Stanway stunner sends England past Spain into Euro semis

Brighton, England, July 21 (BUS): England’s Georgia Stanway scored a superb goal in extra time to secure a 2-1 victory over Spain on Wednesday in the quarter-finals of the European Championship 2022 Premier League that sent the Lions into the last four.

Hosts England were facing an exit from the tournament six minutes before the original time remaining, but went on to win a semi-final match with Belgium or Sweden to the delight of the home team’s fans, Reuters reported.

It was a match that showcased the women’s European match at its best with both teams playing smart technical football at a high pace.

But as the familiar chants of “football go home” indicated, it was also a victory that will spark optimism that England, under the guidance of Dutch coach Sarina Wijmann, can win their first major tournament.

There wasn’t much to separate the two teams in the early stages although England had a 37th-minute Ellen White goal ruled out for offside.

However, it was Spain that snatched the lead in the 54th minute when they capitalized on some erratic play from England as Athena del Castillo delivered the ball well down the right flank and hit the ball to Esther Gonzalez, who recovered after a poor first touch to train at home.

Del Castillo then came close to one second with a cross shot by England goalkeeper Mary Erbs at full length.

Spain were lively and playing with real confidence, but six minutes into the end of normal time, the Lionesses found a way to keep the match alive when Alicia Russo’s cross from Lauren Heim slashed the way substitute Ella Ton slammed into the net to start the match. extra time.

The defining moment came when Stanway found space in the Spanish half and charged forward before firing a ferocious 20-meter shot past Sandra Banos.

Spain, which had yet to win a knockout match at a major tournament, was devastated and left the field in tears, but for the crowd of 28,994 spectators, the largest in a European Championship quarter-final, it was a time of celebration.