them on. FAMILIAR FEEL It all had a very familiar feel after Gareth Southgate was both lauded and vilified during England men's run to the Euro 2024 final having also reached the 2020 final and the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup. Southgate was widely criticised for his failure to react to changes made by Italy and Croatia in those earlier defeats, but, like Wiegman, the louder the outside noise, the more he dug his feet in. He reached a nadir in the Euro 2024 last 16 game against Slovakia, when, trailing 1-0 having barely managed a shot on goal all night, he waited until the fourth minute of stoppage time to introduce striker Ivan Toney, before Jude Bellingham eventually equalised and England won in extra-time. It was a similar story in the semi-finals before England won on penalties and in the final he waited until the 70th minute to bring on Cole Palmer, the team's most dangerous player whenever he got on the pitch, who immediately equalised before England eventually lost 2-1. Southgate had turned a desperately poor England team into a brilliantly consistent one, but rather than celebrate that "success", there were plenty of critics ready to claim that his cautiousness robbed the country of the chance of glory. Wiegman already has the Euro 2022 trophy in the cabinet - as well as the 2017 title with the Netherlands - and there are of course many other coaches now watching from home who would give their right arm to be in her place heading into the final. Yet, just as with Southgate and even with her vast experience and glittering CV, should England be trailing again on Sunday, she surely needs to find it in herself to loosen the stays and not rely on another last-minute rescue act.
Reuters
a day ago
- Sport
- Reuters
Wiegman echoes Southgate as England take back-door route to final
LONDON, July 23 (Reuters) - An unprecedented third successive major final appearance engineered by a series of extraordinary comebacks and a manager similarly lauded and hammered at the same time - there is a familiar feel about England at the Women's Euros. Tuesday's 2-1 victory over Italy, secured via a last-gasp equaliser in normal time then a winner two minutes from the end of extra time, propelled the defending champions into a final against either Germany, who they beat to lift the title in 2022, or Spain, who they lost to in the World Cup final two years ago. Under the guidance of the extraordinarily successful coach Sarina Wiegman, England have reached an unprecedented level of consistency, yet, far from lauding the Dutchwoman's influence, there is an undercurrent of feeling that they have somehow made it this far this time despite, not because, of her decisions. Wiegman has been steadfast - some say stubborn - in her selection approach during the tournament despite England's starting team often failing to spark. They trailed Sweden 2-0 in the quarter-finals, looking toothless, until finally she turned to the bench and substitute Michelle Agyemang rescued the match, which England eventually won via a crazy 14-shot penalty shootout. After making only one change to the starting lineup - and that perhaps more due to the racist abuse swirling around Jess Carter than her shaky performance - Wiegman watched in her usual motionless style as hot favourites England were outrun and outplayed by Italy for an hour on Tuesday. Eventually she turned to her bench, throwing on strikers Agyemang and Aggie Beever-Jones with five minutes to go, having introduced 2022 hero Chloe Kelly after 77 minutes. Agyemang, 19, was the saviour again as she equalised deep into stoppage time and, with a penalty shootout that England would definitely not have wanted after missing four of their seven attempts in the quarter-final, Kelly then won it with two minutes to spare. Wiegman said her overwhelming emotion was relief and praised the quality and energy of her substitutes - which of course begged the question of why she took so long to bring them on. It all had a very familiar feel after Gareth Southgate was both lauded and vilified during England men's run to the Euro 2024 final having also reached the 2020 final and the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup. Southgate was widely criticised for his failure to react to changes made by Italy and Croatia in those earlier defeats, but, like Wiegman, the louder the outside noise, the more he dug his feet in. He reached a nadir in the Euro 2024 last 16 game against Slovakia, when, trailing 1-0 having barely managed a shot on goal all night, he waited until the fourth minute of stoppage time to introduce striker Ivan Toney, before Jude Bellingham eventually equalised and England won in extra-time. It was a similar story in the semi-finals before England won on penalties and in the final he waited until the 70th minute to bring on Cole Palmer, the team's most dangerous player whenever he got on the pitch, who immediately equalised before England eventually lost 2-1. Southgate had turned a desperately poor England team into a brilliantly consistent one, but rather than celebrate that "success", there were plenty of critics ready to claim that his cautiousness robbed the country of the chance of glory. Wiegman already has the Euro 2022 trophy in the cabinet - as well as the 2017 title with the Netherlands - and there are of course many other coaches now watching from home who would give their right arm to be in her place heading into the final. Yet, just as with Southgate and even with her vast experience and glittering CV, should England be trailing again on Sunday, she surely needs to find it in herself to loosen the stays and not rely on another last-minute rescue act.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Lucy Bronze's iconic moment saves England and seals her place as a Lionesses legend
"One of a kind," Sarina Wiegman said of Lucy Bronze. Her "fighter" of a full-back certainly offered an image that will go down in England folklore, albeit after a team performance that won't quite be mentioned as prominently. Only the spirit, appropriately, will prevail. After a series of absurd misses, in what might well have been one of the worst penalty shoot-outs in football history, a hobbling Bronze ripped off the strapping on her left leg, and strode forward. An astonishing eight of the 12 previous penalties had been squandered. Some had been missed in scarcely believable fashion, the emotional momentum of the shoot-out veering as wildly as some of the shots. So, Bronze just smashed it straight into the roof of the net. 'I just felt a little bit tight at the end of the game and I thought, I just need to get through to make sure I can keep going,' Bronze said. 'I thought, it's going to hinder me in a penalty. I didn't expect it to go to the sixth penalty, and then it was my penalty. I thought, I need to take this off. I'm going to actually smack it.' 'That resilience, that fight," Wiegman enthused. The manager ended up conjuring another image about Bronze. 'The only way you get her off the pitch is in a wheelchair.' Bronze was the personification of England perseverance, which is one quality you can certainly bank on - even in a performance like this. The kick similarly represented a decisiveness that had been missing from the previous 10 minutes, and most of the game. It also seemed to scramble Sweden for one final kick, as the 18-year-old Smilla Holmberg became just the latest player to sky the ball. This time, it was enough. Bronze's force had driven England into the semi-finals of Euro 2025 - and that after her late goal had sparked the comeback. Her team are now somehow 90 minutes from another final, albeit after a display where they really only played well for a few minutes. Much of that was down to the transformative Chloe Kelly. The obvious discussion now will be over what this emotion does for the team, over the resolve, whether there will now be a momentum from this, a relief that releases them. Wiegman said it was the most chaotic game she'd ever been part of. 'I can't remember anything like this,' she said. Over an hour later, while appearing at her press conference after 1am in Zurich, the manager said she was 'still hyper, still emotional'. But, if we're talking about intangible elements like that, you simply have to focus on the psychodrama of the penalties. It was unlike almost any witnessed in football history, and a rare occasion where the final score of the regulation five each - 2-2 - equalled the actual game. While Bronze finally seized the moment, it's hard not to feel that Sweden ultimately - and calamitously - let it slip away. And that's not just because they were 2-0 up in the 79th minute - a fact that almost felt irrelevant given everything that happened after that. Hannah Hampton later said she could barely remember the first 45 minutes. Her save early in the second half kept England in it, to go with those in the shoot-out. 'That was crucial,' Wiegman said. Sweden still had the chance to secure their semi-final place as it was 2-2 with that very last regulation penalty, an anticipation only heightened as goalkeeper Jennifer Falk sensationally turned around and actually take it. Saving three penalties evidently wasn't enough for her. She wanted to be a treble hero, with the last word. It wouldn't even be the second or third last word. Hampton admitted she was 'surprised' and briefly 'panicked'. For all their preparation, England didn't have the data on her on the opposing goalkeeper's penalty record. All of that went out the window, with Falk's shot. The goalkeeper was the first to sky had to show them how it was the nature of the shoot-out naturally draws most focus, and is pretty much all most people will remember after that, there was still a performance that should draw at least some concern. 'I didn't enjoy it,' Wiegman said, albeit with laughter. She also pointedly disagreed with some criticisms of England's performance before Kelly dramatically transformed it from the 70th minute. The back-and-forth nature of the shoot-out actually reflected England's display in some ways. England got it wrong, then got it right, then got it wrong again, only to display that vintage individual resolve to somehow get through. One of the most remarkable aspects - before the penalties - was that Wiegman made the exact same mistakes as against France in the opening game. It was as if nothing had actually been learned, and that the recent revival was because of the poverty of opposition in the Welsh and Dutch games. England were still woefully vulnerable to pace. Keira Walsh had again been dominated in midfield, and Wiegman's side badly struggled to play through it. Sweden clearly targeted Jess Carter for pressing, but Leah Williamson wasn't exactly sure-footed beside her. This was the source of both Swedish goals. Kosovare Asllani strode through after two minutes, and Stina Blackstenius - whose pressing was causing all manner of problems - scorched through for the second. England's response was so meek until eventually, and what felt so belatedly, Wiegman made three subs. They were surprising subs, especially in removing Georgia Stanway and Ella Toone and not bringing on a replacement midfielder. England front-loaded and went direct. Kelly, who followed Wiegman's triple-change, played a superb ball for Bronze to head in brilliantly at the back post. She defiantly kicked a hoarding, in a foreshadowing of what was to come. Sweden just didn't expect what came next to arrive so quickly. England went straight for goal again. Kelly was this time central and, within two minutes, Michelle Agyemang had turned it in. A new hero. Delirium. But not quite a new direction. The one issue with Wiegman's subs was that they were right for the situation but not for an open game. Extra-time did look a lot like England were just trying to play through it and maybe take a chance. It also comes at a cost, despite the prize of that semi-final. Having gone the distance, all of Williamson, Bronze and Lauren James will need patching up. Williamson is of most concern, having rolled her ankle. Apart from the physical recovery, there's also going to have to be a lot of thought about the team for that semi-final. "I need to calm down," Wiegman said, as Hampton answered a Facetime from family in the press conference. It was that kind of mood. But danger awaits. Italy will surely have taken note of the blueprint to play this England. Wiegman's side have twice struggled in this tournament against quick and physical pressing teams. There were even signs of that going much further back, to the 2023 World Cup. Except, England still go that bit further in this tournament. Wiegman's sole defeat in knockout football is still that 2023 World Cup final to Spain. They still persevere. They still have that resolve, that grit. 'I think that's a quality that is so strong in this team, that togetherness and fighting back,' Wiegman said. 'It shows so much resilience.' England found a way. So much of that was through Bronze.
The Guardian
a day ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Fans react to the moment England made it into Euro 2025 final
Fans were elated when England beat Italy in the Euro 2025 semi-finals on Tuesday night, propelling them into the final.
