England vs Northern Ireland LIVE: Euro 2022 result and final score as Alessia Russo adds to Beth Mead goal
Alessia Russo made an instant impact from the bench as her quickfire double added to first-half goals from Fran Kirby and Beth Mead
England made it three wins out of three at Euro 2022 as the tournament hosts defeated Northern Ireland 5-0 at St Mary’s Stadium.
Having already qualified for the quarter-finals as group winners, England named an unchanged team for the third match in a row but Northern Ireland defended well in the opening stages to frustrate the Lionesses.
Northern Ireland were already unable to progress to the knockout stages but it took until Fran Kirby’s excellent strike on 40 minutes for England to take the lead, and it was swiftly followed by Beth Mead’s fifth goal of the tournament.
England made three changes at half time but it was Alessia Russo who made the biggest impact, scoring a header and then adding a quick second after a sublime turn and finish.
With England manager Sarina Wiegman unavailable for the match after testing positive for Covid-19, the Lionesses made it five late on after Northern Ireland defender Kelsie Burrows turned Mead’s cross into her own net.
England will now look forward to a quarter-final against either Spain or Denmark next Wednesday. Follow live reaction from St Mary’s, below:
England vs Northern Ireland: Team news!
And here’s the answer!
England are unchanged.
England vs Northern Ireland: Sarina Wiegman on making changes
To change or not to change? That has been the question facing England manager Sarina Wiegman this week, with England’s spot at the top of Group A already secure.
Here’s what she said...
“I believe in rhythm. I think when you have nine days in between the Norwegian game and the quarter-finals, that’s too long, I think you need more rhythm and to keep the focus and keep playing.
“So I couldn’t expect lots of rotations. During the game probably, but not before.
“We have 22 players and we can only let 11 start. We will do what we believe in and give ourselves the best chance to win the next game and, yes of course, some players will be disappointed, but we keep communicating and keep being clear about what we’re doing and why we’re doing it.”
England vs Northern Ireland: Kick-off time and how to watch
The match will kick off at 8pm BST on Friday 15 July at St Mary’s Stadium, Southampton.
How can I watch on TV and is there a live stream?
The match will be shown live on BBC One with coverage starting from 7:30pm. It will also be available to stream live on the BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website.
England vs Northern Ireland: Early team news
England manager Sarina Wiegman is unavailable, but she has said that the Lionesses are unlikely to make wholesale changes despite their place as group winners already being secured. Chloe Kelly, Ella Toone and Alex Greenwood could be pushing for starts.
Northern Ireland manager Kenny Shiels, meanwhile, has said he is already planning for the future and could have valuable tournament experience to some of the younger members of his squad. Northern Ireland remain without Simone Magill.
Predicted line-ups
England: Earps; Bronze, Bright, Williamson, Greenwood; Walsh, Toone, Kirby; Mead, White, Hemp
Northern Ireland: Burns; McKenna, Nelson, McFadden, Vance; Furness, Callaghan, McCarron; Magee, K. McGuinness, Wade
Sarina Wiegman tests positive for Covid to rock Euro 2022 bid
In case you missed today’s big news - Sarina Wiegman tested positive for Covid just hours before her side’s Euro 2022 game against Northern Ireland.
A statement released by the FA on Friday morning read: “England Head Coach Sarina Wiegman has tested positive for Covid and will undertake a period of recovery at the squad’s base camp.
“Assistant coach Arjan Veurink will lead the team for tonight’s fixture against Northern Ireland.
“Wiegman will remain in remote contact with the players and technical staff and will be monitored regularly with a view to returning to all elements of her role as soon as possible.”
England Women’s manager Sarina Wiegman tests positive for Covid
The news comes just hours before the Lionesses’ final group-stage fixture, against Northern Ireland
Good evening
Good evening and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of England vs Northern Ireland. We’ve reached the final group stage matches of Group A already, and even though the Lionesses have already qualified for the quarter-finals as top seeds, Sarina Wiegman’s side will look to carry on their momentum. Wiegman, though, is not here after testing positive for Covid-19.
Follow all the build-up until kick-off at 8pm right here!
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