England vs Sweden: Score and updates from Women's Euro 2025 quarter-final
'We respect England, the team they have and everything they have achieved so far. But fear? No. We don't have the word fear in our dictionary,' Sweden captain Kosovare Asllani said.
'We look up the word courage. Of course you have to respect one of the best sides in the world but we have the perfect game plan for this match.
'We want to achieve the football we want to represent. In our minds there is only one outcome and that is to win the game.'
England's defeat to France meant they finished second in the group and know that victory tonight will see them face Italy, who beat Norway 2-1 in the first quarter-final yesterday. There was talk that this would benefit the Lionesses as it would mean avoiding facing Spain until the final. Wiegman, however, denied that there was an easier side to the draw.
'You try to win every game then see where you finish in the group, then you play who's in front of you,' she said, knowing all too well that Sweden will provide a formidable test this evening. 'If you want to be successful in the tournament you should be able to win every game, so that's how we approach it.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
Lauren James injury latest as England provide update on ‘scare' ahead of Euro 2025 final
England forward Lauren James is set to be available for the Euro 2025 final against Spain after recovering from an ankle injury. James was forced off at half-time during England's semi-final win over Italy but has trained in the days before the final and is set to be fit. Sarina Wiegman expects to have all 23 players available for selection, should they come through their final recovery, including James. 'We had 23 players on the pitch today and everyone came through, so if everyone recovers well then we have 23 players available for tomorrow,' Wiegman said. 'I think we have many players that can impact, and we know that (James) can have an impact too, so that will be nice.' James played a key part in England's 1-0 win over the world champions Spain at Wembley in February - the last time Spain lost a match. 'Lauren brings something slightly different,' Leah Williamson said. 'Just like the others, so obviously having that available is best-case scenario for us.' Williamson has recovered from her own ankle injury and is set to captain England in the final after missing out of the 2023 World Cup, where the Lionesses lost 1-0 to Spain in Sydney. 'I can speak for every single member of the squad when I say we will play as long as we get the green light, we would play through absolutely anything to be involved at this stage,' Williamson said. 'My ankle is great. My mum actually rolled her ankle a couple of days ago, so she's taken all the attention away from me now. But no, I had a scare. Obviously I want to be involved, and I want to be available to help the team any way they need me.' Williamson said it was 'awful' to miss out on the last World Cup and admitted she felt 'useless' watching England in the final against Spain. 'That probably bothered me the most,' Williamson said. 'Of course, I'm very happy with that,' Wiegman said when asked about Williamson's availability as captain. 'I am very happy that we have 23 players available tomorrow and yeah, Leah has a big role in the team, so it's really nice to have her on the pitch.'
The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
England captain Leah Williamson delivers powerful message ahead of Euro 2025 final
England captain Leah Williamson said the Lionesses are determined to not be a 'flash in the pan' and 'continue their legacy' as game-changers as they prepare to face world champions Spain in the Euro 2025 final in Basel. The Lionesses have reached a third consecutive major tournament final and will defend the European title won at Wembley three years ago against a Spain team who defeated them in the World Cup final in 2023. Sarina Wiegman 's side have the opportunity to be the first English team to win a major title on foreign soil and Williamson, who was also captain for their historic success at Euro 2022 but then missed the World Cup through injury, said the Lionesses are motivated to add to their story. 'You don't want to be a flash in the pan, a memory. When we spoke before 2022, we said it was the start of something and we are still trying to play our role in that as well,' Williamson said. 'Being here and being on this stage, we know how powerful that is and I hope it continues to grow. I hope the respect for the women's game, the respect for women and women's sport continues and we can try our best to continue to elevate that. 'The beautiful thing about 2022 was that I'm not sure any of us will ever be a part of something like that again in terms of the change, the story and journey. "Being away from home is special in a different way. You go out to represent your country somewhere else and the weight of that is important to consider. It sometimes adds a little extra. "The history on the line, it seems [when] this team enters a new year there's so much to be done and could be done and I think it's a real privileged time to be part of this team. 'The opportunity to be the first this and first that is a big motivator but more because we know what it does for women's football and continues the legacy that we've already started." Spain defeated England 1-0 in the World Cup final two years ago but Williamson disagreed with the idea that the Lionesses were underdogs against the world champions, who are aiming to win the Euros for the first time. 'I think tomorrow we play a game against the world champions who continue to prove themselves over and over in the way they play football,' Williamson said. 'They are fantastic footballing team and they are the best at what they do and we're very much aware of that. 'We think we're pretty good in areas as well. We need to be at our best to beat Spain. I think they need to be at their best to beat us too. There is a lot of respect between the two teams. I would be hesitant to say there's an underdog in this scenario. 'Ultimately we're going against the world champions tomorrow and that's not an easy job. We will prepare ourselves as best we can for that challenge.' England reached the Euro 2025 final after requiring miraculous escapes against Sweden in the quarter-finals and Italy in the semi-finals and Williamson said England could not afford to go into the final afraid of defeat. 'We focus on being the best people we can to each other, performing the best that we can and hopefully that gives you the result you want,' Williamson said. 'But definitely not fearful of losing because you do expend energy in ways you don't want to." Wiegman confirmed England have all 23 players available for the final, including Lauren James - who has recovered from an ankle injury to be in contention. 'We had 23 players on the pitch today and everyone came through so if everyone recovers well then we have 23 players available for tomorrow,' Wiegman said. 'We have many players that can impact and we know [James] can have an impact so that will be nice.' 'I would just echo what Sarina says, we have a team of talented players,' Williamson added. 'We all bring something slightly different just like the others - obviously having [James] available is best case scenario for us.'
BBC News
17 minutes ago
- BBC News
Tottenham held to draws by Wycombe and Luton
Tottenham were forced to settle for pre-season friendly draws against Wycombe Wanderers and Luton Town, with both matches ending 2-2 and 0-0 respectively on Saturday coach Thomas Frank fielded two different starting XIs for the fixtures, both of which struggled to find a breakthrough against their League One behind-closed-doors friendly against Wycombe at Hotspur Way was a late addition to the club's calendar, but it handed the likes of Richarlison, Wilson Odobert and Brandon Austin their first pre-season Matar Sarr was one of the standout performers, netting a brace as Spurs came from behind to clinch a struggled in their second friendly of the day at Kenilworth Road though, as a team including summer signing Mohammed Kudus plus first-team regulars Micky van de Ven, Brennan Johnson and Guglielmo Vicario recorded just two shots over 90 minutes.
