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Keira Walsh, England’s midfielder, hopes that their World Cup opponents Spain will “enjoy” playing in the Euro 2025 final without the “controversy” that surrounds it.
Spain defeated England 1-0 in the 2023 final, but former football federation boss Luis Rubiales’ sexual assault investigation involving Jenni Hermoso overshadowed their victory.
Rubiales kissed Hermoso on the lips and grabbed her by the head as the Sydney Olympic athletes received their medals. In February, he was found guilty of sexual assault.
With extra-time victories over Italy and 120 minutes of extra-time time needed, Spain also needed to win against Germany to advance to the Euro 2025 final on Sunday (17:00 BST).
Walsh, who made 100 appearances for Barcelona for the next two and a half years, said, “There’s a lot of respect between the teams and, I think, the most important thing for them as a footballer, is that they can enjoy this final – that there’s not the controversy surrounding it.”
The girls “deserved to watch incredible football.” When we won the Euros [in 2022], our league probably wasn’t the same as Spain, who won the World Cup.
After the final, there was a lot of controversy, and I don’t believe there was enough attention to their talent. The other stuff was the focus.
That was disappointing to see for a professional. That team, which I know many of, probably deserved a little bit more than what they received, in my opinion.
Mariona Caldentey, a forward for Arsenal, claimed more Spanish players were switching to the Women’s Super League after the World Cup’s victory had “changed nothing.”
Aitana Bonmati, Spain’s Ballon d’Or winner, claimed the players had “battled hard” and that the “battling” had not been in vain after the court’s decision in February.
“You create those moments, it’s not luck,” he said.
After coming back from 2-0 down and facing Sweden in the quarter-finals, they needed to come back with victories over the Netherlands and Wales.
Before Michelle Agyemang’s 96th-minute equalizer and substitute Chloe Kelly’s 119th-minute winner added to the score, the Italians were trailing 1-0 on Tuesday.
When asked if their comeback was caused by design or chaos, Walsh responded, “I think it might look chaotic when you’re not playing, but for us it doesn’t feel that way.”
You kind of create those moments yourself, through belief, determination, and confidence, as some have said.
Michelle is in the box and scoring, not by chance. People don’t put crosses in the box because of [luck].
related subjects
- Women’s Football Team England
- Women’s EURO 2016: UEFA
- Football
- Women’s Football
Source: BBC
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