The Guardian's Women's Football Weekly - England’s late show and Italy heartbreak at Euro 2025: Women’s Football Weekly

Episode Date: July 23, 2025

Faye Carruthers is joined by Suzy Wrack, Carla Ward and Freddie Cardy to discuss England’s dramatic extra-time win over Italy in the Euro 2025 semi-final, and much more besides

This is The Guardian. Hello, I'm Faker Others and welcome to The Guardian Women's Football Weekly. Well, the Lionesses love to leave it late. Do they even want the fans to survive this tournament? Not sure my blood pressure can. The substitutes scrape England through again. This team never give up. If they're going to successfully defend their European crown, they're going to do it the hard way. Two minutes from crashing out of Euro 2025 and Michelle Adjimang smashes home to take it to extra time. Then two minutes before it goes to penalties, they get a penalty.

Chloe Kelly steps up. It's saved, but she scores the rebound and manages to make the semi-final even more dramatic than their win in the quarters. But spare a thought for Italy. The Dark Horses were stallions in Geneva, but ultimately pulled up short in the final furlong. So much to dig into. Plus we'll take your questions. And that's today's Guardian Women's Football Weekly. but ultimately pulled up short in the final furlong. So much to dig into plus we'll take your questions and that's today's Guardian Women's Football Weekly. Suzy Rack, are you surviving? I mean I said my blood pressure was high but up in that

press box how are you doing? Oh yeah I'm a broken human being but a happy one. I mean that's good, that's good. That happiness is the most important part. Carla Ward, it has been a long time, how are you? Very well thank you. Lack of sleep, I think the first few days of school holidays along with the games, it's been, yeah I'm sure you're all aware with kids in the house, it's bonkers but I'm very well, thank you. Excellent. Freddie Cardy, nice to see you again. How are you doing?

Yeah, you too. I'm good. My summer job is filming county cricket and I need that today as a way of decompressing just a whole long day of a nice, slow, relaxed sport with maybe a little bit less on the line. So yeah, still coming down from last night. Yeah, it's going to take a little while, isn't it? I mean, Serena had said that she wanted to decompress after the quarterfinal. I wonder how she feels after that one, because it seems as if England just love

the drama. Another tense night, another comeback victory, more late goals salvaging their chances and a third straight major tournament final appearance. It was a breathtaking night in Geneva. Just a word for those beautiful shots with the mountain in the background of the stadium. I'm sure every single camera operator who works in television was getting very excited when they set that up. England come from behind to book their spot though in the final of Euro 2025 with a 2-1 win in extra time over Italy. And it had seemed for such a long time that Barbara Bonensea's first half goal would be enough to send the Italians through to their first final since 1997. But England and actually more particularly, Michel A Ajumang had other ideas firing home an equalizer in the

96th minute of normal time extra time then followed and when Beth Meade was brought down by Emma Severini in the box Chloe Kelly stepped up her penalty was saved but she was the quickest to react to turn home the rebound Of course, she was big game player once again, I don't even know where to start Susie but let's start with England putting a sauce through it. How do you sum it up? How do you sum it all up is the question. I think there's a point at which you say that the other team dropped the ball, particularly the goalkeeper on the penalty, not immediately smothering the ball you've just saved, I think is a big mistake. They went ahead and then basically hunkered down and prepared to weather the storm for the rest of the match, which

is an okay tactic unless you're facing an England team that have a bench of like incredible substitutes because I think that's the difference here is when you're looking at the development of all of the teams across Europe, what's the difference between England now and the rest who are all sort of catching up from Euro 2022 big time and it's the depth of that squad. So for me, like that's the key is the it's depth of the squad that is pulling them through this tournament by the skin of their teeth. I actually thought the first half was better than it was against Sweden. They looked a little bit more organized. I thought Esme Morgan coming in was good. She had a couple

of errors, but overall I thought she was she played really, really well for her first start in a major tournament. But then in the Swede game you sort of saw them really step it up in the second half and go for it and I don't think we really saw that in this game. So that was what alarmed me for much of that 90 minutes was there was no escalation really until the very, very, very late subs came in, which yeah, please, please Serena make subs earlier. I mean, I know it's worked like so, you know, can we doubt it, but yeah, I just think we could all do without another 120 minutes. Yeah. I mean, we could, maybe they like it. Maybe they like this kind of push to the final.

I don't know what- Based on Alex Greenwood's face in the mix zone, like she had not enjoyed that 120 minutes. She looked absolutely dead. I don't think they'd enjoyed the Sweden 120 minutes either. I wonder what it's like as a coach, Carla. I can't even imagine when you can't kick the ball yourself, you're just having to watch it all unfold literally right in front of your eyes but I want to talk about the

mentality of this England team because this is what Lucy Bronze had to say afterwards. I don't think you'll find a team in world football with more fight and resilience than this England team to come back and never give up on this game the same as we did in the previous game to fight until the end and score with seconds left in normal time to keep our dreams alive and then finish it in extra time. It's just unbelievable. I mean, they don't know when their race is run, do they? No, and I think Serena deserves an awful lot of credit. And, you know, I think she's come in, when she took over, let's just remember where we were when she took over and what she's built

internally in terms of a culture, togetherness or willingness and also a belief like she's been there, she's done it, players feed off that and you know you talk to players very early on when she came in and around you know what she does within the environment and I think actually that's put them in a good position and honestly you just it funny. I was watching it with a group of friends and I said, they'll, they'll win this. And they're like, no, even on 90 minutes to seven minutes, we'll get a goal. And I think everyone thought I was joking, but you just don't stop believing when Serena is in charge and you only have to look at a record. So yes, the team never rolls over. And I think that comes from the very, very top. I actually saw seven minutes come up and I thought that's plenty of time. That's plenty

of time for them to get two and do it in normal time. But it did go to extra time and Michelle Ajumang to the rescue once again with that goal in normal time, Freddie. Three goals in four England appearances at 19 years of age is quite the stat. Serena Wiegman said she's really mature already, brings something different and that's what she showed today. The ball she hit against the crossbar as well was a great shot, it was spectacular and it was. We thought she'd leveled it with that but I mean obviously she's going to be remembered for her goals in this tournament but she brings so much more to the table when she comes on. Yeah, I've spoken to a few of her former teammates actually in the last week. You played with

her as young as sort of even under 10 level and they were saying physically then she was a different beast. But actually what she's really improved on is her all round game. And as much as we talk about her physicality, her instincts around the box, she's a well-rounded striker now at the age of 19. And Arsenal threw her in at quite a young age to train with the first team. And from what I've heard, she's really benefited with that.

And there's just this composure about her. I think she's got really good people around her. And it's a lot. It's a quick rise. And that's quite hard for a player like that. And suddenly, you've got the whole world watching you, basically. And you've got the hopes of a nation on you. It's a lot, it's a quick rise and that's quite hard for a player like that when suddenly you've got the whole world watching you basically and you've got the hopes of a nation on you because now you have this expectation.

She scored one goal for Arsenal and three goals for England. It's insane and now Arsenal, and I'm really keen to ask you about this Carla as well because Arsenal have this situation where maybe a player who before the tournament they're looking to send out on loan again, Her rise is almost happening so quickly. How do Arsenal manage her now when they've got Russo, they've got Black Stenius, they've got this forward line? But I guess all of the Arsenal fans are thinking, we need Michelle Ajamang in our team, why would you let her go? But what do Arsenal do with her now? I personally still think she'll go on loan. I think that she's still got an element.

Look, we're talking about just a couple of games. This is where as a nation, Arsenal are very good at this, but we have to keep her grounded, continue to work on her development. I think a couple of games, she's been unbelievable. Look, it clearly shows her potential, but let's just remind ourselves it is still potential that needs a lot of work. And Arsenal will know that better than anyone. They're one of the best at this. So I think what'll happen is they'll put her on loan, they'll continue her development, but they'll have a clause that they can get her back,

I'm sure. But long-term, they've got an unbelievable player. But in the short term, they'll want to continue this development. And they'll be smart with who they loan her to, let's be clear, because they're not going to be loaning her to anyone in and around them. So I think it'll be a smart move to loan her out, continue that, continue building and they'll get back

one hell of a player. Yeah, that's going to be fascinating, isn't it? If she does go out on loan, perhaps going abroad might really help. We've seen so many players go abroad and really become more rounded by the time they get back. But in terms of her getting carried away, I just don't think she's that kind of character at all. Even in her interview she was so humble. I saw Alex Greenwood and Beth Mead pushing her forward to the fans like go and take the plaudits and she was just super embarrassed about it and didn't want to you know gosh what can she achieve in the future what she's achieved already is quite incredible. Let's

try and go through the game as kind of systematically as we can now that we've had an overview but you know again England started brightly enough but then just dropped off again didn't they struggled to break down Italy's back five in commentary Lucy Ward was suggesting and Ian Wright did in at half time that England should maybe match Italy up and go 3-5-2 they didn't and Italy capitalised with a quick break. What did you make the two game plans Susie? I just thought Italy was so well organised and it was really I just thought Italy was so well organised and it was really quite incredible to see how much they developed as a team and as a unit under Son Sin in this period of time. After they burst onto the scene in 2019 at the World Cup, they really sort of tailed off in Euro 2022 and the World Cup in Australia. And so to see them kind of come back as this really, really organised force is hugely impressive.

And that sort of back three that was in a back five for most of the game, you know, when they're out of possession was so, so difficult to break down. Oh, like, looking at it at one point, the press box is really high up in that stadium. You have actually a really, really nice, it's still quite a small stadium, so you're still close, but you've got a really great view of the pitch. They almost looked like they were in like, geese formation flying back when they were defensive, with Cecilia Salva as like the central goose, all heading backwards in a V as England tried to break.

And it was just so many bodies behind the ball, but it wasn't chaotic. It was really, really structured. And I think that is what England have lacked through this entire tournament, is any kind of sort of consistent structure and identity, like footballing identity really. I mean, like they've got through this tournament kind of on grit and like Hail Mary substitutions and like, just an unbelievable will to do it and belief that they will do it regardless of what time is left on the clock. So yeah, like

it would be nice in the final to see some kind of like more organised like plan. I think we also forget that Italy like against Spain, you know, weren't overrun, like they had a really, really good game there and they're a very, very good team and it was never ever going to be easy. And I think a lot of people underestimated them. They're a relatively straightforward run to the semi-final, but it's not easy to get to a major tournament semi-final regardless of who you're facing. And they built up some real good momentum. I think that was in a big part down to their structure and that kind of game plan of them tactically. England actually dominated almost every attacking or possession based statistic particularly

in the second half and we had this email from from James Clark in the early hours Hi all could England perhaps practice hitting barn doors with banjos before the final obviously a great result but I don't feel the Italian keeper had many difficult saves to make. We'll need to be better for the final or maybe we don't need to be. We keep winning anyway. Ajumang to start is his question and then he says one of the best cheeses I've had is Latour, a soft three milk cheese from Italy, cow, sheep and goat. Carla just to update you and Freddie, if you've not been listening throughout the tournament, we discussed cheese quite a lot and Susie has now five days to go

and find Latour or come up with a better cheese example. Ajumang, to start, do you think, I mean, why do you think England in particular struggled to find that bit of quality in the final third? I wouldn't start just yet, no. Being honest, I think, look, you saw when England won the Euros last time out, Russo was coming in at 60. And that was game changing. I think what I'd like to see is a come in a little bit earlier and have the ability to make an impact far earlier. I think then we're in a better position. Would I start just yet? No, I think Russo is very, very good at managing the game. I would like to see us be more aggressive. I would like to see play far, far quicker. But

look, I think overall I wouldn't start just yet. No, I would just utilise her way earlier. What did you make of Italy's goal, Freddie? Again, it came from our throw-in, didn't it? And again, you know, punished on the left-hand side. Made it a little bit too easy for them. Yeah, I thought Morgan did well for the most part, as Suzy said, but it does ask a lot of her to sort of come in at the semi-final stage. I understood the reasons behind dropping Carter who struggled against Sweden, but suddenly, I know Morgan would have played a lot with Greenwood at Manchester City, but not so much with Williamson and having to develop that new partnership. But such a crucial stage in the tournament was asking a lot of her. But Italy

have scored first I think in all of their games in the tournament. So England knew, you know, this comeback ability. You can almost, I was thinking about Arsenal's Champions League run and actually some of those games where they didn't play particularly well and still won. And then actually when you come up against this brilliant side in the final, you then have that mentality to go and win. And there were almost similarities between the two here without maybe discrediting Arsenal, who perhaps played a little better along the way than England have. But I was really impressed with Italy and I thought actually for the most part their

game management was pretty solid. If they get over the line there, I think we're all probably praising how well they did to maybe run the clock down. Of course, when it goes against you, everyone's saying, what were you thinking? But I think with five minutes to go, England had made 15 fouls and Italy too. And there were a lot of frustrated fouls and sort of niggly fouls. And I know there's a load of Italians perhaps not happy with the referee, but I think a lot was going their way for the most part. And they are a well-organized side. They've got a good head coach. And I just think actually the fact England did have to play extra time again and Italy haven't in this

tournament and maybe actually played into England's advantage, even with an incredible formation of about seven attackers and a back three with sort of, I think it was Kiera Walsh holding it all together and maybe that's where Italy will ruin missed opportunities actually in terms of not being able to hit England on the counter attack and not having those fresh legs laid on. One of the things I was thinking about in the decision to start Morgan was like thinking ahead to the final a little bit because I actually think Jess Carter could have held her own against the city side that you know, Jerelly is 35. She's not the fastest anymore, credibly like skillful, clever player, potent, but I think Jess can match her pace wise.

But when you think ahead to that final and possibly going up against either the Germans or more likely, as I'm sure most of us would predict, the likes of Salma Paraluelo, Claudia Pina, Atanabom Matti, you need someone I think a little bit quicker in that position and you wouldn't want to throw Esme Morgan into the final for her first start in a Euros. So I feel like it was probably partly where Jess is at mentally given the horrific time she's had away from the pitch from the start of the tournament with the racist abuse and pro-partly performance based in that, you know, she has had a very mixed tournament and then also partly probably thinking ahead to the final and preparing Esme Morgan for that who is a different style of player to Jess and has just a little bit more pace to her game to, yeah, sort of blood her basically

was my thinking. A couple of things to ask you Carla from a coach's perspective. First of all, in what was it, the fourth minute of added time in normal time, Hannah Hampton comes up for a corner and I'm thinking, oh gosh, this could go Italy's way. She's coming up for that. And they just didn't seem to realise it and capitalise on it at all. That could have gone horribly wrong. It didn't.

But in terms of the finishers, as England liked to call them, 77 Minutes Chloe Kelly came on, which actually isn't that late for Serena Vigman at all. But Aguimang in the 85th, what did you make of the timings? Would you leave it that late? I was screaming at the TV. One, when Hannah went up, I would have put her up there 100% because if that ball comes in, I've said it time and time again, Hannah is technically one of the best players I've worked with. And if the ball drops in and around Hannah, she's making it. So she can head the ball, her technique is unbelievable.

So yes, right decision in that respect. Substitutions, I would just like to see them earlier. I think that I genuinely think if they're made earlier, don't think it goes to extra time. I think we've got so much world class on the bench that, you know, there's the ability to go and win the game. So I'll be honest, on 65, I was thinking, make the change. But look, there's got to be method behind the madness.

You can't doubt Serena. She's done it. She's won it all. But 220 minutes this week is good. There's going to be some tired bodies out there. So it's going to be now really, really important in recovery. Because look, the final, we are going to have to be now really, really important in recovering because the final, we are going to have to be way better, way better to beat the likes of Germany or Spain.

Without a doubt. And actually we may miss one of our impact subs because Beth Mead may have to start because we don't know how Lauren James is. She had ice around her ankle when she came off. And I don't think that Mead would have come on at half time had that not been the case. So I'm sure we'll get an update on that throughout the rest of the week. But as Freddie mentioned, Susie, Serena Vigman, you know, put all her attacking cards on the table, which led to quite a chaotic extra time period. Grace Clinton was England's holding midfielder. Lauren Hemp was playing at left back. Beth Meade and Ella Toon kind of switched between the 10 and the 8 rolls, which in so many ways actually shows the versatility to these England players. Was it that or was it just a consequence of just having to find something

in that game? Both can be true. I think once you go into extra time and you've made all those changes, you have to work with what you've got on the pitch. And that's what they did. I think that it's one of the big strengths of the team and it's one of the reasons why they pick some of the players for the squad is the fact that they've got the ability to play in multiple positions and can switch between them and there's a lot of fluidity there. So like it does appear chaotic, but when you ask the players about it, they don't like I asked Beth Mead about after Sweden when she was playing at a six and they'd asked me to go on and play the six and she was like, I felt okay. I felt comfortable. Like I knew the job I needed to do in that position.

Like I felt alright doing it and you know, did a decent job. And I think that ultimately when you look at the fact that there were barely any defenders on the pitch in the final half hour of the game for that period of extra time, and yet England defended pretty well in that period, that's a hugely impressive collective effort to ensure that they had some semblance of structure at the back despite the fact that there was almost every attacker in the squad on the pitch. So I think that's, yeah, that versatility is a massive, massive strength alongside that

sort of like never say die attitude. Yeah, we have to talk about the penalty decision Freddie. I mean I think it's fair to say it was soft however you get what you're given Italy if you're going to play these kind of tactics throughout the game and go down like a sack of spuds every time you're clipped ever so slightly then you can expect it to happen back again can't you really? What did you make of the decision? Was it the right one for you? I think I'd say that when you give the referee a decision to make then you know it's particularly when the ball's on the other side of the penalty area I think I can see both sides to be honest. I've seen a lot of people you know bringing up

the Giorgio Chiellini, Bukai Osaka incident in the men's Euro final and saying this is our revenge, which has been quite entertaining. I was hoping you wouldn't ask me. I just think in the modern game when you give the referee a decision to make when there is contact, I just don't think VAR can overturn that for one. And I just think actually did she have to make the tackle? I think maybe Beth Meade did have a hand as well. So look, soft, but once there's contact in the penalty area, when the referee's got a good view, I don't see VAR overturning it. And then the penalty saved as well. It couldn't be much more heartbreaking for Italy in terms of ways to lose a game. It's incredible, but you've got to give credit

to England for just giving themselves the chance to win it and be in the final. You had a wry smile on your face then, Carlo. Listen, if you're the Italy head coach, you're losing your marbles, right? Because let's be honest, nine times out of 10, they're not given. You see that week in, week out, and you've seen that quite a lot of the Euros, it's not given a lot. So I think we were fortunate is what I would say. It's interesting because it literally was right in front of Ivana Martinčić. So she almost had to, she had a split second choice and you know VAR as Freddie said can't overturn it. Suzie what did you you think it was a stonewall penalty don't you?

Stonewall for me, absolutely stonewall. She drags her to the ground. She drags her to the ground. Suzie never. Completely impedes her being able to get anywhere near the ball. Like never getting anywhere near the ball. No but you just don't, but you don't bring the player down in the box. You just don't bring them down in the box. Again, a question for you, Susie.

Hand all over her. If the ref doesn't give it, do you think VAR are looking at it and saying... I think they're calling the ref over to the screen, yeah. I think they're calling the ref over to the screen. No, I don't agree. I think it's soft. I do.

You don't drag someone down in the box. Like she had no intention of trying to get near the ball, play the ball and drags the player down in the box. She had no intention of trying to get near the ball or play the ball and drags the player down in the box. For me, that's the rules of the game. That's stonewall for me. It is the rules of the game, but it happens a lot and nothing pays face. It happens a lot, but they're never given, is my point. Rules of the game. But also the law says it's the denying of a clear and obvious goal scoring opportunity and whether or not it was a clear and obvious goal scoring opportunity, I think,

is the question to ask. But this is an official who refereed Arsenal's win over Barcelona in the Champions League. She's one of the top referees in the game. So you know, it's one of those which is literally the worst debate anybody could ever, like the worst conclusion of a debate anybody could ever say, it's one of those. Tell Andreas Sönschen that. He was fuming. I thought he'd been sent off at one point.

He'd already had a warning for shouting at the fourth official over something else earlier in the game and he kind of like stormed off down the tunnel and I thought he'd been sent off at one point. I thought his behavior on the touchline was interesting. The difference between his and Serena Vigman, who by the way, nowhere near as calm as she usually is and we're used to seeing her being, but he was incredibly emotional.

I'm not sure how useful that is to your players when you've not got that grip on the game. Sorry, Susie. I was just going to say, I'm watching it over and over again on a little loop here, and the ball is coming in. She's not just blocking her. She's not just, like, you know, like, hands on her body, sort of, like, stopping her run. She literally pushes her to the ground. I think that is the difference for me, is, like, Beth's trying to get past her, and she literally pushes her to the floor, and I think that, for me, is what makes it clear. Like it's not just a sort of both like hands on each other, you know, or just bodies against each other,

trying to get past the other. So for me, that's what makes a difference. I don't know. I kind of think that Beth drops to her knees a little bit, but... She doesn't hit her knees. She hits her bum. Don't wind Susie up, babe. I know, I can't help it.

I've got my wooden spoon. Well it's a debate that is for sure. Ultimately it doesn't matter because they got the penalty and we'll discuss what happened with that penalty in part two because that's it for part one. We'll continue this discussion as well as catch up on what's happened at the Women's Africa Cup of Nations. Welcome back to part two of the Guardian Women's Football Weekly. I have separated Susie and Carla, Everything is calm again now. Ultimately the penalty was awarded. Alex Greenwood and Lucy Bronze held the ball between them. But really there was only one woman for the job, wasn't there?

The big game player of Chloe Kelly who stepped out, did her hop, skip and jump. And I mean, the goalkeeper Giuliani, who was incredible all game. I think you know she literally almost had Velcro on her hands the ball never left them saved it but she didn't smother it did she and they were quick on the rebound Ella Toon and Chloe Kelly and Chloe Kelly ultimately scored what was the winner

it was a bad brilliant penalty like we're used to seeing Chloe Kelly do better than that. However, it was a good save from the keeper, Carla. It was, do you know what? It wasn't a bad penalty at all. I thought, you know, she's got pace and power on it, but I thought it was a really good save, being honest. I thought she's read it well and it's a good save. It is nine times out of 10. that nestles into the bottom corner. But the reaction of Chloe Kelly was great and the reaction of the keeper wasn't so. And yeah, it was interesting because as Chloe Kelly and Toonie stepped towards each other, all I thought was, I didn't expect it to go in the back of their necks. I expected them both to go for it,

but it was a decent penalty, but it was an even better save. Yeah. I thought they were going to clash into each other and neither of them were going to get it. It was, it felt like that kind of night, didn't it? But I have to say, Susie, three straight major tournament finals for England. It's actually Serena Wiegman's fifth back to back and she receives some unfair criticism, I feel, from some quarters at times, Susie, particularly with her substitution timings. But we're used to that with England managers, aren't we? And we always did used to say in Serena, we trust, but you cannot argue with that record. That is quite phenomenal. Oh yeah, and in the modern day as well, because obviously Germany were very, very dominant

in European and world football for a huge period early on in the development of women's football. But to do it as everyone is know, well, starting with the Netherlands winning 2017, which was, you know, very much underdogs doing it, is just incredibly impressive. And like, you know, obviously we have to analyse and critique and pick apart performances. But at the same time, there is an element of like, well, you know, what the hell do we know? Like it's worked every single time so far. So yeah, I think there's a an element of that. Obviously, it'd be nice to see the performances align with the results a little bit more. And I think it's fair to look at that. I think even if they lost that game, I don't think anyone would be necessarily

calling for like Serena to go or anything. I don't think it's reached that stage. I think, you know, she's she's done an She's brought the first major tournament trophy for the Lionesses. So like, you know, I think she's earned some passes as well, like, and some errors, you know, like it's, it's human. I keep saying, I've said it all the way through this tournament before, not everything can go upwards forever in a straight line. And that context needs to be put into any sort of issues. I think, you know, we've got what, regardless of what happens in the final, two years before the World Cup, two years to get some of these younger players really, really embedded in this squad.

I think it's still very much a squad in transition. And I think, yeah, there's a lot still to be liked about, you know, what Serena Vigman is doing with this site. So like, yeah, huge credit. And I don't think anyone would, or very, very few would, you know, kind of be able to dispute or critique what she's done too heavily. Yeah. One of the loudest cheers of the night, Carla, came when Jess Carter entered the pitch in extra time. The players obviously making the decision not to take the knee after the racist abuse that she's received on social media during this tournament. The love I felt today, she said, was incredible after the match. No one should ever have to go through what

she's gone through in this tournament. So it was a really important moment for her to get some minutes and to receive that support. Yeah. And look, at what point does it stop? Because I saw something Anita Asante put out and I thought she couldn't have said it any better if you haven't seen it. She put it all across her own socials and a lot of media outlets had reached out to talk about it. And she said, well, I've talked about it for years, but nothing changes. And I have to agree, I'll be honest, I think taking the knee, what does it do anymore? It doesn't. I think there's more power in not doing it.

I think authorities and organizations have to do more. You know, everyone keeps talking about it. But at what point? I think there needs to be some really harsh punishments to start changing these things. And until somebody really probably does something outside of the box and goes hard with it, I don't think anything's going to change and it's a really sad reality and for players like Jess to be going through this at a major tournament when representing your country

is absolutely beyond me. One of the things I think was really powerful was in Chloe Kelly's play of the match press conference afterwards, she was asked about the week and how difficult it had been and the decision for them to stand as a group and have all the substitutes stand on the touchline like arm in arm, Jess sort of in the middle of that. And she said, I thought it was a very powerful and special moment for us to show that racism is not what we accept, not in society, not in sport, and there needs to be more to make sure this isn't happening over and over again. She said, it's disappointing to see that sometimes winning masks racism, but that's not okay. It has no place in sport and no place in society. And I thought

that was a really interesting way of putting it, that winning masks racism and it emerges when a team starts losing. And I think that is a powerful point to make in the aftermath of that game where it'd been so chaotic that pretty much every player we spoke to afterwards, their minds were totally fried. And yet she comes up with something so beautifully eloquent that points to a topic that can't be forgotten amidst the victories as well as amid the losses. So I really found that very powerful. But I think, you know, Carla's right, I think there needs to be harsh clampdowns from authorities. Obviously, we know the police are involved in trying to hunt down some of the people who have been abusing Jess online in the past few weeks, but at the same time, we also need football to take a bit more responsibility at trying to influence society as

well, because you're not going to get rid of racism from football unless you get rid of it from society. Football is just a microcosm of society. Anything that exists in it exists in football too. So I feel like there needs to be a wider discussion about racism in society and what causes it and how we stop it and the role that football can play in that because I think it's a lot more than bands and stuff that's plaster on the wound rather than actually healing it. So for me, that's what needs to take place next is that sort of bigger debate that opens up beyond football, but has football as a key part with a huge amount of like sort of social weight and power to be able to influence things to move forward. And the social media side is concerning to me, to be honest. I know Michelle Asgermang

didn't actually get any form of social media until the day she signed her professional contract. I was seeing some of Beth Fisher's tweets praising Michelle and what this means in terms of being a multicultural country and being able to celebrate players of colour. Azumang's of Ghanaian descent and she's going to be a role model for so many in a sport that remains in terms of women's football, probably a little less multicultural, a little less diverse than on the men's side, quite a middle-class sport still, in terms of girls to get into. But you only have to spend half an hour on Elon Musk's platform to realise why some of these messages can be getting through and how open people are with just these disgusting sentiments.

And I think it's just a mark of where we are as a society. I was watching that, you know, the penalty shootout against Sweden and there was just something in the back of my head going, I really hope that Michelle or someone like that, you know, a young black 19-year-old doesn't have to take a penalty here for the fear of her missing and this just having to deal with the after effects of the bad side of what we know can happen. I'm so pleased showing this unity and for a player like her to have to see what Jess has gone through and these younger England players, as your man Keating, there'll be players in the age groups as well thinking, goodness me, is this what playing in a major tournament's like? You end up with just some of the worst comments directed towards you, you could possibly imagine. I think how strong England were together.

I think they took the knee in the WSL for the whole of last season and I think we forget that it happens, to be honest. You notice it when players, they take the knee and one player kicks the ball and one of them runs into the other half and you just think actually, this isn't resonating anymore. And it was a big call for England to stop doing that. It loses the impact it was brought in to do. Exactly. And it was very impactful when it started, you know, the discourse around it, the history of taking the knee is massive. But I just think they've done the right thing. And as Susie said, of standing arm and arm, you know, on the sideline with Jess Carter in

the middle of it was really powerful. Yeah, certainly was. Just a word on Italy, Susie. Well, not just a word because they deserve much more than that for the performance that they put in last night. And they've won over many hearts in this tournament. Marva Creel tweeted, by the way, I finally got a Guardian Sport Dark Horses prediction right in Italy.

She kinda did, but she also said they were gonna go out of the group stage. She said that we'd all love them. But she did say they'd go out of the group stage. But I mean, you know, absolutely incredible. And so, two minutes away from the final, what impressed you most about them? I said earlier, I mean, like how organised they were, particularly that back three and

how like smoothly it dropped into a back five when needed, when they were out of possession, you know, kind of how dangerous they were on the bait. Caruso and Cantore in particular, I thought were a real, real threat. They really suffered when Jerelly came off like injured, looked like a hamstring. Obviously she's so talismanic for them and the captain, but more than that, her ability to hold the ball up and to just lift a little bit of pressure off that back line and midfield who were defending so resolutely towards the end, I think is a real, real difficult position for them to be in, to not have her on the pitch playing that role and just providing that extra little bit of threat up along with Cantore to keep a few more England players back and them a little bit more cautious defensively, I think,

really cost them because throughout this tournament, I think they've really grown and developed as a unit. It's kind of sad that this is probably, I mean, it's almost certainly the last euros for the likes of Giorelli, but whether they can make the World Cup in a couple of years, I don't know. But it does feel like a little bit of an end of an era and a transition point for this team, but a really, really high way to sort of go out. But just going to say, interesting to see how this affects sort of the domestic game in Italy. There's not a lot of these players playing in the WSL. And I think actually, you know, the Italian league needs to capitalise on that. I remember covering Juventus away in the Champions League last season, and it was

played about an hour and a half from Turin, you know, in this athletics track in Biela sort of in the bottom of the Alps. And I was thinking, you know, this cannot be the way of attracting sort of elite players from around the world to come, you know, to the Italian top flight. But I think they've got to make progress off the back of this now to develop this Italian side, but also their their league system as well Yeah, without a doubt the biggest problem for me is that I think it's got so close and they That they thought they'd won it and that kind of overspilled and they lost their composure a little bit certainly

They had coach Andrea Soncin did you know really animated and quite emotional on the touchline? Did he make any mistakes in his in his game plan in that extra time period? Son Chin did, you know, really animated and quite emotional on the touchline. Did he make any mistakes in his in his game plan in that extra time period, having, you know, been so good? And actually, when you think about it, both goals right at the end of, you know, normal time and then extra time, it does make you think it was it was that composure element. They just switched off for for one second in each of those two moments and they lose the game? Yeah I think I was from an Italy perspective I was thinking

actually play for penalties you know sit back their counter-attacking threat was good the whole game and I think they could have looked at that England side and thought we can have a go at this defence here but with England's players on the pitch you know Italy had players in tears almost of joy towards the end when they were about to win it. And then, you know, you contrast those emotions. It is, as I said earlier, it's the worst way to lose a game. It doesn't get much more heartbreaking than that. And having seen England's penalty shootout against Sweden, I think we all knew what side, you know, might be fancying penalties a bit more, and certainly whose sets of supporters might have been. I don't think any of us really wanted the penalty shooter from an England perspective. And I'm just, I'm a bit surprised, Italy, I think they had longer to rest coming into the game.

They hadn't played extra time like England had in the previous game, but this is the effect of an England side that knows how to win these games now. They know how to get to finals. And it's remarkable to look at the England women and men at senior level, the ease now at which they get to the finals. There's similarities in maybe not playing the best football, but still finding a way of getting there. Football is in a good place at the moment. When you look at these results and they know maybe we've not had the trophies on the men's side and even on the women's side, it's going to be a difficult final to win. The under-21s, the men have won the Euros this summer as well.

And there seems to be a real change in this mentality of actually being able to just churn out getting to finals and maybe one year we'll do it by blowing teams away and just win the whole thing and that would be a lot nicer. But for the meantime, it's nice to know that whoever England play on Sunday, we know that they don't have to play incredibly, but they've just got this mentality, they've got these substitutes, they've got a manager who's been there before. You can just never rule them out. No, it's never done, is it?

And we are going to do a full preview of the final later on this week, but a reminder that Spain face Germany tonight to determine who England will face. But the Lionesses, I have to say, are looking a little bit wounded, Susie. that Spain face Germany tonight to determine who England will face. But the Lionesses, I have to say, are looking a little bit wounded, Susie. Lauren James forced off with an ankle problem at half time. Leah Williamson and Lucy Bronze clearly carrying knocks. Hannah Hampton, I noticed, had heavy strapping on her right knee when she went to have a pizza with her friends and family after the game. How are they going to be able to patch themselves back together?

Or should we just take it for granted that they will? Well, I mean, the fact that Leah Williamson, you know, kind of was subbed off in the last game, you know, clearly struggling with an ankle injury, having rolled it and is back to play this game, it's in full training the day before and things like that shows that, you know, a they're a resilient bunch, but also that they've clearly got really, really high quality physios and medical staff behind them who can really, really help them turn around. I mean, Lauren James, I'm worried about obviously she wasn't fully match fit coming into the tournament. You know, she's

had injury problems this season, just gone, hadn't played a huge number of minutes for Chelsea towards the back end of it, did 120 minutes the other night. Like it's a lot of football for players to play when they're not 100%. And I think, you know, she's been a little bit of a victim to the need for her creativity, right? Like above necessarily her being 100% fit.

And I mean, in terms of Hannah Hampton, she may have had strapping, but when she bounced through the mix zone, she did not look like she had a problem with any part of her body. So recovery is gonna be really important. They've had two 120 minute games back to back. And I think there may well be getting by on vibes

a little bit, it's one game. They've just got to get through one game. And I think they're ready to push their bodies to the limit to do that if they have to. Yeah, can they defend their crown? Right, I'll tell you who is not going to be defending their crown. It's South Africa in the Women's Africa Cup of Nations because the final will see 11-time champions Nigeria face the hosts Morocco on Saturday. Nigeria beat the holders 2-1 in Casablanca thanks to an injury time winner. Rashida Ajebadi had put them ahead from the penalty spot on the stroke of half time before South Africa equalised early in the second half

with a penalty of their own scored by Linda Moltalo but it was left to Deborah Abioden to score a dramatic 94th minute winner and book their place in the final. Morocco needed extra time and penalties to beat Ghana after their game finished one all after 90 minutes. Ghana had taken the lead with Stella Nyameke scoring in the 26th minute before Morocco's Sakina Uzraoui found the equalizer in the opening 10 minutes of the second half. It stayed 1-1 after extra time but the hosts went through ultimately by scoring four of their spot kicks to advance to Saturday's final. Right, that was another roller coaster. Thank you for joining the ride with us. I feel like we've not got one of

those harnesses on at times with the Lionesses roller coaster but lovely to see you, Freddie. to see you Freddie. Yeah you too, thanks for having me. Carla go waltz off to dance training. Thanks guys, see you later. Susie go find that cheese. Cheese, I've had four hours sleep that's the least of my priorities right now, isn't the myth that cheese makes you have bad dreams too. That's the last thing I want. Yeah, that's very true. Okay, maybe don't. But you've got five days to find good cheese and find me a good vegan cheese. To be fair, that cheese recommended earlier was an Italian cheese and I'm in Switzerland,

so that might be a little bit unfair. But I did have another fondue the other night. So you know, kind of making progress. I have got a message from Raphael Eiberg again regarding Tom's fondue and raclette and that you just don't have fondue or raclette in the middle of a heat wave but I'll read that when Tom's here reviewing tonight's game tomorrow because there's a message for him about flamkka and somebody's not happy, the Swiss are not happy with his assessment. Anyway that is literally for another day. Take care everybody, thank you for all your messages. As always keep having a say by sending in your questions via social media or emailing us

at womensfootballweekly at theguardian.com. As ever, a reminder to sign up for our bi-weekly Women's Football newsletter. All you need to do is search Moving the Gold Post's sign up and we will be back tomorrow to review the second semi-final between Spain and Germany. The Guardian Women's Football Weekly is produced by Sophie Downey and Silas Gray. Music composition was by Laura Iredale, our executive producer is Salamat.