England player ratings as duo get 8s but Lionesses suffer World Cup heartache

World Cup: Women’s football ‘no longer needs to prove itself’

England suffered Women’s World Cup heartbreak on Sunday as they were defeated 1-0 by Spain in the final at Stadium Australia in Sydney. Spain’s winner came just before the half hour mark as Olga Carmona fired the ball into the corner of Mary Earps’ net after Lucy Bronze had given away possession in the centre of the pitch. Earps gave the Lionesses hope after she saved a Jennifer Hermoso penalty in the second period. But it wasn’t to be for Sarina Wiegman’s team – and Express Sport is on hand with the England player ratings from the final.

Mary Earps – 8

Was a hero after saving Hermoso’s penalty as momentum changed. But there was little she could do to keep out Carmona’s goal as the Spain player picked out the far corner of the goal. Made a string of saves throughout the match and didn’t deserve to be on the losing team.

Jess Carter – 6

Fierce in the tackle as usual. But she was caught in possession at the end of the first half to gift Spain a chance. She wasn’t close enough to Salma Paralluelo as the Spain striker nearly scored a second goal for her country at the end of the opening period but battled well and did all she could to help her side.

Millie Bright – 6

Was exposed in the centre of defence as crosses kept coming into the box. But she was a warrior in the face of adversity as Spain were allowed to carve out too many chances. Was moved up front in the latter stages of the match.

Alex Greenwood – 6

Battled well and defended gallantly as Spain piled the pressure on England. She had far more to do than she would have liked as England came out second best.

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Lucy Bronze – 5

Gave the ball away for Spain’s winning goal. And her mistake was amplified by the fact she refused to chase back. She allowed too many crosses into the box in the first half and couldn’t stop Caldentey getting a shot in on goal after diving in during the early stages of the second period.

Georgia Stanway – 5

Struggled to stamp her authority on the match in the first half as England were overloaded in midfield. And she couldn’t galvanise her team-mates, despite her tenacity.

Keira Walsh – 5

Was reactive as Spain dominated in the centre of the pitch. She wasn’t able to get on the ball as much as she would have liked and was dispossessed just after the hour mark as Spain went close again. She may feel she could have pulled her hand out of the way of the ball for the penalty decision.

Rachel Daly – 6

Was targeted by Spain in the first half as she was overloaded on the left side. She looked to push forward at every opportunity but wasn’t moving that well at the end of the opening period and was replaced by Chloe Kelly at half time.

Ella Toone – 5

Fluffed her lines from inside the six yard box at the end of the first half as she missed the ball but had strayed into an offside position anyway. She barely had a sniff after that and was replaced by Bethany England late on.

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Alessia Russo – 6

Was full of running as usual and worked hard to chase back with England struggling for possession. But she was isolated throughout the opening period and was replaced by Lauren James at half time.

Lauren Hemp – 7

Should have done better when she fired a tame strike at Spain goalkeeper Misa Rodriguez early on. She was unlucky not to open the scoring as she hit the crossbar with a wonderful strike at 0-0. She found herself with space inside the box time and time again and should have drawn her side level eight minutes into the second period after being picked out by Chloe Kelly. But she failed to get her name on the scoresheet.

Substitutions

Chloe Kelly – 7

Whipped a delicious cross into Lauren Hemp moments after coming onto the pitch as the Lionesses almost drew level and looked dangerous going forward.

Lauren James – 8

Looked to get on the ball in the second half and oozed quality. She always looked capable of producing that moment of magic and caused the Spain defence all sorts of problems. She made a huge difference and should have won a free-kick on the edge of the area late on.

Bethany England – 6

Wasn’t on long enough to make an impact as England’s day ended in huge disappointment.

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