Spain wins Women's World Cup 2023
* Score: Carmona 29'
Spain became the fifth country to win the Women's World Cup after the US (4 times), Germany (2), Norway and Japan (1). After Germany, Spain is the second country to win both the Men's and Women's World Cups. Victory over England in the final at Sydney Olympic Park also helped Jorge Vilda become the first male coach to win the Women's World Cup.
Spain opened the 2023 Women's World Cup with a 3-0 victory over Costa Rica, 5-0 Zambia before suddenly losing 0-4 to Japan. They then beat Switzerland 5-1 in the round of 16, winning the runner-up Netherlands in the quarter-finals and Sweden in the semi-finals with the same score of 2-1, before defeating reigning European champions England in the semi-finals. Final match.
At Sydney Olympic Park this afternoon, England played better and created the first dangerous opportunity, with a shot from Lauren Hemp's crossbar in the 16th minute. Soon, Spain responded with a shot from close range. of Aitana Bonmati, but hit the Mary Earps keeper.
In the 29th minute, Spain stole the ball in the middle of the field and then counterattacked quickly on the left wing. Mariona Caldentey cleverly poked a slot for captain Olga Carmona to cross into the box and shoot with his left foot across the corner to score. In the semi-finals, it was Carmona who scored the same goal to seal a 2-1 victory over Sweden.
Having the advantage of leading the table, Spain played a short ball, which inhibited the opponent, and at the same time put pressure from the opponent's court to force England to play long. This game in Spain's favor almost doubled their lead, if Salma Paralluelo's right footer did not send the ball to the outside of the post at the end of the half.
In the second half, England launched Lauren James and Chloe Kelly to refresh the attack. When the game was improving, Keira Walsh let the ball touch his hand in the penalty area after 64 minutes. It took two minutes to consult VAR, the new referee decided to give Spain a penalty. However, goalkeeper Mary Earps caught Jennifer Hermoso's shot, keeping hope for England.
However, the rest of the time, including 13 minutes of injury time, England created only one chance, with James' shot from a tight left corner being pushed over the bar by Catalina Co. He had to accept the final defeat 1-2. Sarina Wiegman became the first coach to fail in two consecutive Women's World Cup finals, after losing 0-2 with the Netherlands in 2019.
