Tottenham Women’s hero Bethany England endures World Cup final heartbreak with Lionesses
After a historic run that saw the Lionesses reach their first-ever Women’s World Cup final, it ended in defeat for Sarina Wiegman’s side and Tottenham Women’s star Bethany England.
Spain were deservedly crowned world champions, defeating England 1-0 in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup final, which took place on Sunday 20 August, inside a packed Stadium Australia in Sydney.
Both sides were looking to lift the trophy for the first time and it was Spain who rose to the occasion as they showcased a masterclass in flair and creativity in order to outplay their opponents.
Heartbreak.
It was almost lift-off for Lauren Hemp and England in the 16th minute when the forward’s looped effort rattled the crossbar but, 13 minutes later, England would be left ruing that miss.
Olga Carmona picked out the bottom right-hand corner in the 29th minute with a fiercely accurate strike that Mary Earps had no chance of reaching. Little did either side know at this point that this would be the only goal of the game and a goal that would go down in both nation’s history books, for very contrasting reasons.
Wiegman played her hand at the break with a tactical shuffle, switching to a back four and replacing Alessia Russo and Rachel Daly with Lauren James and Chloe Kelly, as Hemp moved into the number nine role.
After a VAR check in the 68th minute adjudged Kiera Walsh to have handled the ball inside the penalty area, Jennifer Hermoso had the chance to put the game to bed, but failed from the spot, as Earps dived to her left to make a brilliant save.
At this point, optimism levels went up a notch within the Lionesses’ ranks, and James almost capitalised on the galvanised mood of the team when she forced a good save in the 76th minute. 13 minutes of added time offered England a real opportunity to find an equaliser.
Spurs’ England came on in the 87th minute but couldn’t make the impact she would have desired, having just six touches of the ball and completing three out of her four passes, while making one tackle and winning a ground duel (Sofascore).
In the end, it was one step too far for Wiegman and the squad, who couldn’t repeat last summer’s European Championship heroics. However, they did their country proud nonetheless and England will return to Hotspur Way this September knowing that she was part of history Down Under.
In other Tottenham news, the club’s Under-21s continued their phenomenal start to the Premier League Two season.