ENGLAND ARE EUROPEAN CHAMPIONS... AGAIN! | Euro 2025 #15

0:16Welcome to Upfront. I'm Chloe Morgan. And I'm Rachel O'Sullivan. England are European champions. again making history what a night what a team let's fucking get into it it's come home again i have no voice you have no mind left it has just been utter chaos for the past 12 hours um rage obviously you were there so i just want to like soak up every part of like energy and atmosphere i want to be everything that your eyeballs saw and experienced last night mate

0:54Chloe: because I can't even imagine what it was like. Mind gone. Like I was talking to Soph about this and it was the same thing in Euro 2022, how we both experienced it separately. She's up in the press box, I'm down shooting. And I was like, you have people around you and immediately around you that you know that you can like go through these stressful moments with and enjoy the high moments. And I was like, I'm surrounded by like pretty much people I don't know. So you're just like on your own, just being like, I don't really know how to, how to, how, like, what? How the fuck? Like, yeah, it was that kind of vibe.

1:26Chloe: You know, it was disbelief that they came through the way they did. I actually think it was quite fitting that they won it on penalties because it felt like this tournament was a fucking grind. And they had to, they were not giving up that trophy. It had to be prized from their cold dead hands. They were clinging on to that European trophy with every fibre of their being. They were not going to give up without a fight. and I just felt so perfect that it ended up going. I mean, I wish I hadn't. I wish they bloody won it in 90 minutes, but it felt so perfect that it went down to penalties. It was like, this is how far we have to go to hang on to this bloody trophy.

2:05Chloe: I didn't feel as nervous in the final as I did in the quarterfinals and the semifinals. And I think, like you said, I think you said it before we started recording, had they lost and played the way they played, yeah, you'd be disappointed, to it but you'd be like bloody hell what a fight yeah yeah and like yeah I just think in those moments you don't really know what to do because you're doing a job you're kind of milling around trying to get all these moments and capture all these memories and capture all these kind of coming togethers of players and you know you're trying to take it in but also like I need to do my job so it's it's quite a like the kind of moment to be honest I don't think I summed that up at all no 100 % I think like obviously you still have to be a complete professional and then at the same time there's this like unprofessional thoughts that you just want to like run across the pitch and like go and hug chloe kelly and michelle ademang i could only imagine like how frustrating it is not to kind of as i just let yourself go and still maintain that you've got this job to do but i was a little bit the same so i was at um we did a watch song party in london and 100 % like a big thanks to everyone who came because like the vibes and the atmosphere and as you said rage it was kind of like a sense of you know we could have nicked this game very early doors there's a couple of like clear chances which we'll get into but the way that England went about it like they were out of possession a lot of the time and it didn't feel it felt like that was the game plan they knew that was going to take place it felt very calm very assured and that we were still in it through the entire 90 minutes I think it felt like Spain kind of elevated England's performance like they had to step up to the plate and they knew that but throughout the entire 90 minutes it was just pure drama you didn't know which way it was going to go it was like completely it was a complete pendulum game and then to go into extra time I predicted it was going to be 1-1 at full time and then we were going to nick it 2-1 in extra time.

3:51I didn't anticipate penalties, but penalties are always great for a watch along because then you have the E's and the R's. We had a couple of missed penalties. It was a great penalty shootout. 100 % the quality of the penalties was there. Unbelievable saves. And then you finish on Chloe Kelly scoring the win on penalty with that ridiculously eccentric run-up that she does. And I honestly couldn't call it. But then you had the drama with Beth Mead and the VAR penalty at the start. And we'll talk about that because I still don't really understand. But Chloe Kelly scoring that winner and she put it in the post-match.

4:25She said, I don't miss penalties twice. Her penalty was the fastest recorded goal at the tournament. The ball went 110 kilometres per hour. What a way to finish a Euros.

4:37Chloe: Like this girl is ridiculous. And Sophie asked her a question in the press conference, which was pretty cool because she got like an unbelievable line out of her. She asked her about that journey over the last six months and what she's been through. And now she's come and won a European. She's won, you know, the Champions League. She's won the Euros. And she was kind of saying, you know, what would you say to people who have to make these kind of difficult decisions and how they can turn out for you? And she gave this really great answer. And at the end, she said, and I want to say thank you to everyone who wrote me off.

5:04Chloe: I'm grateful. And I was like, oh, what a mic drop moment. Like, Aura. I can't even. I mean, I just, there was the fear, wasn't it? I think once you go to penalties, it becomes even, the whole game was 50-50, but once you go to penalties, it really is just like, who's going to hold their nerve? And I think we've seen bad penalties from Spain. We've seen bad penalties from England. At this point, it just felt like we didn't really know what was going to happen. Then we have Hannah Hampton saving two penalties. And these aren't bad penalties. Like the pace of the ball, like her managing to get, like, fingertips.

5:38Caldente and Bon Mati, like, hello? 100%. And Hannah Hampton was saying afterwards that she had no idea how many penalties they were on and had to ask the crowd if they were going to win if Chloe Kelly scored. I love that. I mean, what on earth? She dived the right way four times. And I just think, I don't think people understand sometimes how difficult it is to do the basics in those high pressure moments because it's just like, it's a hand in the wrong way. It's being a foot off your line when you should be deeper in goal. It's the wrong starting position. It's like not lining the wall up the wrong way.

6:07is not being prepared for like a Bon Matty coming at you, but having to like, well, I can catch him burger, being caught off guard with having to keep an eye on the box and keep an eye on the ball. It's all those little things in those moments. She did absolutely perfect. I can't, it was flawless from her.

6:22Chloe: And I, like, it must be so hard when you're playing against a team like Spain who are going to have so many touches in the box. You're going to have so many players in the box. You've got so many defenders and midfielders back defending. You've got so many legs in the box. And I thought the whole team stuck to the game plan 100%. Leah Williamson didn't commit a single foul in that entire 120 minutes, which is phenomenal when you're having to put in so many tackles. But for a goalkeeper, you have to be ready for the mistake. You have to be ready for this one second late tackle or leg or the deflection or the quick ball or the back heel against Spain.

7:02Chloe: So, yeah, I just thought Hannah Hampton, her defence in front. I thought, I mean, I'm going into everybody, but fuck me, Jess Carter. Like, I just, absolute flowers to the girl after what she's gone through in this tournament. A tough start for her. She knew she didn't play well in the opening games. Then having to deal with racist abuse, coming out, speaking out about it, coming on at the very end of that Italy game and coming in to the final. And galvanising the squad in that Italy game as well. She came on with such a leadership attitude, like full of beans, full of emotions. Given this. Yeah, definitely.

7:34And to do that off the back of what's happened is incredible.

7:37Chloe: Yesterday, almost perfect from her. And then at the end, when the final whistle went, I thought this was really interesting. Alex Greenwood dropped down on her haunches, kind of knackered, understandably knackered. And Jess Carter turned to the fans and started giving it this, right? And she turned to Alex and she's like, come on now, come on, like clapping her hands. She's like, come on, like really giving it all of that. It was almost like we've gotten this far. We can do this now. I think I said this on the last pod when I was saying head said Spain, heart said England, that we perhaps underestimated the impact of what they've gone through to get to the final and how much that would have galvanized them and how much they would have looked back on those and say, we got through that.

8:18Chloe: Then we got through that. We can absolutely get through this. And I think that side of things perhaps goes unnoticed because it's not really something you can teach. It's just something you have to go through in order to benefit from it. So, yeah, I think it kind of the way the game played out just seemed to be the perfect summary of England's tournament. Well, I think it's like there's been a doggedness to this tournament. There's been a kind of real resilience and having to dig deep in those tough moments. I mean, like you said there with Jess Carson, what she's experienced. Then you've got Lucy Bronze taping up her own leg in the last game.

8:49Chloe: She played with a fractured tibia for the whole tournament. The entire tournament, which is absolutely ridiculous. Which is absolutely ridiculous and very unsafe. And I don't condone that. Don't condone it. Also, at the same time, that's like the most kind of like British bulldog mentality I think I've ever. And then obviously you've had like Leah Williamson took a few knocks. You've got Hannah Hampson with the bleeding nose and the tampon. I mean, LJ. LJ. Yeah. I mean, let's talk a little bit about LJ because I think she, everyone was a little bit worried about whether she was going to make the start with her coming off in the previous game.

9:20I didn't think it was her best because she was taking off at half time. Yeah, she was a fit. Yeah. And I think I don't know what happened there and the decision that was made, whether that was LJ trying to force herself to go on or whether that was the England team trying to get her on and match fit. But at the same time, I don't think it was the right decision. It was clear that she wasn't fully at the races and on her A game from the outset.

9:43Chloe: Would you say that's fair, Rach? So for me, LJ is the kind of player you take the gamble on because she is a game changer. And she's not a player that I think necessarily will impact off the bench in the same way she'd start a game, right? So I can understand the decision to risk her. I think, you know, yes, she struggled. She clearly wasn't fit. And I think, look, sometimes in training you think, you know what, we can get a half out of you. I think, you know, had the game initially gone the way we might have thought it was with Alessio Russo's chance, Lauren Hemp's chance and you thought maybe England will be 2-0 up suddenly that decision doesn't look as crazy or as risky right and I think because the game went the way it did and to be fair to LJ she did some really good defensive work in spite of She's tracking back really well So you know and I heard like Ian Wright saying it was a waste of a sub and I'm like well it wasn't because Chloe Kelly was always going to come on and probably going to come on at 50 or 60 minutes for LJ so I don't actually think it was a waste of a sub and actually her going off and being substituted so early it gave Spain a whole new challenge to think about and Chloe Kelly provided a different challenge to Spain and I think that kind of almost lifted the game a little bit so I can understand and I think had they lost my god that decision would have been absolutely hammered but for me LJ is the kind of player that you take a risk on there aren't many players you will do that with but she is a game changer she can produce moments of magic and when you're playing against a team like Spain and you're not going to get many chances sometimes you've got to take that risk So I can understand the criticism of it, though, for sure.

11:18Yeah, I think that was the, there was definitely a frustration with myself and also the crowd at the watch along. Kind of why she started, like why is she taking that space if she's not fully fit? Because, you know, if you're facing one of the toughest teams in the world and it's in one of the most important moments of England's career, that you should be starting at 11 that is fully fit, like regardless of whether LJ is a game changer in the game. So I can understand the frustration. I think even when we could kind of see that she wasn't, there was a couple of like forays forward that didn't feel like they were fully like energetic.

11:48I think I've got to give credit to her. She did track back. There were so many defensive moments that she really held her own, but at the same time, it just felt like, Oh, was that, was that the right call? But it obviously worked out, but I think we know and love seeing Chloe Kelly come into that impact sub type role. So it felt that even though LJ kind of made it to the 45 minutes, it then for fit, it then kind of made sure that Chloe Kelly still fit into that. because it would have been interesting to see how she would have got on had she started from the outset because Chloe Kelly, the energy that she brings to the game, you can't sustain that for 90 minutes plus another 30 minutes at the end.

12:21So even just giving Chloe, I suppose, those 45 minutes, it kind of felt like actually Chloe could operate at a much higher level than she could have done potentially had she started for the first 45. So credit to LJ in that way. Like it did kind of work out obviously for the best.

12:36Chloe: Also factoring in she was playing on the other side as well. So Hemp had been put out on the right rather than the left, which I thought was really interesting and Serena spoke a little bit about I do think part of that move is Hemp was able to track back and cover the space when Lucy went forward which I think is very important against Spain because that was an area they exploited at the World Cup but I think as well it allowed she talked about her wingers inverting and A, that kind of helps to kind of add more bodies to the middle but it also allows for more direct running when your wingers are inverting and we know that that's an area that Spain struggle with so that was interesting that she'd switched their sides So you had a right footer on the left and a left footer on the right.

13:13Chloe: So they'd be inverting, which was quite interesting. And that's another thing to factor in for LJ. She was playing on the other side than what she'd been playing previously. So I just thought like those little tweaks, you know, I know everyone likes to say she's predictable and blah, blah, blah. But those little tweaks are really quite important when we think about like the chess match that unfolded. Honest to God. And I think, I mean, this is a player who was considering quitting football at the start of the year. Now she has a Champions League medal and another Euros medal. I mean, the minute that she came on, obviously getting the assist, then getting that winning goal.

13:42It kind of felt like, and the tournament that she's had, the impact that she's made, especially in those last couple of games, like literally like minutes away from death for the England camp. And then she's become kind of like the nation's saviour, as well as obviously our absolute queen. We've got to give some more love to Michelle Adjimag, awarded the young player of the tournament. This final was her fifth England cap. She's 19 years old. The minute that she came on the pitch, it was like at least Serena had given her, it was what, the 70, 72nd minute or something along there where she had that time to kind of grow into the game.

14:18There was, because the standard set for Michelle Ajimag is so high, when it got to about the 80, 81st, 82nd minute, people were like, gosh, it's not scored. Oh my God. This isn't good enough. She's going downhill. Yeah, it's not good enough for me. What's going on? But at the same time, Everything that she did was absolutely bang on. So she was tracking back. She was providing defensive support. She was then dragging the ball forward. She was taking players on. She was providing that physicality up front. We saw that hold-up play again with her. I mean, this is a player who has had probably, for the main England body of the camp, has had the least amount of time, has made the most amount of impact.

14:55I mean, Rach, even the dance that she was doing. So they had the England players lining up, guard of honour as she goes to pick up her trophy as she has this little dance and we saw like a little bit of like the Michelle personality which is so lovely to see given that check out this

15:09Chloe: photo of of her going up to take it and the whole team oh god the like the energy and the buzz around her like everyone was so proud of her it kind of felt like a squad of her 25 older sisters who were just so proud of what she'd achieved and I think have your moment like she literally had to be pushed into the centre to be like have it live it this is incredible and I think we've seen so much professionalism from me like you know as soon as she scores grabbing the ball as soon as she's like she gets in bed in the tackle she's had those like you know arguments with referees to try and make sure that you know everything's justified and then in that moment we'll get on to this in a second but like like in that moment it was like the personality of her really came through and the happiness shone and they kept panning over to her dad who could not have been prouder it was just yeah we had the chance going for her she's just been such a an absolute icon in this tournament rage.

15:58Chloe: Unbelievable. Revelation, you know, the sky is the limit for her to come into your first major tournament as a wild card, let's be real, as a wild card and to have the impact she's had to go away as young player of the tournament. And look, I think the reason perhaps she might not have had the impact that we're so used to seeing her have is because she was a direct replacement for Alessi Russo, who ran her legs off this tournament. I would love to see how how many kilometres she's run in this tournament because all day yesterday she was running and running and running. And she was, you know, tired, clearly tired.

16:31Chloe: And I think there was a little bit of a, you almost didn't feel as though England were likely to score when she came off. It just didn't feel as effective or threatening. And I think, you know, we've seen Michelle play in the two and be so incredibly effective in that kind of setup. But it's understandable. She did the job she needed to do when she came on. And I wasn't happy with the way she was refereed. and it's been a bit of a theme this tournament. And it's, yeah, it doesn't sit well with me. I think she had a couple of really good challenges where she was called up for a foul. She got fouled and the foul was given against her.

17:05And refs need to look at themselves in those moments

17:08Chloe: because there's a bit of a theme creeping in in those moments. You know, I think she's, yeah, you say a physical player, but she's very, very intelligent with her physicality and the way she uses it. So I wasn't happy about that. I remember in the semifinal, the ref shouted in her face when she was insisting on Italy playing the ball out from where it was meant to be played out from. Like, is that such a bad thing to ask? So in the face of that, I thought she was, yeah, incredibly mature. She obviously isn't used to the limelight and the players around her made sure that she got her moment. She had that moment of obviously getting her young player the tournament trophy.

17:44Chloe: She had to come and step in front of all of the photographers. She didn't know where to go, you know, and they were like, oh, you got to go. You got to go and get your photo taken with all the photographers. and then as well I have a lovely video afterwards of the England fans down at the end with the England fans and they start the fans start the Michelle Adjimang chant and she's just pushed out in front they're like get out there all the England team are singing the Michelle Adjimang chant and then they all just like go all around her and it's just man what like that's what dreams are made of isn't it?

18:12Chloe: Honest to God I couldn't think of anything I'd rather do at 19 years old than be in a crowd full of England fans celebrating the fact that I've pretty much been a pivotal part of making sure they won this historic trophy.

18:38Race, you touched a little bit there on some of the referee decisions and I've got to agree. And the weirdest thing was, it was Stephanie Frappard who was managing the game and you think she's one of the most experienced refs in the game, has so much respect with the entire community like always considered a very fair very balanced referee you know highly respected but there was a number of calls that were being made that it just it really didn't it felt very spain-centric i've got to say i never like i never like saying that refs are biased there obviously was no bias but it didn't feel like there was that balance that we would normally see from a referee like that and then we started to see more of the dark hearts creep into spain i mean there was a couple of challenges that spain like the diving my gosh and i was like how is that not being picked up that some of these dives should be yellow carded they were so awful and because of the the the nature of the fouls and where they were taking place they were then leading to free kicks in super super dangerous areas those are the kind of decisions then that

19:32Chloe: can make a massive massive impact yeah i think actually i've been a little bit frustrated with the refereeing at this tournament a number of times which is a real shame um because it is an area of the game that is growing and you know we've spoken about it in the um in the league and we've chatted with pgmol and we know the work that goes into it and you know but there were games where referees had some really bad games and it could have impacted the outcome of the games and i think when you've got things like var and stuff in place it shouldn't be happening and it can be quite frustrating and not just for england like i mean that was my 19th game okay so i've seen every single team play in this tournament live and it was not just england games where it was frustrating it was a lot of other games where it was frustrating it was only one or two england games where I was a little bit like what the fuck so that was a little bit frustrating and I do actually think more referees from the WSL should have been there because I know we talk a lot about it but in terms of quality they are up there in terms of the rest of the world and Europe and stuff like that so it's a shame there wasn't more WSL referees at the Euros but yeah I don't want to look I don't want to drag the refs I know it's a very difficult job and a lot of games and you know getting frappard again at the final was big.

20:47Chloe: But yeah, a couple of decisions I was quite surprised at. Definitely. I mean, Rach, talk to me about the, I just want to touch on the VAR penalty because there was, I still now cannot understand what exactly happened, why the retake actually took place because it seemed like a legitimate penalty to me. And the worst thing about it is that then Beth Mead goes on to miss and you think, is that the moment that actually the luck runs dry? Yeah. And I really fell for her because both penalties were good penalties and the second penalty, it was an incredible save. Great save. And that's the thing, like the Williamson penalty was the same.

21:20Chloe: A very good penalty, but a very good save from Kato Koy on goal. Like the Beth Mead one, she was diving and managed to get her hand up to get a hand to it. It was incredible. But what happened basically was there were two touches. I don't know, very hard to say that's why you have VAR, but as she slipped, her slipping foot would have touched the ball as she shot. I see. And you can't have two touches in the penalty. Oh God, that's so harsh. Yeah, but I would have thought that it just would have been ruled out. I didn't know you got to go again. That is absolutely... Because we could not work it out.

21:49And because the game then escalated and there just wasn't enough, because we won it then, no one even bothered to look back. So I was kind of thinking what on earth happened. But let's talk about the impact of what that win actually means. This is Sazie Veig winning every single final, Euros final that she's managed. So she's won three Euros trophy. Karen Barsi said on Five Live, if I ever have kids, I'm going to name them all Serena. I mean, obviously we've had so many narratives like around whether this is going to be, you know, Serena's last game with the Lionesses, like people calling for her head if this doesn't go to plan.

22:24Stupid shit. You know, the manner in which we've won the games and got to the final wasn't good enough. Like we've had these narratives, like we've had, you know, is Serena getting the best out of the squad? And then I think it kind of felt like, you know, like you were saying the Lionesses and Serena are all in this kind of bubble. hopefully she's not she's managed to weather the storm of like what's been getting on these outside narratives but to come through this tournament with all the kind of negativity I think that has been around the lionesses and to ride this out and prove to people look no other manager has done this no other manager has brought this level of success to an England football team ever this is phenomenal back-to-back Euros trophies is nothing short of like the most impressive accolade that we've seen in modern like sporting history like what I mean Rach you've always been a firm believer in to shut the hell up to the Serena doubters yeah I just think like like players it's not

23:17Chloe: always going to be perfect and managers aren't going to get everything right and and they're learning and and developing as the as the game goes on and like yes she's managing one of the best teams it doesn't mean that she knows absolutely everything and everything's going to be perfect and as every team improves she has to improve you know and I think yesterday showed how good a tactician her and Arian is and her backroom staff and how impactful they can be but equally they're going to face challenges that they then have to problem solve in game you know that Sweden game that did not go to plan didn't start the way they planned they didn't plan to be 2-0 down within like 25 minutes the Italy game they didn't plan to be 1-0 down 90 plus minutes Do you know what I mean?

23:59Chloe: And those decisions have to happen in really intense, you know, moments. And someone asked her in the pre-match press conference, like, what's going through her head during these moments? Because the rest of us are all having a heart attack. And she was she looked so cool, calm and collected. And she was like, oh, no, I am having a heart attack. I'm just very good at hiding it. And, you know, like so. And even in the press conference yesterday, it was so funny. She was talking and her watch was like, you are doing a workout or something like that. and she goes she kind of looked at it and just carried on and about two minutes later goes the workout is over and she was like oh apparently I'm doing a workout I don't want to be doing that so that tells you her heart rate was probably pretty bloody high so yeah I just think sometimes people are so particularly with respect in English media so quick to to judge immediately and it was the same in the game yesterday LJ Spanish goal and already the narrative started they got this wrong LJ's shit Serena shouldn't have done this oh my god never going to score a goal, wasted a sub, like immediately it's just bang, bang, bang, bang, bang.

24:58Chloe: You're like, fucking hell, guys, like give it a minute if you've learned nothing from this tournament. I think when you sort of like review back on the tournament, and we're probably going to do a little bit more of this tomorrow, so I won't get too into it, but you do miss, I suppose, the positive things that Serena has done. I mean, building that mentality around the squad so they have that resilience to go into these tournaments and come off the bag, managing a situation like Jess Carter and everything that she's been through personally, and then giving her the trust and support to allow her to come back onto the field again even from the first game learning around sort of having LJ and Tune on or you know trusting in Michelle Adjimang and giving the youth that kind of you know trust and belief that they can go on and do amazing things.

25:34She never brings through young players Chloe though. I think it's like you do forget that there's those magic moments that have been created and generated because of Serena and I think when you have that experience having been in two Euros finals previously like you know like you have so much like you're the only manager who can really you know understand like what the players are going through in in those moments and how to get the best of them so yeah it hasn't been the prettiest tournament 100 it hasn't we can't we can't say any different but have we secured another european championship yes we bloody had and like you could see the heart in that last game like yes the other games like we've dissected and it hasn't gone to plan but in that game we cannot fault anything that the lionesses pretty much did

26:16Chloe: I think when you have a team that will still run through a brick wall for their manager three years on, you know, Chloe Kelly has been full of praise for Serena throughout this tournament. Every player has, to be honest. And, you know, I think about someone like a Beth Mead, for example, who last year has played such a pivotal, standout, starring role. Top goal scorer, player of the tournament, six goals, five assists, like unbelievable time. and she had such a different role in this tournament but understood the impact she needed to have for this team and she came on twice and played out of position.

26:54Chloe: She came on yesterday and played in the 10. That is like, that's not Beth Mead's role. That is not a role she is familiar with and she's done that multiple times and I think that is a good example of the relationship that players have with managers. They will go on, they will play wherever the manager asks them to play. The manager trusts that they can go and play in a position that they're not used to playing. And I think maybe being able to get out of players that grit, that heart, like the celebrations of players who didn't get minutes. It tells you everything you need to know. Because if you, and this is something Frank Kirby said to me a couple of weeks back when I had a chat with her for another project during the Euros, but she said, no one gives a shit.

27:34Chloe: You go on to Mail Etizio's Wikipedia page. She's a European champion. She's won the Euros. Everyone's medal looks the same. And you need those players pushing you week in, week out, in training, on the bench. You know, they all play a role. And I think that's maybe that one of the most difficult parts of major tournaments is making sure that every single 23 players that are there know the importance of their role and give absolutely everything to the role. Because otherwise you're not going to have the kind of performance that you get from the team where they absolutely dig in to the very end.

28:05Chloe: And I think, yeah, that kind of shows you what maybe one of the biggest strengths of her as a manager is. Definitely. And you can't also forget the impact of like having two major leadership players, like senior leader players, drop out of the squad. I mean, minutes before the tournament started, Mary Earps, Mary Bright pulling out there and thinking, OK, we've got to rejig things. We've got to rework things. I mean, Hannah Hampton, yeah, stepping up. I think she was absolutely phenomenal being a leader, being confident. I think the relationship that you saw building with her in this of the post-match scenes, her and Kiara Keating obviously getting on super, super well.

28:37So, yeah, it just, I don't know, it was just a really beautiful thing to watch at the end. And like you said there, in terms of the doggedness and kind of the heart that England had, Leo Williamson said, the way we defended as a team, nothing came through us. It felt like it was going to be our day. We have ridden our luck, but I don't think we were lucky. And I think that was kind of the conversation that we had with Rachel Brown finished yesterday. I mean, we can't get away from the fact we've barely touched on Spain, but they put them under so much pressure in that first half. and at the start of the second, let's not forget they went ahead after just 25 minutes through that Mariona Caldenti header and what a header it was.

29:11It kind of, it definitely exposed our weaknesses that we switched off massively. Laps of judgment. Laps of judgment for a second. But it happened. It does happen. But the thing is that when it happens, like in a Spain scenario, that is often critical. I mean, I was looking at the possession stats because I was just interested to see like what, like how much we actually managed to get into this game because it felt like we were in the game for large chunks of it. But surprised that we were only 35 % possession for England so what we did manage to achieve in that time is incredible well if you

29:40Chloe: if dig into those stats right because 35 % possession and then you look at key stats like number of shots created England eight Spain 22 number of shots on target five for both so who's been more efficient with the ball definitely when you're and we've talked about this we talked about it with Leicester we talked about it with West Ham being efficient with less possession a really fucking hard be really goddamn important and I think England knew they weren't going to have possession and like watching particularly I got you know obviously I got kind of two halves I guess of England's defence either the second half England were defending my end and then I had the second half of extra time England defending my end and you just see the focus of the players and the diligence everyone was so laser focused on their job and where they needed to be telling each other pull up here pull up there you're there drop back here's this you know they were covering each other a player would step in to make a tackle if they missed it someone else was there and like to be able to play like that out of possession for 120 minutes it just takes so it must take so much of your brain to just be that focused for so long and that's not to say like Spain play with the ball for that bloody long you know and they make all those little passes and like equally that's a different style of football and takes a different type of energy you know and I just think both types of football are so hard to play and then you see them come up against each other and it really is just like I mean a chess match is just the best way to to describe it I think honestly right so there's a great stat here across 360 minutes of knockout football England were ahead for just four minutes and 52 seconds they were behind for two hours and 53 minutes can you even cope with like the level of pressure that that that you are under when for two hours and 53 three minutes of the tournament, you know that you have to get a goal back.

31:28Chloe: You have to get yourself back into the tournament. It's amazing. And actually, it reminds me, it makes me think of tennis. There's a sport where you can score less points and still win the game. So at the end of the day, you know, when we talk about, wow, this team had 70 so many percent possession, they have this many shots on target. Unless you're doing it at the right time in the right moments, it means nothing. You walk away with nothing in the end. So, you know, I just, England got a lot of shit this tournament. We got a lot of shit this tournament, talking about England, talking about Spain, talking about how can England, you know, how can teams exploit Spain?

32:05Chloe: Do they have weaknesses? We were told we were obsessed. We were told we were biased. All of this bullshit, like, and, you know, this is what football is about. We're trying to analyse it. Teams are trying to analyse it. There's different styles and different ways of playing. And, you know, you're going to come up against a phenomenal team like Spain who play the most beautiful technical football, you're not just going to roll over. You're not going to try and play your style on top of Spain. It's almost like you almost have to relinquish the fact that, okay, this isn't going to be playing our way.

32:34Chloe: We actually just have to be able to adapt. And it's the team that can adapt the best and be the most disciplined. And that's how you play against Spain. And it's really bloody hard. And, you know, I do think credit to Spain. They have had a phenomenal tournament. They're a phenomenal team. This isn't the end of this team. like this team of so many young players coming in now as well like this is they're still at the start of their journey like they're still at the start and they've had you know you look back the talk about England being in finals how many finals Spain have been in over the last number of years has been incredible so I'm glad it was an England-Spain final and it's become a real rivalry now between the two teams definitely yeah and I think as disappointed as they are I think they've had a they can be very proud of the tournament they've had and the performances they put in particularly against the likes of Germany 100 % this could have been we could have been having a completely different podcast today I mean when you look at like that last minute effort especially from Salma Paraluelo in extra time you're just thinking the game was so filing balance it was like a moment was going to change history and then you had Alexi Brutea being subbed off after 70 minutes she struggled yeah she wasn't getting into the game much at all and she did not look happy when she came off but Claudia Pina as soon as she came on like the the effect like it was it was immediate like she immediately put England under pressure and I was thinking my god I think she's going to be the person who destroys England's hopes she's threatening from outside the box as well that's the thing 100 % her long range efforts my god and you cannot give her time a lot of the time with Spain you sometimes try and force them to be taking those long range efforts because they're easier to deal with I suppose for goalkeeper and for defenders but when Pina comes on you're like well she can put in the back of the net from like 30 yards out so now there's another challenge you can't just force them out and have a shot from outside you have to be close to that as well as close to them in the box so yeah completely different challenge but my god my we've done it we've done it i mean i don't even when i woke up this morning you know like we were saying like oh it's sometimes those moments where you wake up and you're like god i wish i could have a couple minutes sleep and like be in this disbelief i woke up this morning and for like two seconds i hadn't appreciated the gravity of what had just taken place last night and then i remembered and then the smile came on my face and then i went to go and find my england shirt and then I joined this podcast and it was everything that I wanted to do this morning mate I I just feel so excited I've been dreaming about football during the tournament so which is quite fucking annoying because like it's just my brain is too full and I'll wait I'll wake up yeah I'll wake up and I'll have like dreamt about another match or you know I woke up yesterday and in my dream England were playing Germany in the final and it was 6-4 at halftime like I was like fucking hell like a happy deal I have stress in my sleep now as well like that's how difficult like difficult this tournament has been so yeah I think then when I woke up I was like that definitely did happen though right that yes okay no it has happened it's fine that's fine well it was a beautiful moment to see a few of the uh the England players in tears at the end of the game Ella Toon and Beth Mead I mean understandably like the emotion just Ella Toon was so emotional yeah understandably so you could understand sort of how much it meant to her how much it meant to the family obviously a lot of yeah, sort of, oh mate, you captured it as well.

35:44Big hug there from Sazie Beags. Yeah, and that one. Beth and Leah. Mate. It was just, it meant a lot to the entire squad. They had battled through that and that game, it was so well deserved. Such a great game to watch. So full of drama. The Lionesses all had their victory parade in central London on Tuesday afternoon. Rachel, are you back for that? Fuck no, am I back? Sorry, not a chance. What? Why? Absolutely not. There's a victory parade on them all. Yeah, been there, done that. I'm going on holiday, mate. Oh, do you know what? I'm going to be there. Like, yeah, I'm going to do it in real life.

36:20Come on. We are obviously back tomorrow to look at this rollercoaster of a tournament. Follow us on socials at unfront underscore pod. I am at morgy underscore 89 and Rach is at girls on the ball. And remember, we won the bloody Euros, but also hit subscribe because England are European champions. Woo! Oh, a pod.

36:55Upfront is a Stack production and part of the Acast Creator Network.

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