England have it inside them to win
Mariona Caldentey says England "have it inside them" to win Euro 2025 and Spain must be wary when the teams meet again in the final.Sunday's game in Basel (17:00 BST kick-off) will be a repeat of the 2023 Women's World Cup final - which Spain won 1-0 in Sydney.The two teams also went head-to-head in this year's Women's Nations League, with England picking up a 1-0 victory at Wembley in February, before suffering a 2-1 defeat in Barcelona in June.Midfielder Caldentey won the Women's Champions League with Arsenal this season and was named the WSL player of the year - so knows the Lionesses well. "I know the footballers they are and I know what they can do," Caldentey told BBC Sport. "It's a final, so they are dangerous even though they can't maybe play the greatest football yet, but they have it inside them. It will be a hard, but good game."Reigning champions England have had a rollercoaster tournament, overcoming several setbacks to reach their third successive major final.Following defeat by France in their opening group game, they came through a quarter-final penalty shootout against Sweden and needed an extra-time winner in their semi-final to beat Italy.World champions Spain have now won six consecutive knockout matches at major tournaments - but will be competing in their first Euros final."Today we can enjoy. Tomorrow we have to start thinking of England," said two-time Ballon d'Or winner Aitana Bonmati following their 1-0 win over Germany. "I know England have played twice for 120 minutes. We trust in our squad. We believe in our players. "They have a lot of players that we faced a lot of times and in 2023. We know them and they know us. We want to prepare the best we can."
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Telegraph
a few seconds ago
- Telegraph
Lionesses are ultimate ‘Mentality Monsters' of international football
So now we have the definition of what 'Proper England' means. Up until the final of the European Championship it was just a kind of relatable phrase, with a bit of street language coolness, that the players were encouraged to use. But it could mean many things. It could mean anything. Good and, in fact, bad. Now that the Lionesses have so courageously retained their title, becoming the first senior England team to win a major trophy overseas, we know exactly what those two words amount to. Proper England is about character, about resilience, about desire, about digging deep and then digging deeper, about defying the odds, about defying logic even, about refusing to lose. It is about Hannah Hampton emerging from the shadows and replacing such a big character as Mary Earps to be the penalty shoot-out hero; about Jess Carter returning to deliver an immense performance in the heart of defence following the despicable racist abuse she suffered; about Lucy Bronze being barely able to run but staying on until the pain was too much and she was reduced to tears and later revealing she played the tournament with a fractured tibia; about Georgia Stanway being outplayed by Spain's technically brilliant midfield for 45 minutes and then turning it around and taking the fight to them in the second half; about Chloe Kelly doing what Chloe Kelly does. It is about Sarina Wiegman, the Dutch coach who has not just taken teams to five consecutive finals, three of them with England, but has won all four penalty shoot-outs that England, so derided in such scenarios before she and Gareth Southgate arrived, have taken part in. Once those shoot-outs provoked fear and ridicule. Now England just back themselves. And on and on it goes. But it needs a simple definition and that definition is this: England are, to steal Jürgen Klopp's phrase about his Liverpool team, the new 'Mentality Monsters'. That is what Proper England means. That is what the Lionesses have done. That is the transformation they have completed. They have redefined England and England as a force in international football and what an astonishing achievement that is. What an overturning of convention. Years of hurt? Forget about it. The shirt weighing heavy? No, it inspires them. Football's coming home? We have done that. Twice. This is a Golden Age. A Golden Generation. For women and – we hope – for men. For England as a whole, in fact, so we need to exploit it as well as rejoice in it as, of course, it does not last forever. The men have lost two Euro finals (the first of which they should have won); they are so close. They have not got that mentality right just yet – hence the hiring of Thomas Tuchel – but we have to hope it is to come. It has already arrived for their under-21s who, like the senior women, have retained their European title. There is a pathway. So buckle up and enjoy the ride. Any rational analysis will conclude that Spain were the better team. They played the better football. They had more control and more chances and will feel robbed. But sport is not logical, which is partly why it is so glorious. Instead it can defy that logic and bend to belief. These Lionesses always find a way and they did it the hard way – as they did throughout this tournament: becoming the first holders ever to lose their first game, dealing with that pressure and criticism and then coming through three periods of extra time and two shoot-outs. That takes extraordinary resilience. 'Football is chaos,' Wiegman said. But it also about who holds their nerve and rides that chaos. Who can tame it. England did that whereas, for decades, they allowed the chaos to dominate them, overwhelm them and the fear of losing destroying the desire to win. England's men's team went out of Euro 2016 to Iceland, arguably their biggest ever humiliation, with Wayne Rooney admitting he and his team-mates were fearing the media and fan reaction to defeat after they went 2-1 behind. Even though there was still 72 minutes to play. They froze; they felt the fear and could not cope. It feels a distant memory now, not just a nadir struck only nine years ago and the Lionesses are at the vanguard of banishing it. It has to be stressed the men need to follow but Southgate has shown them the way; it is now for Tuchel to emulate Wiegman and get them to the promised land. But no longer does it feel an impossible mission and an impossible job. Instead after the Football Association launched its 'England DNA' project in 2014, to improve the development of English footballers and produce a consistent and progressive way of playing, we have another layer to it: what Proper England means and how the Lionesses have taken that on, embraced it, rejoiced in it. It is not about a bulldog spirit or showing passion or being physical or playing harum-scarum football. It is not even about how the game should be played or style of football although, if England are to prolong this period of success, the next step must be to develop a player as wonderful on the ball as Aitana Bonmati. Instead it is about having belief and never letting that waver. It is about that indefinable quality that comes with a simple definition. It is about being the Mentality Monsters of international football. And that is some title to claim.
The Guardian
a few seconds ago
- The Guardian
'We're English and you can't write us off': Lionesses celebrate Euro 2025 win
Chloe Kelly praised England's fighting qualities after they retained their European crown by beating Spain in the final of Euro 2025 in Switzerland. As she did in their victorious 2022 campaign, Kelly scored the decisive goal, coolly converting in the shootout as the Lionesses prevailled 3-1, having played out a 1-1 draw over 120 minutes.
Daily Mirror
a few seconds ago
- Daily Mirror
Pizza, karaoke and Champagne: Inside England Lionesses' celebrations as stars party until 4am
The Lionesses partied into the early hours of the morning after overcoming Spain on penalties to defend their European Championship title in Switzerland on Sunday The beauty of defending your title is that you already have plenty of practice at celebrating - and England put all their experience to good use on Sunday night. After lifting the European Championship trophy once more, the Lionesses partied deep into the night in joyous scenes in Switzerland. They did it the hard way, getting through 120 gruelling minutes against Spain before Chloe Kelly struck the winning penalty into the net. It wasn't long until the Lionesses' unofficial anthem, Sweet Caroline, was being blasted out of the speakers in Basel. Sarina Wiegman's side had got revenge on Spain, who beat them in the World Cup final two years ago, and having overcome a huge amount of adversity, they were ready to let their hair down. After collecting their winners' medals - and a young player of the tournament award in the case of Michelle Agyemang - the victorious squad set about celebrating with their family and friends. Captain Leah Williamson gathered the squad for a selfie taken in front of their loved ones in the stands before a victory lap around St. Jakob-Park. Lucy Bronze was seen celebrating with her family, limping around to try and limit the damage to her leg, which remarkably she revealed was broken. It wasn't long before the pizza boxes and cans of beer were summoned and, as the supporters disappeared out of the stadium, the next phase of the celebrations could start. Asked what her plans were, Wiegman - who has now won a remarkable three straight Euros titles - said: 'I'll do some more dancing. I'll have a drink but I don't think I'll drink as much as the players will do." Agyemang, who has gone from relative unknown to national hero after scoring two crucial goals off the bench in the knockout stages, wasn't giving much away when asked what the night had in store. "I can't say too much about that," the 19-year-old said. "We're going to have a good time." Ella Toone was a bit more forthcoming. "We're going to enjoy the night," she said. "I love a party, I'm a Tyldesley girl of course I love a party." The England midfielder certainly delivered on that statement later in the night. The players had already begun the celebrations in earnest as they walked through the media mixed zone holding cans of beer and boxes of pizza. But it was once they got back to their hotel when the fun really started. Players and staff were handed a glass of bubbly upon entrance, and in hero goalkeeper Hannah Hampton's case, a dog to celebrate with. Everything had been prepared for them, with Lionesses balloons on the walls and a room packed full of their friends and family wearing England shirts with the names of loved ones on awaiting. The players wore T-shirts emblazoned with "Champions 2025" on the front, while Agyemang sported some dark sunglasses. The DJ then got things going, playing Proud by Heather Small, starting the first of many, many singalongs. Freed from Desire by Gala quickly followed before Rockin' All Over the World by Status Quo, with the words changed to "England won two in a row". After Still D.R.E. by Dr Dre, Williamson and Wiegman, arm in arm, cut a three-tiered cake. Next it was karaoke and Toone was quickly on the mic, blasting out River Deep, Mountain High by Tina Turner, dedicating it to her former team-mate Rachel Daly, who is known for her love of the tune. Another rendition of Sweet Caroline, Titanium by David Guetta and Unwritten by Natasha Beddingfield followed. By now the clock had ticked past 4am in Switzerland, and while the dancefloor had thinned out, there were still plenty of Lionesses partying, along with Alessia Russo's brother Giorgio Russo, who has been a fixture in Switzerland since returning from Love Island. Speaking earlier, Wiegman had struggled to put into words what the victory meant for her and the team. "You know what, I don't realise it yet," she told BBC Radio 5 Live. "I am still in the stage where it's 'this is unbelievable' 'did this really happen?' So I can't answer this question. Very, very happy but a little strange. Just unbelievable.' There won't yet be time for it to sink it, with the Lionesses flying back to England on Monday before a visit to No.10 Downing Street to meet Prime Minister Keir Starmer. There will be a celebration reception for the squad, who will try their best not to repeat the mistakes of England men's cricketers' infamous visit after winning the 2005 Ashes. 'I don't watch movies back so often but I will probably look and see some things back," Wiegman said. "The journey has been incredible." The party wasn't bad either.
