La Roja of Spain are World champions after defeating European champions England in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup final.
Olga Carmona’s goal in the 29th minute was enough to hand Jorge Vilda’s side the victory over England.
Carmona sneaked into the defense of England to give Spain the lead, with a remarkable shot from the left side of the box, beating Mary Earps in goal for the Lionesses.
Both teams had spells in the game, with Spain being the more expressive of the two teams in the first 45.
England couldn’t find the needed equalizer in the game
However, England showed more determination in the second half, but they couldn’t find an equalizer.
Despite the introduction of Lauren James in the second 45, Jorge Vilda’s side were dogged in the second half, restricting England to taking shots from outside the box.
Both sides met in the quarter-final of the 2022 European Championships with England coming out victorious, however, in 2023, the reverse is the case, with Spain winning after 90 mins of action.
The Spanish players put in a great shift and they have ultimately earned the tag world champions.
England were unbeaten before the final, but unfortunately, they lost their flawless status in the final.
For Spain, they had lost only once in the tournament and it was against Japan, their final Group C encounter.
Spain are the dark horse of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, having shocked the world despite not being tournament favorites.
They defeated Switzerland, Netherlands, and Sweden in the round of 16, quarter-final, and semi-final of the tournament, before etching their name in history by defeating England.
Spain’s best finish at the FIFA Women’s World Cup before the 2023 edition
Before the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, La Roja hadn’t gone past the round of 16 of the FIFA Women’s World Cup in two appearances.
However, in their third appearance at the tournament, they wrote their name in gold via their spirited performances.
Spain could have increased the lead in the second 45 after Keira Walsh handled the ball in the 18-yard box.
However, Jennifer Hermoso couldn’t bury the resultant penalty, with Mary Earps saving the ball comfortably.
England also had chances of their own to equalize, but they were profligate on many occasions in attack.
Spain had a great chance in the 2nd minute of additional time in the second half, with Batlle firing a great shot at goal before it deflected past Carter to Mary Earps, who made a great save.
Spain V England Stats
Jorge Vilda’s side had 57% possession, while England had 43% possession.
In terms of shots, Spain had 13 shots in total, while Sarina Wiegman’s England had 8.
For shots on target, World Champions Spain had 6 on target, while runners-up England had 3.
Both teams had one player apiece being yellow carded, with England’s Lauren Hemp being shown a yellow by referee Tori Penso and Spain’s Salma Paralluelo also had her share.
