2 weeks Ago By Adam Salter
England suffered one of their worst defeats since Sarina Wiegman arrived as England manager in 2017. On a night billed as the start of their EURO 2025 journey, they lost 4-3 to the same side they had beaten in that very stadium two years ago . A wretched opening 30 minutes saw England concede three goals to Germany, gifted to them through basic defensive errors.
A brace from Giulia Gwinn and another from Klara Buhl looked to have given Germany an unassailable lead, only for Georgia Stanway to respond with a brace of her own. The second half saw Germany dominate, but struggle to convert the chances they were being offered by a shambolic defence that looked far from the cohesive unit that had clinched the EUROs. Eventually, a penalty from Sara Dabritz secured the result, and although Lucy Bronze scrambled in a third for England with ten minutes left, the Lionesses never looked close to finding a fourth to level the match.
Player Ratings Hannah Hampton – 7 Despite conceding four goals, was one of England’s better performers on the night. Potentially should have done better when Klara Buhl beat her at her near post and fumbled a free kick which led to Germany’s second penalty. Kept England in touch with some important saves, in particular tipping Dallmann’s long-range lob onto the bar.
Lucy Bronze – 5 Lucy Bronze has been a brilliant right-back for England, but no longer looks at the level. Too often abandoned her post to chase the ball, leaving huge gaps for Germany to exploit. Beaten far too easily by Buhl for Germany’s third.
The only positive on the night was scrambling in England’s third late on, which proved only to be a consolation, before being replaced by Maya Le Tisser. Millie Bright – 4 Conceded the penalty for Germany’s first goal. Got in a few last-ditch blocks but was part of a backline that was an utter shambles for 90 minutes.
It was four goals; it should have been more. Leah Williamson – 3 Poor. Well below the levels we know the England captain can play at.
Set the tone for the night with an errant pass in the midfield that triggered the first Germany goal. Never truly looked settled on the night and in truth should have been replaced by Alex Greenwood long before the 61 st minute. Jess Carter – 4 Wiegman’s persistence with using the right-footed Carter as a left-back failed once again.
Too easily drawn to the centre of the pitch for Germany’s second, allowing Gwinn to race into oceans of space and slot the ball past Hampton. Made some crucial tackles late on, but the damage had already been done. Keira Walsh – 5 Some great passes to open up play, most notably to Hemp in the second half, only to be flagged offside after she scored.
But too often bypassed by a faster, stronger German attack. Georgia Stanway – 7 Scored two of England’s goals, briefly giving fans hope that the team would find a way out of the hole they dug themselves into. But did little else after that.
💥 @StanwayGeorgia at the double! pic.twitter.com/yjzSdaFCin Lauren Hemp – 7 Ran tirelessly for the 90 minutes and posed a threat throughout.
Helped create the penalty opportunity when her cross was handled by Gwinn. Saw a late goal chalked off for offside. Her free kick was fumbled by Ann-Katrin Berger for Bronze’s goal.
Ella Toone – 5 Had the chance to level the game when Doorsoun gifted her the ball when the scores were 3-2, only to place her effort wide. Set up a goal for Russo, only to be flagged offside. Withdrawn at halftime for Jess Park.
Beth Mead – 6 Set up Stanway’s second in England’s best move of the match. Showed good industry in the first half but disappeared in the second half. Replaced by Jessica Naz.
Alessia Russo – 5 A mixed match for Russo. Thought she had found an equaliser, only to be ruled out for offside. Hit the post when the scores were 2-0.
Instrumental in helping open the play up for Stanway’s second goal, but went missing again after halftime. Her last act before being replaced by Chloe Kelly was to concede the penalty that gave Germany their decisive fourth on the night. Jess Park – 4 Brought on for Ella Toone at half-time.
Made plenty of good defensive runs but offered nothing in attack. Alex Greenwood – 4 Brought on for Leah Williamson for the last 30 minutes to play centre-back, but didn’t improve matters in a defence that looked shot to pieces by full-time. Chloe Kelly – N/A Kelly was the hero the last time England played Germany at Wembley.
Was brought on with 17 minutes to go, but had no real effect on the game this time around. Maya Le Tissier & Jessica Naz – N/A Two young stars, who will be hoping they will get more of a chance to make an impact when England play South Africa than they did here. Naz’s pace did at least offer a semblance of threat, but 10 minutes was hardly time enough to influence the game, let alone save it.
What next for England's Lionesses? England play their second friendly against South Africa on Tuesday 29th October, with kick-off at 14:45 EDT..
