The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup comes to a close Sunday (on FOX and the FOX Sports app) with a thrilling matchup between Spain and England at Sydney’s Stadium Australia.
Regardless of which nation wins, a first-time champion will be crowned, something that hasn’t happened since 2011.
Spain led 1-0 midway through the second half. Spain is 3-0-1 (W-D-L) all-time when leading after the first half of the Women’s World Cup game, while England is 1-0-5 all-time when trailing after the first half in the Women’s World Cup.
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78′: Zeroing in
Credit to England manager Sarina Wiegman for her halftime changes. The second-half possession numbers now favor England 53% to 47%, while the introduction of Lauren James and Chloe Kelly really gave the Lionesses some pace and some life on the flanks. A significant turnaround from the opening 45 minutes.
70′: Denied!
Jennifer Hermoso‘s shot was saved by Mary Earps, who dove to her left and caught the shot. A poorly taken penalty kick by Hermoso — shot didn’t have enough pace, nor was it close enough to the corner — but credit to Earps for guessing correctly and making the crucial save.
That was the third penalty in a Women’s World Cup Final (excluding shootouts) all-time and the second to be saved.
Still a long way to go, but a good bit of stoppage time can be expected once this game reaches 90 minutes due to the lengthy VAR review, the multiple substitutions by Spain and a player down injured. The referee already pointed to her watch to let the England bench know that she’s monitoring all the stoppages thus far.
68′: Handball
A lengthy VAR check sent the referee to the monitor to review a potential handball in the box against England’s Keira Walsh. The ball struck Walsh’s right hand as she lunged toward her right to impede Mariona Caldentey. The review took several minutes, and the end result was a penalty kick awarded to Spain — a massive, massive decision.
60′: Spain makes changes
Spain manager Jorge Vilda made his first change of the second half by replacing right-winger Alba Redondo with Oihane Hernandez, which was an interesting move considering Hernandez primarily plays as a defender. She was slotted in along the right wing where Redondo had been playing. Perhaps Vilda wanted a more defensive-minded player in that position as Spain continued to protect its 1-0 lead.
54′: Huge chance!
England was performing much better in the first few minutes of the second half. Kelly, one of the halftime substitutes, whipped in a beautiful cross against the high Spanish back line. Lauren Hemp got on the end of the cross at the back post but was unable to direct it on frame. A golden opportunity for England went awry but creating that kind of chance so early in the half should instill some confidence for a team that desperately needs it.
An early look at James and Kelly through the opening 12 minutes of the second half showed that they were doing what Wiegman wanted them to do: stretch the field laterally by providing width in the attack. James had more of a license to drift infield than Kelly, who was essentially playing along the touchline.
48′: Mixing it up
Sure enough, Wiegman made two personnel changes and a formation change at the break. Attackers James and Kelly replaced Alessia Russo and Rachel Daly, respectively, as England shifted to playing four in the back for a revised formation of 4-4-2.