By Edna A. Quansah
Sydney, Australia, August 20, GNA- Defender Olga Carmona’s fantastic lone goal against England in the first half handed Spain their first-ever FIFA Women’s World Cup trophy.
Spain took defeated England 1-0 in regulation time to deny the English the coveted trophy in a tense match played at the Stadium Australia on Sunday evening.
Having beaten Spain in their last encounter in the 2022 Women’s Euro with a 2-1 win, and a perfect record in the world cup with no defeat, England was the better side on paper to clinch victory, but Spain was terrific on the day from defence to attack to keep their ambition on track.
The Lionesses started the game on a high note and nearly yielded positive results when Lauren Hemp nearly grabbed her third goal in the tourney when her curling shot was denied by the crossbar.
Spain quickly got themselves in the game and began to look dangerous in attack with Alba Redondo, and 19-year-old Salma Paralluelo taking charge in the opponent’s half.
With La Roja’s dominance and determining the pace of the game, the Lionesses of England lacked ideas to stop the Spaniards when Carmona raced forward and finished off Mariona Caldentey’s through ball. England reorganised themselves to push for the equaliser the gallant defence of Spain and their able goalkeeper kept the team in the lead.
Before the first half, Spain nearly doubled the lead through Paralluelo, but her shot inside the area clipped the post.
With the introduction of Lauren James in the other half, England’s attack looked dangerous pushing more players into the opponent’s 18-yard area to pull parity and eventually win the game, but the Lionesses were met with a strong side who were focused to end the game in their favour.
After the exchanges, Spain was awarded a penalty in the 70th minute when American referee Tori Penso after consultation with the VAR when Keira Walsh handled the ball in the area.
However, Spain’s all-time leading scorer Jennifer Hermoso’s shot was saved by Mary Earps to keep England’s hopes alive.
As the match travels to the end, goalkeeper Coll was on the spot to deny James a goal to end the thrilling encounter 1-0 in favour of her team. It was all joy and excitement among Spain’s fans, players, and staff as La Roja clinched their maiden women’s world cup title in style.
GNA