Queen Agyemang | Euro 2025 #12

0:00Hi Pod fans, Max here. Barry's here too. Hello. And now the Premier League is back, Barry, meaning we'll be providing incredibly astute analysis three times a week wherever you get your podcasts. Barry, with the remaining 10 seconds of this advert, can you provide some astute analysis? I think Arsenal are going to win the Premier League. And there you are. For more hot takes like that, watch or listen to Football Weekly wherever you get your podcasts. This is Nick and Jack from The Best One Yet, and we are excited to tell you about Walmart Business. Staying ahead of business trends means moving fast and adapting quickly.

0:28Walmart business helps you simplify operations so you can focus on building the next big thing. Find exactly what your organization needs with their ever-expanding business assortment and everyday low prices. Keep your momentum going fast with reliable shipping and fulfillment. Eligible organizations can take advantage of tax-free shopping, both in-store and online, saving you more while getting you everything you need. It's Walmart built for your business. Sign up for a free Walmart business account today at business.walmart.com. In 2023, a source sent me a tip. It tied baseball's biggest star to a vast, illegal sports betting operation.

1:05Shohei Otani! But then someone surprising confessed to me. His best friend.

1:12Rachel: I'm Epey Mizuhara, and you do have permission to record me. From 30 for 30 Podcasts, this is The Betrayal of Shohei Otani. Listen now, wherever you get your podcasts. Thumbtack presents Uncertainty Strikes. I was surrounded. The aisle and the options were closing in. There were paint rollers, satin and matte finish, angle brushes and natural bristles. There were too many choices. What if I never got my living room painted? What if I couldn't figure out what type of paint to use? What if I just used Thumbtack? I can hire a top-rated pro that knows everything about interior paint, easily compare prices and read reviews.

1:52Thumbtack knows homes. Download the app today.

2:14Rachel: Welcome to Upfront. I'm Chloe Morgan. And I'm Rachel O'Sullivan. Oh, God. Rachel, I can't do this anymore. I can't do this anymore. The stress, the drama, my blood pressure is through the roof, but England are through to the final. It was yet another late comeback and yet another inspirational performance from Chloe Kelly and Michelle Adjaman Aquin. We're reacting to every twist and turn last night and hopefully, if we haven't lost our voices by then, we'll preview Germany versus Spain tonight. I actually don't know where to start. There's very few moments that I'm truly and utterly speechless.

2:50Rachel: this is definitely one of them England doing it again Michelle Ajimang scoring once again to save our bacon coming on in the 85th minute scoring in the 96 this was just the third goal of her England career on her fourth cap I mean as England like debut years go this couldn't have gone any better for someone who has just turned 19 in February her dad was in the stands he looked like the most proud man on the planet it was a beautiful moment like they panned over to him the crowd obviously went wild after the game there was you know chants of sweet adjumang

3:32Rachel: honest to god i mean you've got to give them some credit to the english fans really like their ability to be so adaptive and creative to these situations has been second to none but my god did this youngster once again come up trumps to save us like I didn't think it was possible I thought that we were out I thought that our luck had run dry I thought we'd been so jammy with the Sweden game I was like actually I think our cards are just marked in this one this is just not going to go to plan at all but up pops Michelle Adjimang 90 plus six minutes I couldn't believe it um I think it's something that the players have talked about a lot of this like belief that every minute

4:13Chloe: of the game is a moment that they can turn into something and that they really believe they can score I wish they passed some of that on to us because I think once you get to like into injury time and you feel like everything England is creating is just going inches wide or inches over or there's a body on the line and you just think it's going to be one of those games where it's not going to happen and then England are always like oh yeah like Chloe Kelly oh yeah no totally knew that was going to happen like tell us like give us that kind of belief because it's Not fun to watch. Like as the, I got this shot of the screen because obviously every goal happened the opposite end to me, which is really useful.

4:51Chloe: But I got a shot of the screen at 90 minutes and it was Chloe Kelly lining up to take a corner. So it's a picture of her, her back, the flag next to her. And then above it says, Italy won, England nil, 90 minutes. And it's like photos that proceed rather than unfortunate events, fortunate events, because it just seemed like that was it. that was I took a picture of that to be like if they get back into this somehow that's a cool picture to have of like this is where they were this is how close they were I you know I said it in the chat start Michelle Adjimang because I like having to go through another 90 minutes 120 minutes of that like could we bring her on for 5 minutes at the beginning for 10 minutes 20 minutes this is a complete 180 for you

5:33Rachel: I will just flag this you were very yeah you're very much Michelle Adjimang as an impact sub and my god does she make that impact and it was almost like a exact template of the goal before it was kind of like the ball was driven into the box initial chance didn't go to plan ricocheted off michelle adjeman is always in the right place at the right time like her tenacity her ability to read where that second ball is going to be is absolutely second to none and i think there's no hesitation with her there's no hesitation there's no fumbling there's just i know i've got to do and there's a again we saw the same mentality picking the ball out the back of net like but she did have at least a little bit more of a celebration I think she understood the gravity of that moment we were so close to being out and I think I myself had written it off I was like it's just we're just done but for her to do that the pressure I think the frustration and we're going to definitely talk about the subs is that she wasn't on earlier to impact the game but I mean to have that impact in 11 minutes is the wildest thing I've ever I've ever seen in my entire life the fans the explosion I like the atmosphere was just like I just I wish so much I was there I was in my parents living room couch I exploded nearly hit this little like light fitting there was just chaos everywhere drinks falling over I yeah I lost my shit man I think understandably we're talking about her unbelievable goals as we should but perhaps what you don't see when the tv camera is obviously following the action of the

6:59Chloe: ball is her movement off the ball and what she does off the ball how she steps up defensively how she stretches the play how even when England were you know defending she was always offering that option she has a maturity about her when the ball goes forward and there were times when a ball would be lofted forward and it would be just Michelle Adjimang up there and many of the time you'd see a teenager in that situation not even a teenager you know players in their early 20s with far more experience than she does in those big moments have a rush of blood to the head run to the baseline and send it across to nobody we've watched it many times with many teams doing that.

7:35Chloe: I know I've certainly watched it with the likes of Ireland at times where you're like, who are you crossing the ball to? You've created an opportunity here, you're doing nothing with it. She doesn't do that. She has so much game intelligence to hold up the ball. She's confident in her ball possession. She's happy to step back, hold up the ball, scanning. You constantly see your eyes up, scanning who's coming in, where can I place it? Am I getting support? And that is like such a maturity in terms of game intelligence for a 19 year old. So yes, she can score goals in the biggest bloody moments but also what she does off the ball what she does on the ball for others is so kind of beyond her years that not only can she score them she can potentially then create those opportunities and and create those moments for England and you know yeah at the time I spoke about impact subs but I think as each game goes on the subs come on later and later and I just don't think I could sit through another game where Serena adds another five minutes onto when she's bringing the subs on like so maybe we could just get beyond the 90 and come back around to five and

8:30Rachel: like bring them on then put the game to bed in the first half well I think that I've got to add to what you were saying there Rachael those little moments that make Michelle so fascinating I think the confidence that she has there was a moment obviously like and we definitely talk about the Italian dark arts that were at play in this game but even when like the goalkeeper was kind of like pushing the ball forward for I think it was like a free kick or something that was yes she was the one like dropping the ball back and saying no actually it was like two feet back like we're gonna go there and you know what I didn't like the referee shouting in her face I thought that

8:58Chloe: was completely out of order yeah i didn't like that yeah it was um yeah so i felt like there

9:03Rachel: were there were those small moments that actually like that shows the kind of character of the player she is so in it yeah she's so professional so down to the wire i think we've also obviously got to give a massive massive shout out to chloe kelly i mean our lord savior chloe kelly our lord savior michelle ajumang you know what ajumang means say say savior of a nation yeah Yeah, yeah. Like, how at? 100%. I mean, at the same time, I think we were all dying for substitutions. We were all saying, like, this game plan is not going to work. Like, I don't understand, like, the timing of this. Let's get Chloe Kelly and Michelle Atemang on.

9:43Rachel: People were calling for, obviously, Chloe Kelly to start after the last game. Her goal in the 119th minute was the latest goal ever scored at the Euros. And let's definitely talk about a celebration, Rach, because I want to relive this moment over and over again. this calm down bullshit

9:59Chloe: Jesus Christ like to not only leave it that late but to not to score it the first time like what are you doing like people's health is at risk watching football like this okay and I know I joked about it in the last episode about my ulcerative colitis I'm genuinely concerned I'm going to end up being in hospital again because of this shit like honest to God calm down oh Christ if that had been down my end I'd have nearly gone come here to me you listen don't you tell us to calm down I did enjoy the Thierry Henry leaning against the flag to think of those things in the moment is uh is amazing but she was actually asked about that in the post-match press conference about her confidence and where she gets it from and like she thought for a moment and she just said me i get my confidence from me she spoke about you know in january she thought about quitting football and the support of her family around her and how that gave her confidence and you know they're the kind of stories in football where you just think like what can change in kind of six months time um so yeah incredible and I think every time she comes on and does that it gives her confidence to come on and do it again and the next game um I still like obviously we'll talk about the timing of the substitutions but like there's no questioning what those two can do so I don't understand why in such a short space of time so I don't understand giving them so little time to do that because at some point and it's Same with Chloe Kelly's penalties.

11:20Chloe: At some point, it's not going to work. She was always going to miss a penalty eventually, right? And she's scored some huge penalties, some big penalties and big moments and big games. There was always going to come a time where a penalty was going to be missed or saved, understandably. The reaction of both Toon and Kelly to immediately follow up. Because let's be real, players don't always do that, right? You miss a penalty, you're devastated, you're gutted, oh my God, this is a semi-final, it's injury time, you know, I cut extra time, no, there was none of that. it was immediately following up the two of them to ensure that that ball went in.

11:51Chloe: And I saw people being like, I don't like those rules. Well, tough shit, they're the rules. Rules are rules. If you don't like England, I get it. Unless you saw the tune that had scored on the replay. It looked like tuna. But to complain about the actual rules,

12:00Rachel: like, you know, is a bit ridiculous. It is what it is. Yeah. Well, to best sum up things, I think we should leave it to Esme Morgan. Come on! Woo!

12:11Chloe: Come on! Come on! Goodness me.

12:15Rachel: goodness me that's the most polite British response that I've ever heard ever ever heard to like a game that was literally on the brink of death that is absolutely incredible from her and we'll definitely talk a little bit about her I think we should now get stuck into what actually went on in the minutes before all of the drama at the very end like the last half an hour was absolutely gut-wrenching but I think for those first 70 minutes rates there's a lot to dissect because I think bar the first five minutes where I did feel there was a confidence from England, we were passing the ball, it kind of felt like actually we're in a bit of a flow of things.

12:51Rachel: It became a very, very tough battle. Despite having 24 shots, England just struggled to create absolutely anything clear cut, really. I mean, the Lioness attempted almost 50 crosses with very mixed results. But I mean, what was your take on that, particularly the first half? because obviously going down a goal in the 33rd minute, you could feel the goal coming. You could absolutely feel the goal coming. I didn't think we were creating enough chances. I didn't think there was the momentum there. It looked a little bit flat. I think there were parts of the games that, and I always hate saying this, that were quite boring.

13:25Rachel: There wasn't much happening. It felt very cagey.

13:27Chloe: I would disagree. I actually think England were the better team in the first half. In the opening 20 minutes or so, it was just constantly England coming towards me, England coming towards me, England coming towards me. Italy got that goal against the run of play. And I know everyone's desperate to say how shit England were. This wasn't how England played against Sweden. They looked confident. I think the problem with England in the first half was they played it too safe. They were too passive. They were trying to break that Italy back five. They're playing three at the back, so five when they're defending.

13:58Chloe: They tried to break that back five slowly. So they were trying to draw them out by slowly recycling the ball and coming back around. and I think actually there's two ways of doing it. You do it quick, you do it fast. You zip the ball around, you drag the players out, you force them to come and chase you down or you do it slowly in the way they did and maybe less experienced teams will be more enticed to come out of their positioning and create those spaces. Italy were not that inexperienced. They had their game plan down to a tee and they were not being enticed out by that slow recycling and actually what England needed was more pace.

14:30Chloe: For me, I didn't feel like the goal was definitely coming from Italy because they hadn't really created that much in the opening kind of 20 odd minutes or so. But the fact that it reminded me, there was moments of, I thought about Laurent Bonaday, who we have quoted numerous times on this pod of doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is the definition of madness. And there was an element of that as the game went on, where I thought, okay, going wide, sending crosses isn't working. Stop doing that. Like that was getting really frustrating. And I think England did create moments in the opening 10, 20 minutes.

14:59Chloe: Russo had that opportunity. Absolutely should have buried that, put it slightly wide. LJ had two opportunities she had one with the outside of the boot which I think was fizzed at her so she didn't have a chance to kind of wrap her boot around it and ended up going with like the outside of the boot if that had been scored it would have been ridiculous and she had another opportunity then which came after she'd rolled that ankle again it's the same ankle that she hurt during the Sweden game and I just think had she taken that on a a fitter ankle if we put it that way you would expect a trademark LJ finish but I just don't think she could get the power behind it so they were creating but it just felt like every time that kind of attack happened and it didn't go their way their heads just kind of seemed to their shoulders dropped and in comparison the italians were like yeah we're in this this is working this defensive situation's working we're comfortable the longer the game went on the more comfortable they look the more they were like just push him wide let him send it in we're all right there's enough of us back here to clear the ball they're not figuring it out and that's been a problem i think at times england take too long to adjust in games and leaving it until the fucking 96th minute is too bloody long.

16:04Rachel: I felt like there was a frustration that was definitely seeping into England. And I have to 100 % agree with you, Rach, in terms of the less chances that were being converted, the more it felt like there was a deflation and the more kind of like hope seemed to just be like fading from the England team, which is like really disappointing to see. I mean, the goal happened in the 33rd minute. You still have best part of an hour to put yourself back into the game. And it wasn't like they were down then 3-0. They were down 1-0. It took one goal to get back into the game. And like you said, there were chances there, but it kind of felt like one of those games where it's just not going to go our way.

16:35Rachel: There were definitely lucky spells that we had in the Sweden game. And it felt like, actually, this is just going to be like our luck's run out. And this is just what it is. You can get rid of the goalkeeper. They still wouldn't have put it in the bloody net. Like, that's what it felt like. Honest to God. I mean, like there were chances there, but it just felt like Italy's game plan was so much better than ours. There was frustration. There was, I mean, so many times we saw the dark arts come at play. We saw Italy time wasting. We saw how long they were taking to pick up the ball for throw-ins, for corners, for everything in between, which obviously ended up backfiring.

17:07Rachel: There were hamstring injuries at the end. There was cramps. And I was like, these are all things that were happening in the 90 minutes. It wasn't like these players were extra time. They happened in the 50th minute it started. It was early doors. Which, fair enough, you're going to do it. Yeah. If you want that tactic, you also have to pay the risk that the time that you have at the end might be time that you eventually end up needing. As it was, obviously a massive, massive shout out to Barbara Bonancia. I mean, her goal, I mean, Hannah Hampton had absolutely no chance. Fired in really close range.

17:37Rachel: I think for that ball to have even reached her, it kind of bounced off of Lucy Bronze. She didn't manage to get a decent enough connection of it to kind of clear it. So it fell into her path. She then smashed it through the roof of the net. The celebrations were absolutely insane. I thought slightly disrespectful in a way. and like a little bit kind of like shithousery that again has backfired. The entire starting 11, most of the subs and the coaching staff celebrated right in front of the English dugout. There was a great TV angle where they had the whole Italian team almost taking out Serena Vigman as they kind of like go to celebrate in front of the dugout.

18:14Rachel: But obviously those kind of moments are ones that bite you in the arse at the end of the day.

18:19Chloe: That didn't bother me. I don't think anyone was thinking about that. I think the players and the subs were thinking, get to each other as quickly as possible. And they both just ran at each other. And it just so happened that the position and the place that they met was right in front of England's dugout. I don't think anyone was thinking too deeply about that. A shithouse of the finest. I do think there was some celebrations like right towards the end where, you know, they'd prevent a shot or they'd get a corner or whatever. There was celebration. I do think there was that element of thinking, we've won this.

18:46Chloe: And I just think... All day, like the bench was smiling. Yes, and I just think...

18:50Rachel: It was like 90 plus four and the bench were like smiling. they were hugging each other like clapping each other on the back like looking at the clock smiling at each other again and I was like to be fair to them I'd probably be doing the same thing at this point I think if there's anything

19:02Chloe: you learn from the Sweden game is that England are going to keep going until that final whistle and Serena Vigman said it you know she said yeah maybe at 88 minutes I thought okay maybe this isn't going to go our way but when the board went up for seven and I saw some people complaining about seven minutes which I thought was a bit like it's stuff like that where you're just like they better not be the Italians This is disingenuous because, you know, there's been so much time wasting. There's been about 75 substitutes. You know, there's been some knocks. There's been some injuries. People have had the hamstring injury on Giorelli.

19:32Chloe: All of these little things all add up. And I actually don't think seven minutes was that long, actually. But Serena Vigman said when she saw seven minutes go up, she said, oh, OK, we've got more time to create more chances. And I was like, Jesus, that's not what went through my head. But grand, at least like you guys think like that. That's a good thing because obviously it works.

19:50Rachel: what I suppose there was I think had this game not gone to plan we have to question some of Serena Vigman's decisions I think the substitutes there was an element of frustration and I not only felt it in my own family home from my mum and dad who were very you know heavily involved in the game but also you could see online like when a substitute is going to come on something needs to change like something that we need to have impact people join this game because like it is now getting too close to the end so I think obviously with Michelle Ajamain coming on the 85th minute like you then have i suppose 85 to what what was not 97 minutes where she can make that 12 minutes she then did but i think apart from obviously the subs at halftime with um with just lj coming off because she had the ankle injury we did obviously see on the italian side with jurelli being forced off with a hamstring injury that was super super sad that obviously was such a big moment for her it looked do you know initially i thought it was time wasting i thought it was time wasting I feel really bad about even thinking that it was clearly um a very significant injury for her to come off in that moment because she is not someone I think she did her hamstring yeah but at the same time like we Serena Vigman like where were the substitutes because I again it kind of felt like they should have been made like 75th minute at least to give the substitutes a chance to kind of really bed into this game and Michelle Adjeman I mean even once she's scored the goal like the second opportunities she had like almost lobbing the keeper hitting the crossbar I mean these kind of opportunities would have been created a lot earlier we could have put the bed the game to bed a lot quicker and you have to remember that if we go into extra time that's another 30 minutes that the players have got to play when you're especially when you're leading up to a final like those kind of things really matter like putting the game to bed in in full time is exactly what you should be going to yeah I think there was a there was a real

21:35Chloe: kitchen sink element where it was just throw on every single attacker and yes I was the same I I was like, where are the subsuits? It almost felt like the team were a bit like, it's not fucking working. Like, we need something else. It almost felt like from the team, they were like, give us some fresh legs. Give us the impact players, you know. And obviously when they did come on, you know, Agui Beaver Jones came on for, I think, Leah Williamson. You know, there were some really interesting subs where you're like, oh, this, okay, she came on for Russo. But like, Leah Williamson came on for Adjimang.

22:03Chloe: That's who it was. And you just kind of thought, okay, England are rolling the fucking dice here because you don't see that a lot from Serena Viegman. change formation throw everything on and then you're suddenly thinking I asked her about this post-match I said what was going through your head when you had to there's a risk there right you're sacrificing defenders for attackers because you need a bloody goal but you get an equaliser you now have to play 30 minutes you know you've got like you're starting to wonder who's going to be defending here it was three at the back at one point you had players playing and I think England do need credit for this you had players playing completely out of position and absolutely putting in a shift You had Clinton in the 6.

22:41Chloe: You had Toon in the 8 at one point. Beth Mead was in the 10. You had Lauren Hemp playing wing-back. Players were doing a job all over the pitch that was not their natural position. And that is because of this decision of bringing substitutes on late, leaving yourself with a mountain to climb in the final minutes, having to roll that dice, take off defenders, throw on another attacker. And then you leave yourself in this 30 minutes of going, okay, how is this top-loaded, heavy, attacking heavy team now going to defend in this 30-minute situation? Players are tiring. So I do think they deserve credit for the shift they put in in that extra time when they were completely pulled in different positions.

23:20Chloe: And I thought, you know, I thought players did a really good job of being able to do that, which I think deserves a little bit of credit.

23:26Rachel: Definitely, 100%. And I think also a massive shout-out to Hannah Hampton. She didn't have a shed-tonne of things to do, but what she did, I think she came out to claim, I think she was confidently in the area. But obviously, Italy had a massive, massive chance to win the game from a corner just after those subs were made. Emma Severini could only boot the ball into Hannah Hampton at close range twice. So it was like a close range shot and Hannah Hampton kind of like smothers it with their body, ricochets off her. Then she sort of bounces back. Hannah just about managed to get her hand to it and then it's safe.

23:56Rachel: But like, those kind of moments where she's not been called into action for like large parts of the game to then pull out a double save like that which keeps England in the competition like that that game was made up of moments like pivotal moments throughout which could have changed an inch this way an inch that way we're talking about today you know a

24:15Chloe: little bit here a little bit there it was those little you know a game of inches and that that famous al pacino um um speech in any given sunday where he talks about like inches you know and you just think about balls drifting over the bar drifting wide just could have gone over hannah you know all of those little moments it is it's amazing what it comes down to when you break it

24:34Rachel: down honest to god but you could sense then the frustration the fear was starting to creep into the italian side that this wasn't going to go their way so much so that italy's manager um andrea sussion was incensed by the penalty decision and even decided to storm down the he was incensed by a loss to be fair yeah he was he was a very expressive it was kind of like a stereotypical expressive italian manager i think like you could tell how he was thinking and feeling about the game by just looking at the tv which was very much panned onto him i thought there was a Really, really gorgeous moment with Jess Carter also being subbed on at the very end of the game.

25:09Rachel: A huge reception. The roar from the fans was absolutely incredible. Obviously, it has been in the news very recently. She revealed a couple of days ago that she'd been racially abused since the tournament began. Obviously, absolutely abhorrent. It doesn't matter. 100 % we're all for holding players to account for the performance they put in. Yeah, critiquing 100%. like you critique players like you know when they haven't performed well like absolutely all day taking it into a racial space or a homophobic space like absolutely vile and abhorrent and i guarantee it will be the same people that have held or like fought like like put racial abuse to jess garza who will be celebrating the michelle adjeman girl in the same way and i fucking hate the lot of you um the english squad decided against taking the knee just before kickoff and instead linked arms with each other in a show of support for Jess, which is also a really lovely moment.

26:03Rachel: And I think they put out quite a few statements, which I really, really was appreciative of in terms of really showing their thought and understanding around it. Obviously, it's spoken to Jess about how she wanted to approach the game and approach that moment. And I thought that was a really, really lovely touch from everyone. So yeah.

26:21Chloe: It's a brave thing to do to address it the way she did head on in the middle of a tournament. I think that takes a huge amount of bravery. So I just think massive respect to that. It was spoken about post-match. Chloe Kelly said that sometimes winning or success masks the issues that shouldn't be forgotten about and shouldn't not be spoken about. And I think that's really important that while everyone's getting wrapped up in this whirlwind of a, you know, ridiculous qualification for a final and like you can't forget these things that are going on. And I think that's really important that we remember that.

26:55Chloe: And yeah, I think the statements from the Lionesses, the roar when Jess Carter's name was read out in the lineup before the game, the fans stood up in the 16th minute as well, chanting her name as well. And then when she came on at the end and she looked so cool. She was such a cool head in those final minutes, telling everyone to stay switched on, telling everyone when to come back, when to push forward. She was so vocal. She was so in the moment, which I thought was super important. I think really great for her to get minutes as well, just to kind of settle any kind of stresses she might have.

27:30Chloe: So, yeah, it was good to see her on.

27:32Rachel: Yeah, definitely. And I think a nice moment for her to be included back in. Obviously, Esme Morgan stepping in for her. I think massive shout out to Esme Morgan. I think she did absolutely wonders in the back line. Yeah, I think, yeah, I thought she was a really good replacement. a word on Italy's tournament this I think well obviously it's their best performance at a year is in almost 20 years but at the same time like I've got to give them credit for how their performances have been in the group stages obviously the quarterfinals and this semifinal as well I think you know going into this like before the tournament started if someone had said to me England are going to be facing Italy in the semifinals I'd have bitten their hand off I'd have said oh my god we've made it to the final don't even worry about I won't even watch the game I'll just watch the final all day but I think Italy have shown up they have been passionate their fans have been one of the best sets of fans that we've seen in the tournament they have the dedication the heart that they've had and what they've achieved I mean especially someone like Girelli I think she's had an absolutely outstanding tournament yeah and obviously in this game as well like they put England to task going into this game England fans weren't sitting there thinking oh god this is a sure win don't worry about this one we've got this all day it'll be a 10-0 walkover we were going into this game genuinely fearful of what the result might be and the result validated those fears and concerns.

28:47Rachel: But yeah, I think they've been absolutely outstanding. I think it's kind of highlighted them as someone that people should be scared of, a team that should not be taken for granted at all.

28:57Chloe: I thought what was really interesting was that they were talked about a lot as the dark horses and people spoke a lot about how impressed they were with their performance throughout the tournament and how impressed they were with how they played against Spain. Yet when it came to facing England, it was almost like, yeah we said they were dark horses but it's unacceptable that England are not absolutely battering them and you're like hang on we were all recognising how well Italy were playing in the tournament we were all saying they were dark horses but when it comes to England unacceptable because England must absolutely batter everybody and if they don't do it it's because England are shit and you're like no tactically what's been really good about Italy is their ability to adjust their ability to change tactics based on who they're playing and for the team to be so disciplined in the tactics that they're being given and I think you saw that in the Spain game you saw it in the Norway game you saw it in the England game so really we shouldn't have been surprised that I think Rachel Brown-Finnis actually predicted an England win but in extra time and I think a lot of people recognised how disciplined and switched on the Italian team were how dangerous they were on the break how dangerous Chiarelli is how difficult they are to break down so perhaps it shouldn't be that much of a surprise that it was difficult I think the overarching kind of feeling though is the how and I know everyone wants to say England are shit you know because it's the favourite way of saying things all the time but they're still in a final and if England are so shit why have they not been beaten in those two games where both teams absolutely should have won had the opportunity to win and let it slip through their fingers and there has to be some credit to the team that doesn't give the fuck up until the final whistle goes despite putting us all through like the most horrendous 240 minutes plus penalties so there has to be a little bit of credit there but I do think Italy were that romance story that we love in football and I love when a major tournament has a story like that where that kind of so many nice things kind of happen and come together and players have big moments and you know I'm really glad I was there to capture their quarterfinal win against Norway to see those emotions to see them like celebrating with their fans and as you said their fans have been brilliant so yeah I think Italy have definitely won a lot of hearts this tournament and deservedly so

31:13Rachel: Definitely and I think definitely including ours to be honest so yeah really gussied to see them fall out and obviously that was a game that 100 % could have gone either way had we been waking up this morning and saying Italy are through to the final I would have been you know fair fucks as it stands England obviously going through to the final facing either Germany and Spain Christ that would be a team and a half coming up after this we talk about Germany and Spain as they get ready for their battle to take on England in the final

31:54Hi I'm Max Rushton the host of the Guardian Football Weekly alongside me Barry Glendening my co-host hey Barry hello now although every American found this during the World Cup For the two that didn't, what can they expect? Found us and fell in love with us, Max. They can expect three episodes each week of occasionally insightful analysis covering the Premier League, Champions League, and beyond. Football Weekly is back. Watch on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts. This is Nick and Jack from The Best One Yet, and we are excited to tell you about Walmart business. Staying ahead of business trends means moving fast and adapting quickly.

32:28Walmart business helps you simplify operations so you can focus on building the next big thing. Find exactly what your organization needs with their ever-expanding business assortment and everyday low prices. Keep your momentum going fast with reliable shipping and fulfillment. Eligible organizations can take advantage of tax-free shopping, both in-store and online, saving you more while getting you everything you need. It's Walmart built for your business. Sign up for a free Walmart business account today at business.walmart.com. In 2023, a source sent me a tip. It tied baseball's biggest star to a vast, illegal sports betting operation.

33:06Shohei Otani! But then someone surprising confessed to me. His best friend.

33:12Rachel: I'm Epey Mizuhara, and you do have permission to record me. From 30 for 30 Podcasts, this is The Betrayal of Shohei Otani. Listen now, wherever you get your podcasts.

33:32Rachel: all right rach it is going to be a very tasty game again tonight germany do have two big suspensions katherine hendrick and i always get it's just it's a it's a it's another one for me it's another fradolino roll phone it's a yeah i should it's the shirker it's the shirker that gets me every time new skin uh and sarai linda is also out with that ankle injury however carlotta the whamsa is back from suspension. What are we thinking? I'm not going to ask your prediction now, but I will obviously ask your prediction in the next five minutes. But yeah, what are you most excited to see in this game, Rach?

34:08Chloe: I genuinely, this is a real like head and heart game. Like my head is saying one thing and my heart is saying another. And, you know, if you'd asked me at the end of the group stages how I thought Germany would get on against Spain, I think they'll be absolutely battered. Like they've not kind of shown throughout this tournament, I don't think they've played particularly well. They've looked shaky in defence. They've not been taking their chances. Expected France to beat them comfortably, if I'm honest, especially when they went down to 10. The grit, resilience, the determination that they showed, the togetherness, the tenacity has now made me think I genuinely don't know what they're going to put up against Spain.

34:46Chloe: And they've got a good record against Spain. But I just think perhaps what they've gone through in this tournament has been quite galvanising. but I think they'll recognize that the task in front of them is quite mammoth.

34:57Rachel: I mean, going into this, obviously, Spain feel like the favorites. I mean, they feel like the favorites of the tournament, let alone just this game. But at the same time, I think that last game, the Germany-France game, there was something resolute about them. There was something that kind of makes me feel like they will be galvanized by that performance going into this game. And I think a lot of what we see in this tournament actually is more about belief and hope than it is sometimes about the best performance on the day. 100%. England coming back in those last dying minutes. Michelle Adjimang had that hope and belief.

35:27Rachel: We've seen other games where it's just been clutched at the final moment by just these small moments. Switzerland getting that final minute goal against Finland.

35:36Chloe: Italy doing it against, was it Portugal? There were moments in this tournament where you were like, this is the way something's going to go. And a team would be like, hold my beer. We've got 90 seconds left. What are you talking about? There's plenty of time. So it's definitely been kind of marked by that, hasn't it?

35:50Rachel: but there is an insane stat from the BBC I know you love insane stats right you know you love really relevant insane stats um Germany have been in the lead for just 82 minutes at this tournament so bearing in mind that you would have played what three games the group stages one game at the quarterfinal so four games in total of 90 minutes that's 360 minutes possibly and Germany have just been the lead for 82 minutes of the tournament so they they the thing is with the German team they know how to deal with and come back from adversity like that's what that stat's telling me that's not telling me yes they could be doing better in the tournament but also to get to the semi-final and only haven't been in the lead for 82 minutes of that like that's a resilience and grit and determination that we're talking about right surely yeah just to not to bring it

36:32Chloe: back to the Lionesses but I think I saw a stat that said the Lionesses had been in front for about four minutes in the knockout stages so it's ridiculous but no you're right I think every kind of moment that they've gone through has brought them together more and more and I think you know we talk about those little moments Germany could very well have lost their heads when Hendrik got sent off and being absolutely raging absolutely like distraught that they've gone down to 10 so early in a quarterfinal and they didn't they were able to turn that round and like you know it makes it shows the way they can defend it shows how gritty they can be defensively, which arguably should be a difficult thing for Spain to break down.

37:15But sometimes, and you can tell me as a player, the moment actually creates that grittiness.

37:21Chloe: And like, you know, sometimes I watch teams play and I'll play unbelievable football and you're like, well, why can't you do that every week? Do you know what I mean? And sometimes it's a moment that pulls that out of you. So the question is, can Germany pull that kind of defensive display out of them with 11 players on the pitch compared to like when they played against France and what was at stake and the kind of situation that evolved. And that's the kind of head and heart situation. You're like, well, I know they could actually do that. They could frustrate Spain. We've seen Switzerland frustrate Spain with a really dogged, you know, disciplined 60 minutes of good defending and harassing and harrying.

37:56Chloe: And, you know, I know you're going to bring up this quote from Olga Carmona when asked about Germany. She said, we already know them and they're always tough, but we're a sledgehammer team and we're going to go all out. And I just like, I love that. But I think something Germany have and what we've seen is the likes of Hoffman, Schuller, Julebrand, like balls over the top, their direct running can be absolutely lethal. We saw Brand's goal against Sweden was an unbelievable goal. And that is something that Spain struggle with. So, you know, there are opportunities, but it's the head is like, I can't look past Spain.

38:28Rachel: I think I would definitely back you in terms of Spain being the favours and probably the most likely winners of this game. But at the same time, I think we have seen vulnerability in Spain. We saw it in the group stages. They've conceded goals. We saw it in the game against Switzerland. They got frustrated. It took 66 minutes for that first goal to go in. And Switzerland also did have their chances. Like, we know that Spain are going to play that high line. We know they're going to commit players forward. Like, we also know that then that exposes them on the counterattack and that particularly on the wings we saw in the Switzerland game, where there are those opportunities to drive forwards and create sometimes really clear cut one on one v one chances.

39:04Rachel: So I think there is going to be that kind of element of Germany, like making sure that I suppose their game plan is very honed into the fact that they're going to have to hunker down, but also going to have to take their opportunities when they do come, which against Spain are far and few between, but they are not invincible.

39:20Chloe: No, but you also have to factor in they've had an extra day's rest and they haven't played extra time. And, you know, England look leggy against Italy at times. And you can see how much, especially not just physically, but emotionally, those kind of games take out of you. Like you saw at the end of that Germany-France game, that explosion of emotion. Like they were exhausted, exhilarated. and like I guess that's the job of you know professional athletes and all the people behind the the scenes is is bottling that using it getting them rested getting them relaxed getting them recovered for a massive like to have to then go after spending 120 minutes chasing the ball against France you now have to go and do it against the best team in the world 100 % I think

40:01Rachel: the one thing that Germany do have on their side is history Spain have never beaten them Germany also won their last meeting in the bronze medal match at the Olympics last summer this would also be Spain's first ever Euros final should they make it. There's a lot of pressure on the Spanish team in terms of what they're expected to do this tournament and break their own, break history, I suppose, in a way. 100%.

40:24Chloe: Yeah, I think it's... Like they're human. You know, we saw, I think, part of the Switzerland thing as well was the fact that they were up against this partisan 25 ,000 plus Swiss fans. The noise in that stadium, they are human. And yes, a lot of these players have experienced huge crowds huge noise but you know it is something else that they have to contend with and something else that they have to prepare for so of course it's going to be an emotional and a big moment but they're going to draw on those experiences that they have within the squad and to make sure that they are you know hugely focused and it's something I was thinking about when it came to the Italy England game and some of the others the other games I've seen were like almost like the benefit of the anthem that you have to kind of really gee you up before a game and I think some teams some countries have these really kind of powerful anthems that teams really get into really sing really let it out let that kind of emotion and pride and you know it can go one of two ways it can either completely send you too emotional or it can really get you up and ready for a game and I feel like we saw that with Italy they were so up for it, so ready for it, proudly singing that anthem, roaring that anthem.

41:32Chloe: And then you come up against like Spain. I don't think there's any lyrics in the Spanish anthem, which I find really interesting. There's not many anthems, but there's not lyrics. And like, it's almost a moment to get you all together and be like, come on. So it must feel really weird to stand in big occasions and like not actually be singing the anthem. Do you know what I mean? Like even Italy were doing in the bits where there were no lyrics. Do you know what I mean? They always start swaying at a certain point. So I just find it really interesting, those little moments where you You can use little things just to give you like a little bit more energy.

42:01Chloe: And that one always stands out to me at major tournaments, the anthems.

42:05Rachel: 100%. I think it's going to be super exciting just to see the kind of fan reaction to this one, because I think this is going to be, I feel like it's a battle of the titans, this game. So I'm really excited to see how this goes down. And to be honest, I can't really call it. There's a sneaky part of me that thinks Germany might just steal this, but like Spain is so frigging dominant. Why wouldn't they? Like, I just, it's like, yeah, it's, I'm going to get, I'm actually going to go Germany. I'm actually going to go Germany for the win for this one. Rach, go on. My head says Spain.

42:33Chloe: My heart says Germany, which is, I genuinely like, Spain should. Mate, you've got to pick. I'm not doing this fence-sitting nonsense.

42:40Rachel: Come on. You're better than this. Okay. I'll say Spain just to go opposite to you. All right. Great. Well, there is a beer riding on it. So when you're back, it's a Swiss beer as well. So that's at least 13 francs. We're back tomorrow to react to Germany's showdown with Spain. And of course, we'll be previewing the final on Saturday too. Follow us on socials. We're at Upfront underscore pod. I am at Morgie underscore 89. And Rach is at Girls on the Ball. Make sure you hit subscribe so that you never miss an episode from us. Thanks again, Rach. And all the best with your heart and your nerves for tonight's game.

43:14Rachel: It's going to be another big one. Merci, Claire.

43:30Rachel: Upfront is a Stack Production and part of the Acast Creator Network.

43:54They can expect three episodes each week of occasionally insightful analysis covering the Premier League, Champions League and beyond. Football Weekly is back. Watch on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.

44:24What if I just use Thumbtack? I can hire top-rated pros, read reviews, and compare prices with a tap, all on the app. Thumbtack knows homes. Download the app today. You've got social dialed in. Search is doing its thing. So why do your marketing results look the same as six months ago? That's because you're fishing in the same pond as everyone else. Podcast listeners are a different audience entirely. More engaged, harder to reach through traditional channels, and ready to act when someone they trust makes a recommendation. We're Acast, and we put them right in front of you. Browse thousands of the world's leading podcasts, book host reads or run your own ads, and track every conversion in real time.

45:07Same skills you already have, brand new results. Acast. Acast.com slash advertise.