No Mary to keep Hannah on her toes but England can trust in Sarina
England go in as defending champions but Sarina Wiegman has been quick to distance herself from that label as she doesn't want this team to be saddled with that pressure, simple as that.
It's a few weeks since Millie Bright, Mary Earps and Fran Kirby chose not to play and we know just how good and what a loss those players are.
But Sarina will have been instilling confidence in the players she does have.
Yes, experience from those three is missing but all those in the squad have big games with their clubs, at youth level with England or both behind them.
In Earps' absence, I did think the 7-0 friendly win over Jamaica was an opportunity to look at our back-up goalkeepers Anna Moorhouse and Khiara Keating, neither of whom have a senior cap.
But we trust in Sarina and I know the role of a No.2 or No.3 keeper at a tournament because I have been there myself: unless there is an absolute emergency, you are not going to play and you're there to prepare the No.1, Hannah Hampton.
I was honestly a bit disappointed in Mary's decision. You can infer from the call from her that she felt her strengths were probably not going to be what was required at this Euros once it became clear she wasn't going to be the No.1.
I felt Mary had had enough experience that she would want to give back but then, I'm not Mary. It's important to remember football never stands still and squads evolve.
Hosts Switzerland lost their opening game but can still progress from their group and world champions Spain are an obvious threat to England's European crown.
There is a rivalry there from the 2023 World Cup final as well as Arsenal's victory over Barcelona to win the Champions League in May.
Many of the starting XI for Spain at this tournament will be made up of Barcelona players, so that memory for them of losing to an English team just weeks ago will still be very raw, but you can't say that Spain aren't favourites to win this competition.
It is a tough Euros just in terms of group qualification. We finished third and went through in 2009 but this time just the top two from each group –and England have a tricky one – progress.
The Netherlands have great quality and France have been a little bit reinvented without Wendie Renard and Eugenie Le Sommer, who have been left out and are two big losses for them.
Manager Laurent Bonadei is clearly looking to youth and France, the biggest obstacle in Group D, are a big danger to us on Saturday night.
They will have watched England's performance against Jamaica and will look to exploit any weaknesses at set-pieces. The Lionesses will have to be a lot more solid and compact this weekend.
But I do believe England can win Euro 2025 and shouldn't fear anyone.
I have to pick out Spain forward Salma Paralluelo, who really made the world sit up and take notice of her at the World Cup.
Lauren James is our magic player, a generational talent. The only player I can compare her to is Kelly Smith – a footballer you can't really define and who can change a game.
Chelsea star Lauren, back from injury, certainly did that when she came on against Jamaica on Sunday. More Trending
Lauren Hemp has also been out injured but has got better and better. The experienced Alex Greenwood will get her chance at centre-back alongside Leah Williamson I imagine, with Bright out of the tournament.
It is in the forward line where England's strengths lie. Aggie Beever-Jones is only 21 but was Chelsea's top scorer last term and has major tournament experience at youth level.
Rachel Brown-Finnis will be working on the BBC's coverage of Euro 2025
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Daily Mirror
14 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Hefty Euro 2025 drinks prices including beer cost and £14.70 'Turbo Mate'
Thousands of England fans are expected in Switzerland to watch the Lionesses attempt to retain their European Championships title, and drinks prices won't be the cheapest England fans following the Lionesses at Euro 2025 will face hefty drinks prices in Zurich city centre - including in the fan zone Sarina Wiegman's team will play their first two group games in Zurich's Stadion Letzigrund before moving on to St Gallen to face Wales. A 400ml glass of lager will set supporters back CHF7.50 (£6.91) inside the Zurich fan zone, while a 100ml glass of wine costing £7.38 and prosecco available for £7.84. And non-alcoholic drinks aren't a great deal cheaper. It's £5.99 for a non-alcoholic beer, which comes in a 330ml serving, while 500mls of Gatorade, iced tea or fizzy drinks will set you back £5.53. You can also get half-litre bottles of water for £4.15, the same price as a coffee. If fans want to really push the boat out, though, they can get alcoholic aperitifs for £11.05 or long drinks for £14.70. These are vodka, gin or rum-based, with options including a 'Turbo Mate' - blending the herbal drink with an alcohol of your choice. There are also independent food stands located around the viewing areas and throughout the fan village, with offerings including traditional Swiss fare like raclette as well as kebabs, loaded fries and more. Price-wise, it's not much different outside the fan areas, with bars around the city charging comparable prices. England are set to be one of the best-supported teams at the Euros, which began on Wednesday with wins for Finland over Iceland and Norway against hosts Switzerland. "Already there are 61,000 Germans, 41,000 English, 16,000 French, 15,000 Dutch and 5,000 American fans,' Nadine Kessler, UEFA director for women's football, said. "I think we are at 114 nationalities and that's exactly what we want – that's unheard of in women's football – and it shows we have taken the right lessons from England 2022 and are on the way to a record-breaking event." England's players have been sticking to the iced drinks during the time out in Switzerland, with manager Sarina Wiegman detailing the ways her players have been keeping cool. 'We have these cold vests, we have [an] ice bath, ice drinks they can drink before training session they could also cool down a bit, get your temperature a little bit lower,' Wiegman said on Wednesday. 'We have ice cold towels at the rest moment in the training sessions ,they get the towels if they want to. So we make sure we are hydrated. Take another rest, don't go in and out all the time, for recovery, and do those things to keep your body temperature low.' Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
BBC News
29 minutes ago
- BBC News
Your best Wimbledon questions answered
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However, any close calls will be replayed automated technology is completely reliable - but the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) told BBC Sport that the criteria used to assess the electronic line calling systems are "extremely robust" to ensure that "only the most reliable and accurate systems can be used". How does the referee decide when to suspend play? Question from Sally in WarwickshireBen Shelton's second-round match against Rinky Hijikata on Thursday was suspended because of bad light when he was two sets up and led 5-4 in the third - so was potentially one game from tournament director Jamie Baker said the decision to bring Shelton and Hijikata off court was because of "extremely dark" completed the match on Friday in 84 seconds, but Baker said the move to suspend play the previous evening was "definitely the right decision"."Our focus at all times is the integrity of the competition. We try, with every decision we make, to be as fair as we possibly can [and] uphold the rules of the tournament," said Baker."We gave the players as much time as we possibly could to try to finish that match. We played till very, very late. It was extremely dark."We have a team of officials who are on the court, and they're making a judgment call on several different factors, and one of them is how the players feel."Ben actually had match point in the last game [on Thursday] that he didn't quite get and then at 5-4, the officials saw how dark it was."This is the pinnacle tennis tournament in the world. They just did not feel comfortable with the match continuing in almost complete darkness. So we do stand by the decision."Sometimes these things happen. Lots of matches to get on court, but yes, it was definitely the right decision from the officials." Will Sonay Kartal become the new British number one? Question from Josh in BirminghamIn terms of LTA World Tour ranking points, Emma Raducanu's third-round match with world number one Aryna Sabalenka on Friday had a lot at into Wimbledon 2025, Raducanu was the top-ranked British woman at 40th in the world. The next two best Britons were Katie Boulter in 43rd and Sonay Kartal in Raducanu reached the fourth round in 2024, she was defending 240 points at this year's tournament and started 43 ahead of was defending 70. Because she exited in the second round, she maintained those 70 for the is defending 130 but for reaching the fourth round, has already earned 240 ranking points for the 2025 edition, meaning a gain in ranking points of at least guaranteed gain takes her above Raducanu following the former US Open champion's loss in the third round to also moves ahead of Raducanu - and for now is the British number this would change again if Kartal progresses beyond round four. If she does this, she is guaranteed to move above Boulter when the tournament ends. How do the AI line judges tell a foot from a ball? Question from Kath in South WalesThe ITF and AELTC say the system used is not artificial intelligence, but an electronic line calling said: "The system is a highly advanced real time optical tracking system that captures and tracks the position of the ball and the players throughout every point in the match. "As the system tracks these positions continuously during play, it can identify the positions of the ball and the player, including their feet - balls and feet move very differently on court."This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. What is Ask Me Anything? Ask Me Anything is a service dedicated to answering your questions came from Graham in Kenilworth, Adam in Slough, Morag in New Aberdour, Michael in Rustington, Mark in Hertfordshire, Sally in Warwickshire, Josh in Birmingham and Kath in South Wales. Thanks all for your questions!We want to reward your time by telling you things you do not know and reminding you of things you team will find out everything you need to know and be able to call upon a network of contacts, including our experts and will be answering your questions from the heart of the BBC Sport newsroom, and going behind the scenes at some of the world's biggest sporting coverage will span the BBC Sport website, app, social media and YouTube accounts, plus BBC TV and radio. More questions answered... What does 'Open era' mean in tennis?What are the heat rules at Wimbledon?Top tips for queuing at WimbledonWill there be line judges at Wimbledon 2025?
Telegraph
37 minutes ago
- Telegraph
‘Wales players are tough but I have given them belief'
On the eve of Wales's European Championship play-off final decider against Ireland in December, Rhian Wilkinson received a poem. The player-cum-poet of the squad who had shared it remained anonymous, but the manager decided to use it as part of her pre-match talk in Dublin. 'They woke up, and felt they had this poem in their heart,' she says. 'She wrote it out and shared it with me. I was like, 'I have to use it'. 'So, our last message before they stepped on the field in Dublin was written by one of them. That's their culture, that's them embracing sport, of course, but also, 'This is who we are'.' When taking charge of Wales in February 2024, the 43-year-old inherited a side who had been burnt at the boundary between qualification and tournament finals, who had been paralysed with a fear of letting their families down. The most recent near-miss – a defeat by Switzerland in the dying seconds of 2023's World Cup qualification play-off – had been under Gemma Grainger, who was head-hunted by Norway to leave the coaching post vacant. They also missed out on the 2013, 2015 and 2019 tournament play-offs by either a single game or goal difference. 'Sport can be traumatic,' Wilkinson says. 'It is such a privileged lifestyle but the losses, the errors you make, the goals you miss, the goals you concede, all of it piles up and creates a bank of fear. For these women, who are so connected to the team, their sisterhood, but also their families, they bring an extra element.' Throughout our chat, Wilkinson's Canadian accent is assertive and full-toned. It often takes days for her voice to recover from a match day, she says, but she is deliberate in her use of language: 'I stress I always say 'we', because the players got annoyed when I used to say 'they'. They were like: 'You are on this journey with us, so you better be part of the 'we'.' Wilkinson, who won 183 caps and two Olympic medals for Canada before moving into coaching roles with the youth teams of her native country, followed by stints with England, Great Britain and Portland Thorns (with whom she won the NWSL), hit the ground running when taking on the Wales job. There were emphatic victories over Croatia and Kosovo in their first two qualifiers, before back-to-back draws against Ukraine contained runaway hopes. Behind the scenes, steep cultural lessons were quickly learnt. 'I speak quite openly on getting it wrong on our first camp, in not understanding the real connection they have with the 'For us, for them, for her' slogan,' she says. 'That was work they had done with Gemma [Grainger], with Lowri [Roberts, the former head of women's football]. My mistake was not understanding how much that heritage meant to them. 'Like when you go into an organisation and it has something written on the wall that everyone sees every day but doesn't know what it means. That's not true with the FAW [Football Association of Wales]. I had a presentation prepared for me to really show what the players had done on language and who they were. I had skipped those steps, those are critical. 'Family is not a word that is thrown around casually in Wales. It is their driver, their force, their courage; it's that piece of recognising what came before and who set the foundation and understanding that the legacy part is critical.' Wilkinson was aware that the Welsh women's team have had to fight for their space. Twenty years ago, the FAW withdrew from the Euros qualifying campaign because of a lack of funds. Two decades on, the story is staggeringly different as interest in women's football has exploded. In 2021, the FAW set a target of 20,000 registered players by 2026; it is well on course to achieve it by the end of this year. In the stands, its target of a 3,600 average home attendance has been overtaken by this year's home average of more than 10,000. Football in Wales in the past decade has also taken on a new dimension as an expression of Welsh culture. The Welsh worship their sporting heroes in a typically 'small country' way. Former First Minister Rhodri Morgan once described this as 'a special kind of need for heroes that could reassure us of our existence as a country'. Across the men's and women's sides, through Wilkinson and Craig Bellamy – whose successes since taking their respective helms at similar times have mirrored their determined nature – Wales are asserting themselves as a footballing nation deserving of the global stage. 'We are a small nation. And so sometimes we are treated as a small nation,' she says. 'It's what happens when you have a much bigger nation right on your doorstep. But what happens then is that you can often feel a little bit 'other'. I don't think our Welsh players always get the playing time they deserve. They haven't been able to show themselves on the world stage in the way other nations have. 'We have a smaller player pool, but equally, we have earned the privilege of representing the country in a much different way. They've had to fight for everything they've received, which has made them resilient, made them tough, but it hasn't always given them the belief. What I've brought in is just that they're good enough.' The talismanic influence of Jess Fishlock was not in doubt, even before Dublin, but even in her recent absences, the team have proved their collective identity and quality. After they were promoted to the Nations League Group A, Wales, ranked 30 in the world – the lowest in this summer's tournament – have faced a consistent step up in opposition. Their recent relegation back to Group B has shown the gap is yet to close, but performances have impressed. Narrow losses against Italy and Denmark were bookmarked by consecutive draws to sixth-ranked Sweden, though a heavy defeat by the Italians before their first Euros fixture will have hurt. On the whole, players such as 21-year-old Carrie Jones, Liverpool's Ceri Holland, Leicester City's Hannah Cain, and captain Angharad James have all stepped up as cornerstones of a well-organised unit that has relinquished the need for individual heroes. Wilkinson has also called on 18-year-olds Mayzee Davies and Mared Griffiths, and 20-year-old Safia Middleton-Patel, all of whom have impressed, although Davies is now sidelined by an anterior cruciate ligament injury. 'If you look at the weakness of Wales, we don't have the population, we don't have the player registration, we don't have the age groups, but it's actually also a strength,' Wilkinson says. 'Players don't get held up in the age groups, they get promoted to where they should be. If your younger or less experienced players don't feel they are of equal value, you are in trouble. 'I like that we can adjust and adapt the way bigger organisations can't as easily. They are just like mammoth ships and changing course with a tanker is a challenge.' 'Never forget who came before' Wilkinson guided this Welsh side to a first major international tournament but throughout this conversation, she is keen to praise her predecessors and players. She even mentions Princess Gwenllian, the heroine whom fought against Norman forces in 1136. 'People talk about legacy a lot, and that is critical for us, but even more importantly for me is that we never forget who came before,' she says. 'If we are not moving this sport forward, if we are not moving women's opportunities forward, then we are doing them a disservice.' Her side's reward for qualifying? Being drawn in the toughest group. They are undeniable outsiders against France, the Netherlands and neighbours England. 'If we do the best we can against those three opponents and play in a way we can be proud of, we'll walk away from these Euros feeling like we've done nothing but great service to the legacy part of what we're trying to achieve,' she says calmly, before becoming more animated at the thought of what this summer means. 'More people will see our incredible flag, more people will hear our amazing anthem, people will see a country that fights well above its weight, and has always done. Maybe they will want to learn more about this country and these women, and how they speak and how much they care about what came before.'
