Latest news with #SpainGermany
Arab News
6 days ago
- Sport
- Arab News
Spain beat Germany with Bonmati extra-time goal to reach Women's Euro 2025 final
ZURICH: Aitana Bonmati netted the only goal of the game late in extra time as world champions Spain edged Germany 1-0 in their Women's Euro 2025 semifinal on Wednesday to set up a title decider this weekend against England. For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport A tense game in Zurich was ticking down toward penalties when reigning Ballon d'Or Bonmati struck in the 113th minute, surprising the usually reliable German goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger at her near post. It was not one of Barcelona star Bonmati's most influential performances, yet she still delivered when it mattered to keep Spain on course to win their first European Championship crown. 'We knew that the goalkeeper often leaves her near post open in these situations, so I didn't think twice. I didn't want the game to go to penalties,' said a beaming Bonmati. Spain were also grateful to goalkeeper Cata Coll for some vital interventions, including a spectacular double save to deny Klara Buehl and Carlotta Wamser right at the end of normal time, as Germany were agonizingly eliminated. The Spaniards will now face reigning European champions England on Sunday in Basel in what will be a repeat of the 2023 World Cup decider, when La Roja triumphed 1-0 in Sydney. If Montse Tome's side come out on top again, they will become the first nation to hold both the world and European titles at the same time since Germany almost 15 years ago. Spain had never beaten Germany before, and now they advance to their first-ever Euro final, with the chance to cement their status as the leading force in international women's football. 'We have made history again today, getting to a first Euro final and beating Germany for the first time,' said Bonmati. 'We are proud to be part of this generation of players, but this is not over yet. We can enjoy this and then tomorrow we need to start thinking about England.' Germany, meanwhile, had been hoping to avenge their defeat by England in the last Euro final in 2022, but they will not add to their record tally of eight European Championship victories. 'She doesn't have to take responsibility. She made so many wonderful saves to get us where we are,' Germany coach Christian Wueck said of goalkeeper Berger. 'There is no blame, we are very proud of the team.' Spain should have been the fresher of the two sides, having played their quarter-final against hosts Switzerland a day before Germany got the better of France on penalties after playing almost the whole game with 10 players. Germany were also missing three starters from that match, with Kathrin Hendrich and Sjoeke Nuesken suspended while right-back Sarai Linder was injured. Wueck's team did unsurprisingly have the majority of the 22,432 crowd behind them at Zurich's Letzigrund Stadium, and they also had Berger in goal. A star of the win over France, she made a fine save to keep out a shot from Spain's Esther Gonzalez — her teammate at Gotham FC in the United States — just before the midway point in the first half, tipping the ball over for a corner. Spain captain Irene Paredes headed against the post from a Claudia Pina corner and Gonzalez was again denied by Berger before half-time. It was then Germany's turn to have the best chances in the second half, but Coll made a crucial block from Buehl just after the hour mark, and the Bayern Munich star also curled a free-kick just wide late on. Then came the stunning double save from Coll right at the end of the allotted four minutes of injury time, as the Barcelona goalkeeper kept out a deflected Buehl shot that was looping in and quickly got up to stop Wamser's follow-up. That was a sign that it would not be Germany's night, and they then saw defender Sophia Kleinherne come off in tears early in extra time after overstretching while trying to stop Salma Paralluelo going clean through on goal. Spain's winner eventually came, as Bonmati let a ball from Athenea del Castillo run past her in the area before beating Berger with a shot from a tight angle. There was still time for Coll to excel again, flying to her left to save from Lea Schueller as Spain held on.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Chloe Kelly reacts after her late heroics send England to back-to-back Euro finals
Chloe Kelly scored the winner for England against Italy in the Euro 2025 semi-final and shares her reaction as the Lionesses will face either Spain or Germany in the final.
Telegraph
7 days ago
- Sport
- Telegraph
England will lose Euro 2025 final if Sarina Wiegman does not change
This England team does not know when it is beaten, even when everyone else has given up on them. No matter how badly they play, no matter how much luck they have to ride, they find a way to win. It is remarkable fortitude, incredible strength of character and it displays the very best of this nation's indomitable spirit. They are Lionesses indeed. A pack of predators, at their most ruthless and deadly when they are wounded. The country should be proud of them and we are, but this was a victory wrapped in the worries of what will happen in the final on Sunday. Either Spain or Germany await and if they play as badly as this again, England will surely lose against that class of opposition. Flawed team with a shaky defence If Sarina Wiegman does not reflect on this performance, if she does not analyse the game and recognise the mistakes in team selection, formation and tactics that she has been making all tournament, this will almost certainly all be in vain. Amid the euphoria and joy of their incredible comeback win over a dogged and dangerous Italy, there are so many reasons to be critical. It was, once again, a largely turgid, predictable and infuriating performance until desperation took over and the chaos began. England are a team that supposedly wants control, but thrives when they dispense with game plan and play on instinct, fuelled by desperation. The point is this: England have been playing like this for two years and they have kept on doing so, even as they have scratched and clawed their way through the group stage and knockout rounds. The same problems exist, the same weaknesses are being exploited. Either Wiegman has no solutions or she is refusing to accept she needs to do anything differently. Either way, England are a flawed team, with no pace in midfield, an isolated centre-forward and a defence that plays like an arsonist handles matches. A mystery how England have reached the final England lost their first group game against France with a terrible performance. They looked, in the words of Wiegman, to have lost their quarter-final against Sweden 'four or five times' before winning on penalties in an equally scrappy and error-strewn display. And they were less than 60 seconds from losing their semi-final to Italy until Michelle Agyemang scored an equaliser that looked like it would never come during the 96 repetitive minutes of England play that had preceded it. England are into their third consecutive final at a major tournament. It is an unparalleled era of success in English football. Whatever happens it should be lauded. Wiegman has been to five tournaments with the Netherlands and England as a manager, and has taken a team to the final of every single one. She has been a brilliant appointment by the Football Association by one single, pivotal metric. Football is, and always will be, about the end result not how you play to secure it. Just ask Sweden or Italy, who have thought they had England beaten, who were ready to celebrate their success – the Italy bench had already started to do so in stoppage time in Geneva – only to end shedding the tears of the defeated. But quite how England have reached the final in Basel is a riddle. It is like a puzzle without a picture – almost impossible to work out. Yet, here we are, the reigning champions are somehow, inexplicably, 90 minutes away from retaining their crown. Wiegman's thinking did not make sense Wiegman, though, needs to do something to improve the team before they are chasing a game, relying on their guts, their fitness and their good fortune to get out of trouble. The formation looks wrong. The midfield looks unbalanced and far too easy to play through. Alessia Russo looks like the loneliest of lone strikers. The defence, despite the personnel changes and shifts in position, resembles a flimsy wooden fence blowing in the wind. It could collapse at any moment. Against Italy, England were so bad, so predictable, so slow, they made it easy for their opponents to defend their one-goal lead. Yet, Wiegman watched and waited. You might suggest she froze, the pressure of the moment too much for the brain to work, but this was not a rare occurrence. This is what she does. With Beth Mead on at half-time for the injured Lauren James, she persevered with an isolated centre-forward who was marked by three centre-backs. She kept Ella Toone on the pitch, a No 10 who was too slow to keep up with the team's attacking play. In fact, she may as well have been over the border in France so far away she was from her friend in attack. England sent cross after cross into the box and Italy's defenders cleared them with ease. There was no pressure on them, no disruption, no danger of an England forward getting on the end of anything or a midfielder pouncing on the second ball. Yet, Wiegman waited until the 85th minute to make another change. She waited until England were five minutes, plus injury time, away from defeat, to put two strikers on the pitch at the same time. Nine minutes later and Mead's run into the box distracted the goalkeeper and, finally England had someone to capitalise inside the box. Agyemang did the rest. It was impossible to work out what Wiegman's thinking was. None of it made sense, but then maybe nothing about this England team does. Maybe it does not have to, but you suspect they will find out what the consequences are if they do the same on Sunday.
