England vs Germany LIVE: Result and latest reaction after Lionesses beaten in seven-goal thriller
England 3-4 Germany: The Lionesses shipped four goals at home in a woeful defensive performance under Sarina Wiegman
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The Lionesses suffered their first defeat at Wembley in five years as Germany survived a madcap seven-goal thriller. Preparations for the defence of England’s Euros crown next summer began with a rematch of the 2022 final which saw the Lionesses triumph at this venue, and the visitors gained a measure of revenge with a devastating attacking performance.
The hosts began disastrously, falling 3-0 behind after conceding a penalty inside five minutes, but fought back to 3-2 before half time through a double from Georgia Stanway. But their defensive frailties were ever apparent, with Sara Dabritz converting a second from the spot in the second half, though Alessia Russo was harshly adjudged to have committed a foul.
Lucy Bronze capitalised on an error from Ann-Katrin Berger late on to give the home fans hope of an equaliser, but Germany held on. Sarina Wiegman’s side next play South Africa on Tuesday followed by fixtures against the United States and Switzerland in November.
Re-live all the action from England vs Germany at Wembley with our live blog below:
Lionesses set for attendance drop with 54,000 expected at Wembley
England’s Euro 2022 final win against Germany was at a sold-out Wembley and there have been further record crowds for fixtures against the United States and Brazil in the Finalissa, but Friday is set to bring a decrease with 54,000 tickets sold.
Wiegman and Williamson said the attendance is still an impressive marker of how far the Lionesses have come since before the Euros and the crowd is expected to be bigger ahead of the United States match next month.
“It’s a real positive we play at Wembley twice with over 100,000 people coming to the stadium,” Wiegman said.
“Of course Wembley can have more people, so hopefully more people can come but we are thinking big and having the opportunity for people to come to the game, we are happy with the amount of people coming to the game.”
Williamson added: “If you take the perspective of playing two games at Wembley so close to each other a few years ago it wouldn’t have happened – 54,000 is still a lot more than most countries will host.
“We have a vision, we have always dreamt the biggest but it’s a step in the right direction and hopefully the way we play tomorrow will bring more people for the next games – that’s our job.”
England ‘know where we want to be’ at start of Euro 2025
Sarina Wiegman was asked on how far England have progressed since their Euros victory. The Lionesses reached the Women’s World Cup final the following year, depiste missing several players due to injury, but results and performances have been mixed since.
“You always want to develop faster. The game has increased, the level of the league has increased, meaning international football has too,” Wiegman said.
“There is some transition in our team, the more experienced players are trying to help, and the main thing is we know where we want to be on July 2.
“The start of that is tomorrow evening and we want to play top-level opponents to find out where we are at. It’s really important to have this game against a top-level team to try out things to get information about where we are at and our individuals moving forward.”
There is also fierce competition in midfield. Manchester United’s Grace Clinton and Manchester City’s Jess Park have emerged to provide further options alongside Keira Walsh, Georgia Stanway and Ella Toone.
The biggest decision may come at goalkeeper, however, where Chelsea’s Hannah Hampton is in contention with Mary Earps to be England’s No 1. Earps, a two-time winner of the Fifa Best goalkeeper of the year, has struggled for minutes since moving to Paris Saint-Germain.
“The competition is really high and everyone really wants to show and wants to earn minutes,” Wiegman said.
“We want to try out some things and hopefully these four games gives us a lot of information. But we also know there’s six or seven months to go and things can change very quickly in football.”
Leah Williamson on the competition at centre-back:
“It’s been that way since I’ve been in the England squad. I was once on the outside and trying to push others and catch up, and we’ve always had a very strong unit. I think it’s fair to say that’s why our output has been successful, because of how much competition there is.
“It’s been a bit different being with the club for so long, usually we would have had an international window so we’re not used to that.
“But this is a Euros year and you’ll see our plans iron out over the next few months. Everyone plays for a club so they can play for their country and everyone knows how much we love it. I’m no different.”
Leah Williamson part of selection ‘headache’ at centre-back
It was perhaps telling that Leah Williamson appeared alongside Wiegman at St George’s Park, with the captain’s place in England’s defence uncertain amid competition from Millie Bright and Alex Greenwood.
Williamson has returned from an anterior cruciate ligament injury that forced her to miss last year’s Women’s World Cup but it’s been a difficult start to the season at Arsenal, with Jonas Eidevall resigning amid a poor run of results.
“That is absolutely a headache because they are all really good and really competing for minutes,” Wiegman said when asked about the competition between Williamson, Bright and Greenwood.
“But they are absolutely the headaches I want to have, so it’s a hard decision to make.”
England ‘focused’ on the next Euros cycle ahead of Germany rematch
England meet Germany at Wembley in a repeat of the Euro 2022 final as the Lionesses will step up their preparations ahead of next summer’s European Championship defence.
As much as the Germany game on Friday night will evoke memories of England’s historic win in the Euro 2022 final, Wiegman and captain Leah Williamson underlined the importance of “moving forward” as the Lionesses build towards Euro 2025 in Switzerland.
“Of course we will always cherish that memory and it was one of the biggest moments in my career, in my life,” Wiegman said.
“We are focused on now with a different team and it’s the start of the next cycle. So many things have happened to the team since. Germany have always been a powerful team, who want to play the possession game but don’t hesitate to play the long ball either.
“They have a new coach now who might want to do different things so we’ll prepare for everything. It’s really good for us to get that experience at the highest level.”
What is the England team news?
England are without Lauren James after the Chelsea forward withdrew from the squad due to injury. Fran Kirby and Lotte Wubben-Moy are also not available for the Germany game but could return against South Africa.
Sarina Wiegman faces a number of selection dilemmas, including in goal where Hannah Hampton is competing with Mary Earps for a starting spot. There is also a decision to be made at centre-back with Leah Williamson, Millie Bright and Alex Greenwood all available.
Grace Clinton has been in good form for Manchester United this season but Ella Toone and Jess Park are also options to start alongside Keira Walsh and Georgia Stanway in midfield.
In attack, Lauren Hemp and Alessia Russo are likely to start. Beth Mead and Chloe Kelly are available but Chelsea’s Aggie Beever-Jones is pushing for her first England start - though that may come against South Africa.
When is England vs Germany?
The friendly will kick off at 7:30pm BST on Friday 25 October at Wembley Stadium.
England vs Germany TV channel
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Good evening
England begin the next step of their European Championship defence with a Wembley rematch against Germany, the team the Lionesses defeated to win the Euros two years ago.
Sarina Wiegman’s team booked their place in Switzerland in the summer ahead of next year’s Euro 2025 and wanted games against top-level opposition over the next two international windows.
England’s game against Germany will be followed by a meeting with South Africa in Coventry on Tuesday night, with a further double-header against the United States and Switzerland next month.
Wiegman will be assessing her options ahead of Euro 2025 and a marquee fixture against Germany will show how preparations are going heading into England’s attempts to defend their title.
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