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The 'lionesses' of England defeat the United States in a Wembley packed with 90,000 spectators

2022-10-07T21:39:17.050Z


The two teams pose together before a poster with the legend 'Protect the players', in tribute to the victims of sexual abuse in women's football


Full house at Wembley Stadium.

90,000 seats sold last August, in record time -barely 24 hours-, after the England Women's National Team, the "lionesses", defeated Germany and won the 2022 Women's Euro Cup. Much to celebrate, much to claim, much to defend on a magical night, in which even the rain in London stopped minutes before the friendly match between England and the United States began.

The European champions versus the world champions.

England won 2-1 in a match with an electric first half, full of goals, and an elegant and intense second half.

The English Football Association (FA) wanted to remember, on a very special night, the 50th anniversary of the first women's national team.

It was then 1972. And since 1921 it had been prohibited by that same association for women to compete.

England then played Scotland.

3-2, they won, in that historic game in Greenock.

Under a dim light, to highlight the moment, that generation of 72 received with a hall of honor the team that put all of England on its feet last summer, and filled the pubs with fans every time it played.

The English and American players are aware that each match is another step in a brilliant and surprising story.

The two teams decided to pose in the center of the field behind a large poster,

Protect the players

(Protect the Players), in memory of all the victims of sexual abuse for years in the American women's competition, revealed by an independent investigation made public Last monday.

“The solidarity that exists regarding everything that we still have to fight is enormous.

When we are on the field, we will compete with each other, but there are many things that we all fight for together, ”Megan Rapinoe, the star of the American team, had said a few hours before, before the London press.

A minute of silence also for the more than 130 deaths last weekend in an Indonesian stadium.

And knee to the ground of all the players in tribute to the Black Lives Matter movement.

The pace of play for both teams was frenetic.

Aware of their rivalry - they are the two most exciting teams in professional women's football - the goals came early.

It was the nineteenth time they had seen each other's faces.

Interestingly, the last seven games had been decided by just one goal, or not even that.

This time, England scored early - in the tenth minute, Lauren Hemp, with a great control of Beth Mead's long pass, which the American defense failed to stop.

In the 28th minute, the American Smith successfully finished off a glorious pass and equalized the score at 1-1.

The atmosphere of the stadium, all those girls with their mothers in the front row, demanded an intense night.

And they have.

England took the lead again with a goal from Georgia Stanway in the 32nd minute, thanks to a penalty in favor of the local team.

Four minutes later, the American Rodman put the stadium on its feet with another goal, which turned the first half into a waste of good football and competitiveness.

She ended up being offside, but she warned the "lionesses" so that they did not go quietly to the locker room during the break.

That is precisely why the second part was more measured, more prudent.

Tireless Rapinoe had two very close chances to even the score for the Americans.

But it wasn't his night, and his continued efforts were fruitless.

It was Wembley, it was England.

They were the lionesses in their year of glory.

Even the VAR played in his favor, to annul a penalty that did not make the slightest sense, for a hand that never occurred.

It has been the year in which football finally ceased to be “the game of gentlemen” on this island to be, simply, the English game.

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Source: elparis

All sports articles on 2022-10-07

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