But Beth Mead’s clever turn and finish after the half-hour cleared England’s obvious nerves and from then on there was only one winner in sight. Lucy Bronze’s header from an early second-half corner followed by a stunning back-heel goal from substitute Alessia Russo sent the 28,624 fans inside Bramall Lane into a frenzy before Fran Kirby’s lob added gloss to an already remarkable scoreline . Sweden, after all, are currently ranked second in the world, with England only having three previous wins over Sweden in their entire history. In what has already broken tournament records for attendances and viewing figures, Tuesday’s match set a new attendance record for a Euro semi-final. After semi-final defeats at World Cup 2019, Euro 2017, England will now play either Germany or France in the final at Wembley on July 31. “I think they’ve shown at times that they’re very resilient,” Wiegman told the BBC. “We didn’t start well, we struggled. “We found a way. The players in the game found a way to get out of their pressure. I’m so incredibly proud of them.”
Slow starts
The nerves that were evident for much of the quarter-final against Spain were evident again in the early stages against Sweden. England goalkeeper Mary Earps was called to action inside the first minute, blocking Sofia Jakobsson’s effort after Georgia Stanway’s possession in midfield. Another smart save from Earps once again kept the scores level just minutes later, this time stroking Stina Blackstenius’ effort round the post. From the resulting corner, Sweden had their best chance yet, this time Blakstenius beat Earps to the ball, but her header could only find the crossbar. With England looking to dominate possession, Sweden posed a real threat on the counter. The attacking trio of Blackstenius, Kosovare Asllani and Fridolina Rolfo in particular gave England defenders nightmares, pulling them this way and that with their substitutions. By the half-hour mark, England had barely registered a chance worth mentioning. In fact, the highlight of the Lionesses’ opening 30 minutes was a stunning sliding tackle from Kirby, who had tracked the length of the pitch to deny Sweden a clear scoring chance. England manager Wigman has once again fielded the same starting line-up she had for the first four matches of Euro 2022, undeterred by a somewhat lackluster performance for much of the quarter-final against Spain. Wiegman needed all her tactics to turn this game around with turnovers, but Mead’s trusty scorer made sure she didn’t have to this time. With 10 minutes left to play in the first half, England found the breakthrough seemingly out of nowhere. After Lauren Hemp’s cross into the box missed Ellen White’s boot by an inch, Bronze did well to keep the ball in play and put it back into the penalty area. Meade took a touch, turned and drilled the ball into the far corner to send the Bramall Lane crowd into a frenzy. It was a superb goal, perhaps her best of the tournament so far, and moved her into first place in the Golden Boot race with six goals. She also equaled the most goals scored in a single European Championship, equaling Finland’s Inka Grings tally in 2009. More importantly, however, he finally settled England’s nerves and for the first time in the match Wiegman’s side began to dominate. Chances came for Kirby and Stanway but neither could test Rut Hedvig Lindahl in the Sweden goal from distance. When the half-time whistle blew, it was Sweden who were relieved to hear it and England were now just 45 minutes away from the final.
Merciless lionesses
The second half started in much the same way and England immediately had their opponents on the back foot once again. It was Hemp again down the left causing Sweden various problems and the Manchester City winger’s cross to Mid was blocked behind a Swedish boot. However, Lucy Bronze’s towering header from the resulting corner sneaked past the far post to put England in complete control of this semi-final. Russo has been England’s super-sub this tournament, scoring three goals off the bench so far. When brought on before the hour mark against Sweden, her impact was immediate as a driving run and low cross found Cannabi at the far post. But with the goal empty, the winger could only deflect the effort onto the crossbar. Sweden had a wonderful chance to halve the deficit but Earps’ fingertip save was denied by Blakstenius. However, with just over 20 minutes left in the game, the match ended as a contest on a moment of genius from Russo. After her initial effort — which she should have scored — was blocked by Lindahl, Russo improvised with a cheeky bokolo that caught the Swedish goalkeeper completely off guard as she braced her legs. It was a piece of magic that contained the best of this England team as it began to dismantle one of the best teams in the world. Kirby soon added the icing on the cake with just over 15 minutes to play, lobbing the ball from the area over Lindal. The Swedish keeper really should have done better, but she let the ball slip through her hands, capping off a night she would like to forget in a hurry. The win continues Wiegman’s remarkable personal record of never losing a Euro game. Everyone in England will be hoping this streak continues for one more match.
