Women's Euro 2025 Semi-Finals, Part One

 Greetings, gentle readers.

What we find is this:  of the twenty-three players to represent England at the Women's World Cup two years ago, ten have not returned to defend their European Champions' trophy.  Five retired, four weren't selected by manager Sarina Wiegman, and one (Millie Bright, OBE) removed herself from contention, saying,

"Right now I’m not able to give 100% mentally or physically.  As much as I want to be out there running through brick walls for England and fighting alongside my team-mates, stepping back is the right thing for my health, my future in the game, and most importantly the team."
— Millie Bright

Looking at the twenty-three players in the current England Euro 2025 squad, seven are making their major tournament debut.  Of the returning veterans:

• Alex Greenwood underwent knee surgery for an MCL injury at the end of last year, and was cleared to play immediately prior to the tournament
• Lauren Hemp underwent knee surgery in November of last year and returned to action this April.
• Lauren James withdrew from the national team in October of last year with a calf injury, and was out for club and country this year with a hamstring injury from April until the start of the tournament.
• Beth Mead suffered a ruptured ACL and spent most of 2024 recovering.
• Esme Morgan suffered a fractured lower leg and was sidelined for a year between 2022 and 2023.
• Georgia Stanway ruptured her LCL and underwent surgery in January of this year.
• Ella Toone was ruled out of club and international duty last year with a calf injury
• Keira Walsh injured her knee during the 2023 World Cup, later suffering a similar injury causing her to miss the last three games of this season with her club, including the Subway Cup final against Manchester City.
• Leah Williamson spent nine months of 2023/4 recovering from a ruptured ACL.

"Football is all very well as a game for rough girls, but is hardly suitable for delicate boys."
—Oscar Wilde 

 My assertion here is that the success or failure of a manager at this level of the women's game has less to do with maximizing talent, adopting certain playing formations, or designing training schedules, and more to do with tactically accommodating the injury considerations of one's own team while exploiting the injury woes of opponents. 

England v. Italy

As has been their wont so often throughout this tournament, England began a game looking a little off-colour and surrendering the lead.  To be fair, they came out of the blocks more brightly than they did against France in the group phase or Sweden in the quarter-final, but to be equally fair, neither of those examples sets a particularly high bar.

After a few opening flurries of offensive possession, the English Lionesses were rocked back by an opposition opening goal once more in this tournament.  It turned out to be an uncommon Lucy Bronze misstep in the 33rd minute that presented an uncomfortable mid-height ball to wide-open Italian attacker Barbara Bonansea at the far post.  The experienced right-back Bronze was caught flat-footed as the ball popped passed her – her attempt to clear the ball instead glancing it into acres of unmarked space, populated only by Bonansea.  The Italian still had work to do and needed a juggling touch to orient herself and lash a volley through the despairing Bronze and Hannah Hampton in the English net.

Barbara Bonansea, Cecilia Salvai, and Manuela Giugliano celebrate taking the lead.

The remainder of the first half... the rest of full-time, really... was a slow constriction of England's coils around a sturdy and resolute defence, marshalled as always by the excellent Cecilia Salvai at centre-back.  Italy's midfield, including the energetic Manuela Giugliano, blocked England's progress through the centre of their third, so the English offense generally took the form of long diagonal crosses into the box.  Salvai's (comparable) height meant that England's attackers rarely got a sniff, and the inexhaustible Bronze always seemed to be waiting at the far post to put the ball back into the mix or retain possession.

Lioness Lucy Bronze

As full of running and drive as Bronze was, though, she seemed to ride her luck on at least two occasions when her tackles were full-blooded, possibly reckless, and certainly late.  It might be interesting to speculate on what might have become of England without their rampaging juggernaut.  Not the most talented player on the field, but certainly the most ruggedly athletic and bloody-minded one.  A British Bulldog, if ever there was one.  When she appears for England in the final of this tournament, she will set the record for most England caps at major tournaments.  Whoops.  Spoilers.

After over an hour of persistent but ultimately uninspired pressing by England, the super-secret tactic of substituting the match winners late in the game paid off again for England Manager Sarina Wiegman.  18-year old substitute Michelle Agyemang, only one surname letter away from being involved in a Time Lord's adventures, set the record for the latest equalizer in this tournament in the sixth minute of stoppage time.  The supersub who buried Sweden in the previous round, Chloe Kelly, stepped up to take her typical Karate-Kid, crane-style penalty in extra time.  Italian keeper Laura Giuliani saved the shot, but a surging Kelly slipped the rebound under the keeper's body to score the latest-ever winning goal in the history of the tournament, at 119 minutes.

Imperious Chloe Kelly celebrates her game-winning goal.

And so European champions England are set to defend their title against either world champions Spain, or eight-time European champions Germany.  It seems as though the cream really has risen to the top of this tournament, despite some early contradictory evidence to that prediction.

Back as soon as I've watched the elegant Iberians take on the aristocratic Teutons.

Until then, good night England and the colonies.

Cheers,

—mARKUS