The story of England’s 2023 World Cup, from heartache to glory and back again
SYDNEY — Alessia Russo’s lip began to wobble and Lauren Hemp’s shoulders slumped. As Keira Walsh fought back tears, Sarina Wiegman gathered her players in a huddle.
“Everyone was very disappointed that we didn’t win the game,” she told them. “On the other hand, we can be very proud of ourselves. It doesn’t feel that way at the moment. It takes a bit of time.”
Keeping Wiegman out of the clutches of the USA will be the priority. Her players will now go back to the WSL, the Bundesliga and most sickeningly for Lucy Bronze and Keira Walsh, to Spain’s Liga F, with silver medals but plenty of heart after a tournament that was all about overcoming the impossible.
From the moment Haiti threw their might against England on that opening night in Brisbane, it felt as if this was never going to be as straightforward as the Euros. Nigeria and Colombia tested Wiegman’s side too. Every time they found a way to win, until in Spain they came up against an opponent that has reached new levels and with whom they struggled to seriously compete.
Weeks ago, there were moments when it felt like something had clicked. When Lauren James curled in her first ever World Cup goal after six minutes against Denmark, England knew they had unearthed a gem. The joy was short-lived. Keira Walsh’s tournament looked all but over when she went down shouting “I’ve done my knee”, stretchered off but making a dramatic return 10 days’ later.
James got better and better. Wiegman switched to a back three for the final group match, a system England had played just once before in her tenure. It was a bold move but one which summed up the “backs to the wall” firefighting that defined England’s opening rounds.
Yet for James, the 21-year-old breakout talent who had not even started the first game, it worked wonders. With two goals, another disallowed, and three assists against China, there was no ceiling to what she could achieve – until she stamped on Michelle Alozie’s back in a moment of inexplicable madness in the penalty shootout win over Nigeria.
England had to use their imaginations again and Ella Toone returned. In a quarter-final against Colombia, they delivered one of their most convincing displays of the tournament and somehow still fell behind. Toone, though, persevered. The Manchester United midfielder would accept she had underperformed, yet when her moment came, she took it with class.
If the atmosphere had been impressive against Colombia, the 75,000 fans who roared on the Matildas in a new-found national obsession created a cauldron. Still, England got through it and made a final nobody really expected them to reach without Leah Williamson, Beth Mead and Fran Kirby. Indeed even if this is the end for the Chelsea playmaker, Wiegman will still need to find a way to accommodate the other two going forward.
Williamson will return as skipper, safe in the knowledge Millie Bright almost did the unthinkable in her absence. The centre-back was not even sure she would recover from knee surgery in time for this tournament and would not have worn the armband at all were it not for Williamson’s injury but she came so close to lifting the ultimate prize.
The fact England fell at the final hurdle is nothing to be ashamed of, but it does not soften the blow. Moments in time are to be seized and once they have slipped away, it is impossible to say when they will come again. Still, the message from the camp is clear. This is not the end.
