Latest news with #WomenEuros
Daily Mail
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Zlatan Ibrahimovic sends message to 'sad' Sweden teen Smilla Holmberg after her miss against England in the 'worst penalty shoot out ever'
Sweden legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic sent a message of encouragement to Smilla Holmberg after the 18-year-old missed the decisive spot-kick in Thursday's penalty-shootout defeat by England. Holmberg skied over the bar from 12 yards to hand the Lionesses victory in what was dubbed the 'worst penalty shootout ever' by multiple fans. With the Women's Euros quarter-final having ended in a 2-2 draw after extra time, England won 3-2 on penalties after each team had taken seven kicks. Alessia Russo, Julia Zigiotti Olme, Nathalie Bjorn, Chloe Kelly and Lucy Bronze were the only players to successfully convert from the spot in a chaotic shootout featuring nine misses – including one from Sweden goalkeeper Jennifer Falk, who had saved three penalties before blasting her own over the crossbar. Holmberg's miss proved decisive and the teenager was left in tears, but she received an unexpected boost the following morning in the form of a personal message from Sweden's greatest male footballer. 'It was a sad daughter I held in my arms about an hour after the game,' Holmberg's father, Ola Persson, told Swedish radio. 'She is strong and she has received a lot of support from both the team, supporters, friends and relatives. She even got a text message from Zlatan here this morning.' Ibrahimovic, who is part-owner of Holmberg's club Hammarby and scored 62 goals in 122 caps for Sweden's men's team, encouraged the young defender to take the next penalty, and the next one after that – urging her to believe in herself and to grow from the experience. 'The most important thing is that no-one defines a career by those misses,' Persson added. 'In fact, it's the opposite – you have to grow in those situations.' Holmberg had stepped up after misses from team-mate Filippa Angeldahl and England trio Lauren James, Beth Mead and Alex Greenwood, among others. She needed to score to force an eighth round of penalties, but her effort sailed over the bar. England goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, who saved two spot-kicks and finished the match with a bloodied face after a collision earlier in the quarter-final, admitted the shootout was 'stressful' for all involved. 'Every time I saved one I was thinking, 'please just put it in so we have a bit of a cushion,' she told the BBC. 'Then their keeper saved the next one and I was thinking, "oh goodness, here we go."' England had looked dead and buried after falling 2-0 behind to first-half goals from Kosovare Asllani and Stina Blackstenius, but mounted a dramatic late comeback with goals in the 79th and 81st minutes from Bronze and teenage substitute Michelle Agyemang. The victory sent Sarina Wiegman's side into a fourth semi-final in five tournaments – and made them the first reigning champions since Germany in 2009 to reach the final four of the following Euros. England will face Italy in Geneva on Tuesday.
Reuters
2 days ago
- Sport
- Reuters
England beat Sweden in sensational penalty shoot-out to reach Women's Euro semis
ZURICH, July 17 (Reuters) - England beat Sweden 3-2 in an astonishing penalty shootout that featured 14 attempts to reach the Women's Euros semi-finals on Thursday after the reigning champions had fought back from 2-0 down to force the game to extra time. It was a thrilling climax to a game in which England teetered on the brink of elimination, only to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. In all, Sweden keeper Jennifer Falk saved four penalties, but she skied the potentially winning spot kick over the bar, throwing a lifeline to England that they gleefully grabbed. Lucy Bronze fired the holders into the lead before Swedish teenager Smilla Holmberg blasted her effort high over the crossbar to end the contest. It all looked so different for the Swedes as they roared into an early lead, Stina Blackstenius teeing up captain Kosovare Asllani to score in the second minute after England gave the ball away cheaply, and Blackstenius then out-ran Jess Carter to score with a confident finish herself in the 25th minute. The Swedes looked more than comfortable throughout the first half as England floundered. Following the interval coach Sarina Wiegman rang in the changes, bringing on Beth Mead, Michelle Agyemang and Esme Morgan in the 70th minute, and the introduction of Chloe Kelly a few minutes later added even more attacking verve. Bronze pulled a goal back for England in the 79th minute, meeting Kelly's cross and heading home from a tight angle to re-ignite the white-clad fans in the crowd and Agyemang levelled two minutes later with a superb poacher's finish to send the game to extra time. Both sides had their fair share of chances in extra time but the game went to penalties, and though the Swedes missed their first spot kick, Falk's superb saves soon put them in the driving seat. She had the chance to win it but she sent her kick high over the bar, and though she saved from Grace Clinton, Bronze beat her from the spot. After Sofia Jakobsson's miss, the pressure proved too much for the 18-year-old Holmberg, who fired over. "Right now, I don't know, I don't know," England keeper Hannah Hampton, who suffered a bloody nose in the game, said when asked how she felt after the dramatic victory. "It's just all gone so quick, like that last little bit in the penalty shootout, but... we're very happy, obviously, you can see all the celebrations going around." Wiegman breathed a sigh of relief at the final whistle. "It was hard. One of the hardest games I've ever watched. Very emotional. We could've been out four or five times during the game. When you're 2-0 down at halftime, it's not good," she said. "We started really badly and then at the end of the first half we got better and in the second half we got better but we didn't create anything so we had to change shape. Then we scored two goals so that was crazy already. "Then we go into extra-time, some players injured, some players cramping, Hannah Hampton with blood all over the place, then we go to the penalty shootout and we miss a lot but they miss even more and we're through," she added. England will face Italy in Geneva on Tuesday for a place in the final.
Reuters
2 days ago
- Sport
- Reuters
England beat Sweden on penalties to reach Women's Euro semis
ZURICH, July 17 (Reuters) - England came back from two goals down to draw 2-2 before beating Sweden 3-2 in a nail-biting penalty shoot-out to reach the semi-finals of the Women's Euros, with Sweden's Smilla Holmberg firing over to end the contest. Stina Blackstenius teed up Sweden captain Kosovare Asllani to score in the second minute after England gave the ball away cheaply, and Blackstenius then out-ran Jess Carter to score with a confident finish herself in the 25th minute. Lucy Bronze pulled a goal back for England in the 79th minute, meeting Chloe Kelly's cross and heading home from a tight angle to re-ignite the white-clad fans in the crowd and substitute Michelle Agyemang levelled two minutes later with a superb poacher's finish to send the game to extra time. Both sides had their fair share of chances in extra time but the game went to penalties. Swedish keeper Jennifer Falk saved four spot kicks and skied the potentially decisive penalty over the bar, but Lucy Bronze fired England into the lead and Holmberg skied her attempt as the champions went through to the last four.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
England through to semi-finals of Women's Euros after beating Sweden on penalties
England have booked their place in the semi-finals of the Women's Euros after knocking out Sweden. The won 3-2 on penalties at Stadion Letzigrund in Zurich, Switzerland, after clawing their way back into the game. The defending champions had been 2-0 down at half-time. It was Lucy Bronze who delivered the first England goal, assisted by substitute Chloe Kelly. Moments later, Michelle Agyemang followed suit, bringing the score level before going into extra-time in the quarter-final match. After a goalless extra-time, it all came down to penalties. Alessia Russo kicked things off, finding the back of the net for England, before Lauren James and Alex Greenwood had their attempts saved by Sweden's Jennifer Falk. The game was sent into sudden death after Falk went face-to-face with England's Hannah Hampton but sent the ball flying over the crossbar. It all came down to Sweden's seventh penalty after Bronze sensationally scored, with18-year-old Smilla Holmberg missing the chance to send her team through. England will next face Italy in the semi-finals in Geneva on Tuesday. Pressure was on the Lionesses after . Their journey in the group stage started with a defeat to France, but hopes were lifted after England sailed past the Netherlands and Wales to reach the knockout stages. Sweden on the other hand went into Thursday's game unbeaten in the tournament so far, having already defeated Germany, Poland and Denmark in the group stages. This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the latest version. You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
The Sun
2 days ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Sweden vs England LIVE RESULT: Bronze pulls one back for Lionesses in epic Euros quarter-final clash
ENGLAND are currently facing Sweden in the quarter-finals of the Women's Euros - and the Lionesses are TWO goals down! Swedish captain Asllani put her side ahead inside two minutes after a mix-up at the back. And Blackstenius doubled Sweden's lead following a sensational solo run. 3 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 78. Both sides decide to make more changes. Asllani and Rolfo make way for Hurtig and Janogy. Hemp is replaced by Kelly for England. 5 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 76. This would be a crushing blow to the Lionesses. They have become accustomed to regularly making finals of tournaments. A departure at the last-eight stage will seem a huge failure. 7 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 74. James is bundled over in the middle of the park. The referee immediately awards a free-kick for the push in the back. As the cross is whipped into the middle and Hemp reacts to a second ball but her header is easily saved. 9 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 72. Carter, Stanway and Toone all make way for England. They are replaced by Morgan, Agyemang and Mead. England desperate for that first goal to give them a glimmer of hope staying in this tournament. 12 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 70. Russo spreads the ball out wide to James. She looks to run at two defenders but stumbles at the first hurdle. The referee awards a free-kick for a clumsy challenge on the Swedish defender. 13 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 68. Sweden are doing well to block attempted shots. They are limiting the amount of work Falk is having to do in their goal. Sarina Wiegman's team need to start asking more questions of her. 25 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 56. Asllani does brilliantly in the middle of the park. She beats everyone in the centre before threading a pass into the path of Blackstenius. Her shot is superbly saved by Hampton to keep England in this match. 27 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 54. James' passes have been wayward in this second-half. It is all looking a bit forced and nervy from England. Sweden are doing all they can to run the clock down. 29 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 52. Massive chance goes begging for England. A deep cross to the back post from James picks out the run of Hemp. However, she just gets ahead of the ball and cannot direct her header goalbound. 31 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 50. Almost a sniff of a chance for the Lionesses. Toone has a sight of goal as she cuts inside but Falk makes another fine save. The flag goes up for offside soon after to save her blushes. 33 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 48. It is all a bit scrappy early on. Sweden are trying to stop England finding any rhythm. It is not their game to chase here. 35 minutes ago By Kieran Davies Sweden 2-0 England 46. England desperately need an early goal. Finding a chink in the armour of this Swedish side will not be easy. They have look a force for the whole tournament so far.
