Latest news with #WorldCup
RTHK
12 minutes ago
- Sport
- RTHK
Another comeback sends England to Women's Euro final
Another comeback sends England to Women's Euro final England's win over Italy comes days after they secured a remarkable quarter-final comeback against Sweden. Photo: Reuters Chloe Kelly scored a dramatic late winner in extra-time as reigning champions England came from behind to beat Italy 2-1 and reach the Women's Euro 2025 final. The Lionesses had once again been on the brink of elimination as they trailed to Barbara Bonansea's first-half strike for Italy. But after their remarkable comeback from two goals down to beat Sweden on penalties in last week's quarter-final, they pulled off more heroics in Geneva. Michelle Agyemang came off the bench and forced the extra period by equalising six minutes into stoppage time, and fellow substitute Kelly completed the turnaround by following in to score the winner in the 119th minute after her penalty had been saved. Sarina Wiegman's team are through to their third consecutive major tournament final and the 2022 European champions head to Basel for Sunday's showpiece. That will be either a repeat of the 2023 Women's World Cup final, which they lost to Spain, or a repeat of the last Euro final, in which they defeated Germany at Wembley -- those sides meet in the other semi on Wednesday. "Luckily I got there for the tap-in," Kelly said. "Three finals on the bounce and we want more. This team shows resilience but we fight back and hopefully we can make it easier for ourselves." It has been quite a ride for England, with this victory following their comeback against Sweden, while the nature of the defeat for Italy was cruel. Many of their players were in tears at full time, as the Azzurre – who are ranked 13th in the world and were not expected to come this far – fell short of reaching a first final since the 1997 Euros. "It hurts but we are very proud of all that we have done," said Italy coach Andrea Soncin. "We will need a few days to overcome this bitter moment but we will keep growing." (AFP)
Leader Live
14 minutes ago
- Sport
- Leader Live
England saviour Michelle Agyemang ‘something special' says Sarina Wiegman
Agyemang has scored three times in her first four appearances for the defending champions, who were initially stunned in their 2-1 last-four comeback victory over Italy when Barbara Bonansea opened the scoring for the underdogs 33 minutes into the Geneva semi-final. But just as she did in their quarter-final against Sweden, the youngest Lioness in Switzerland came off the bench and levelled late in the second-half. clipping the crossbar in extra-time before fellow replacement Chloe Kelly emphatically buried the rebound from her own saved penalty late in the second period. 'She has something special,' Wiegman said of Agyemang, who levelled with less than two minutes remaining in second-half stoppage time. 'She's only 19-years-old, she's very mature, she knows exactly what she has to do. 'When you talk about little things that she picks up straight away, because she's not only in the 18-yard box very dangerous but when we have to go to her as a target player, she keeps the ball really well too. 'Even when you saw her shot hit the crossbar, that was not just a shot, she was aiming for it. If she continues like this she has a very bright future.' Despite her tremendous trajectory, Wiegman does not feel pressure to give the major tournament debutant, who scored 41 seconds into her England debut in April, more minutes than she has so far. 'She's not forcing me,' insisted Wiegman, who has now guided teams to three consecutive European finals, and will aim to make it a hat-trick of three trophies – one with the Netherlands and two with England – with victory in Sunday's Basel final. WE NEVER GIVE UP. WE ARE #WEURO2025 FINALISTS. — Lionesses (@Lionesses) July 22, 2025 'I think she is very grateful she gets minutes, and she's really ready for it. I think her growth and her development went so quickly, from not starting at Brighton, being on loan, to getting lots more minutes and showing how good she is and coming into our team. 'I think how these things go, (they've gone) pretty smoothly for her, and I think she feels very good about that. England await their opponents for Sunday's final – either World Cup holders Spain or Germany, who England beat 2-1 in the final of their home Euros to lift their first major trophy in 2022 after Kelly scored in extra time. Agyemang, who returned to parent club Arsenal at the conclusion of the last campaign, drew high praise from Gunners team-mate and England captain Williamson – the woman she replaced with five minutes remaining in normal time. 'She feels inevitable right now,' said Williamson. 'I think she's quality. I think what she brings, she's a nightmare to play against. I'm glad she's my teammate at club and country. 'She deserves her flowers. I hope she gets them. I hope she enjoys tonight, and then I hope she's ready to go at the weekend.' Fellow Gunner Kelly, who signed a permanent agreement with Arsenal earlier this month, said she felt like she was in a 'fantasy' and was feeling 'so proud to be English' after writing more history for her country. Agyemang, she said, 'made something happen for the team, got us back in the game, and built so much momentum for us. 'Especially that one where she hits the crossbar, I think that gave us a new lease of energy. She was unbelievable tonight. She gave us a lot of confidence, and when your forward is doing that, it's special.'
Glasgow Times
24 minutes ago
- Sport
- Glasgow Times
Charlotte Edwards: England reaching World Cup final would be ‘real success'
With the tournament set to begin in the autumn, England concluded their summer with a 2-1 one-day international series defeat against India at Chester-Le-Street after losing by 13 runs, thanks to a brilliant effort with the bat from Harmanpreet Kaur. The India captain smashed 102 off 84 balls and a half-century from Jemimah Rodrigues – along with scores of 45 from Smriti Mandhana and Harleen Deol – helped the visitors reach 318 for five. England Women's Summer 2025 ✅ Not the ending we wanted but some amazing moments throughout and we appreciate all the support 🩷 World Cup 🔜🔜🔜 — England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 22, 2025 Nat Sciver-Brunt and Emma Lamb led the recovery effort for the hosts with a mammoth 162-run partnership, but a quick loss of four wickets in the final five overs saw India ease to victory. England's next target is the World Cup, where they play their opening game against South Africa in October and Edwards insisted her side were going to the tournament to 'really compete'. Asked what success would look like at the tournament, Edwards replied: 'We're going there to win it, clearly, because any team I'm sure me and Nat are part of, we want to win. 'Getting to the final would be a real success for us, but that's obviously a long way off. 'We're certainly going there to really compete and we believe we've got a team that can really compete. 'I know you guys haven't seen the results from us in this series that you would've liked, but we know in our dressing room what we're doing and how we're progressing. 'That's the most important thing to me, if I'm honest, we're really progressing and improving. I can see real progress with this group.' England have faced criticism since their 16-0 Ashes whitewash at the start of the year, which led to the appointment of Edwards and Nat Sciver-Brunt as captain. Nat Sciver-Brunt and Emma Lamb (pictured) led the recovery effort for the hosts with a mammoth 162-run partnership (Owen Humphreys/PA) The first summer in their new roles saw a clean sweep in their white-ball series against the West Indies followed by a T20 and ODI series defeat to India. One area that continues to be questioned is their fielding displays over the course of the summer and Edwards admitted that while there had been lessons learned, her side were 'out-fielded' by India. 'I think a brilliant series to be part of, I thought there were three excellent games of cricket where we've been tested,' she said. 'We've had really close games of cricket. I've seen us against one of the best teams in the world and positives have been around our batting. 'How we've performed with the bat over this series has followed on from the West Indies series. We take a loss in the game, and the ODI series 😢 — England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 22, 2025 'I think India have been exceptional, they've been really disciplined with the ball and I think it's something we can really learn from. 'I think they've out-fielded us, hence why they've lifted the trophy today and we haven't. 'Certainly from every player and fans that have been watching it, it's been a great series to view and we've certainly learned a lot about our squad over the last two or three weeks.'
Glasgow Times
24 minutes ago
- Sport
- Glasgow Times
England saviour Michelle Agyemang ‘something special' says Sarina Wiegman
Agyemang has scored three times in her first four appearances for the defending champions, who were initially stunned in their 2-1 last-four comeback victory over Italy when Barbara Bonansea opened the scoring for the underdogs 33 minutes into the Geneva semi-final. But just as she did in their quarter-final against Sweden, the youngest Lioness in Switzerland came off the bench and levelled late in the second-half. clipping the crossbar in extra-time before fellow replacement Chloe Kelly emphatically buried the rebound from her own saved penalty late in the second period. England goalkeeper Khiara Keating (left), Michelle Agyemang and Leah Williamson celebrate after the match (Nick Potts/PA) 'She has something special,' Wiegman said of Agyemang, who levelled with less than two minutes remaining in second-half stoppage time. 'She's only 19-years-old, she's very mature, she knows exactly what she has to do. 'When you talk about little things that she picks up straight away, because she's not only in the 18-yard box very dangerous but when we have to go to her as a target player, she keeps the ball really well too. 'Even when you saw her shot hit the crossbar, that was not just a shot, she was aiming for it. If she continues like this she has a very bright future.' Despite her tremendous trajectory, Wiegman does not feel pressure to give the major tournament debutant, who scored 41 seconds into her England debut in April, more minutes than she has so far. 'She's not forcing me,' insisted Wiegman, who has now guided teams to three consecutive European finals, and will aim to make it a hat-trick of three trophies – one with the Netherlands and two with England – with victory in Sunday's Basel final. 'I think she is very grateful she gets minutes, and she's really ready for it. I think her growth and her development went so quickly, from not starting at Brighton, being on loan, to getting lots more minutes and showing how good she is and coming into our team. 'I think how these things go, (they've gone) pretty smoothly for her, and I think she feels very good about that. England await their opponents for Sunday's final – either World Cup holders Spain or Germany, who England beat 2-1 in the final of their home Euros to lift their first major trophy in 2022 after Kelly scored in extra time. Agyemang, who returned to parent club Arsenal at the conclusion of the last campaign, drew high praise from Gunners team-mate and England captain Williamson – the woman she replaced with five minutes remaining in normal time. 'She feels inevitable right now,' said Williamson. England's Chloe Kelly beats Ella Toone to the ball to score the second goal (Nick Potts/PA) 'I think she's quality. I think what she brings, she's a nightmare to play against. I'm glad she's my teammate at club and country. 'She deserves her flowers. I hope she gets them. I hope she enjoys tonight, and then I hope she's ready to go at the weekend.' Fellow Gunner Kelly, who signed a permanent agreement with Arsenal earlier this month, said she felt like she was in a 'fantasy' and was feeling 'so proud to be English' after writing more history for her country. Agyemang, she said, 'made something happen for the team, got us back in the game, and built so much momentum for us. 'Especially that one where she hits the crossbar, I think that gave us a new lease of energy. She was unbelievable tonight. She gave us a lot of confidence, and when your forward is doing that, it's special.'
Glasgow Times
24 minutes ago
- Sport
- Glasgow Times
Harry Maguire not with Man Utd squad flying to USA due to personal matter
The 32-year-old defender was a half-time introduction in Saturday's 0-0 friendly draw with Leeds but was replaced in the 74th minute. Maguire was conspicuous by his absence from United's 32-man tour squad announced on Tuesday. PA understands it is due to a personal matter rather than injury, with the club hoping he will be able to join the group in due course. 🚨 TRAVELLING SQUAD 👀 Ruben has selected 32 Reds for the US leg of #MUTOUR25 📋 — Manchester United (@ManUtd) July 22, 2025 Alejandro Garnacho, Antony, Jadon Sancho and Tyrell Malacia have unsurprisingly joined Barcelona-bound Marcus Rashford in being omitted from the travelling party heading for Chicago. The quintet are searching for new clubs and have been training away from Ruben Amorim's first-team squad since indicating that they wish to explore a future away from Old Trafford. Bryan Mbeumo is part of the group after completing his move from Brentford for a fee rising to £71millon on Monday. Fellow summer arrivals Matheus Cunha, whose partner recently gave birth, and Diego Leon are also on the plane. Lisandro Martinez is included as he continues his rehabilitation from a cruciate ligament injury sustained in February. PA understands the United defender is not yet ready for team training. Amorim's side are flying from Manchester to their base in Chicago, where they will play Bournemouth at Soldier Field on July 30 as part of the Premier League Summer Series. They start the pre-season tournament at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey – host of next year's World Cup final – against West Ham on Saturday evening local time. United finish their three-game trip against Everton at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Atlanta on August 3. Amorim's side welcome Fiorentina, including United great David De Gea, to Old Trafford for their final warm-up friendly on August 9 – the weekend before their Premier League opener at home to Arsenal.
