England remain on course to become European champions after they produced a brilliant comeback to beat Spain and reach the semi-finals of Euro 2022.
The Lionesses were bidding to reach their fourth successive semi-final at a major tournament but appeared to be heading out after Esther Gonzalez put Spain in front in the second-half.
Pre-tournament favourites Spain led for 30 minutes but Ella Toone equalised late on to keep England’s hopes alive, before Georgia Stanway settled the quarter-final with a stunning winner in extra-time.
Sarina Wiegman’s England, unbeaten at Euro 2022, will play Sweden or Belgium in the semi-finals on Tuesday night.
Prior to this evening’s quarter-final clash at Brighton’s Amex Stadium, England enjoyed a flawless Euro 2022 group stage, taking maximum points from Group A and scoring 14 goals from their three games.
Spain, who finished second in Group B, only dropping points to fellow title contenders Germany, started the quarter-final well and had the first shot on target when Barcelona’s Mariona Caldentey found space and tested England goalkeeper Mary Earps.
Patricia Guijarro, who also plays for the Catalan giants, then glanced a header wide as Spain pushed for an early opener.
Chances were few and far between for England in the first half, although Ellen White did have the ball in the back of the net on 36 minutes, the goal correctly disallowed for offside.
Spain turned their superiority into a lead shortly after half-time as Gonzalez scored her first goal of the tournament after following Athenea del Castillo beat England full-back Rachel Daly.
Three Lions goalkeeper Earps was then called into action to deny Del Castillo’s cross-come-shot, before Daly got a shot away herself but failed to trouble Spain’s Sandra Panos.
England were beginning to wonder if an equaliser would come when Lauren Hemp fired over the bar with 15 minutes remaining, but Wiegman’s team levelled six minutes from time through Toone.
Alessia Russo won a header in the box to keep the ball alive and her Manchester United team-mate Toone was on hand to poke home and keep England alive.
The nerves were palpable when extra-time began but the Amex Stadium erupted when Stanway drove towards Spain’s defence before unleashing a superb strike past the helpless Panos.
While renditions of ‘Three Lions’ rang out across the stadium, England still had a job to do with 25 minutes remaining but they kept Spain at bay expertly to move one step closer to winning the Euros.
As the England players celebrated a memorable win with the fans inside the Amex Stadium, matchwinner Stanway said on BBC One: ‘This is unreal. That shows the level we’re at. We get a setback and we come back. Job done. Now we can focus on the semis.
‘I wasn’t too sure [if the shot was going in]. It’s one to be proud of. I’ll remember today. We put in a massive shift. We just have to enjoy this moment and crack on now.’
Former England striker Ian Wright added: ‘What a great night. Congratulations to the team. Spain were brilliant tonight but we showed grit and determination.
‘People questioned what England could do against a good team. We came back in it and we won the game. Spain played us off the park at times but we found a way to get it done.
‘The winner is absolutely magnificent. I’m so pleased for Georgia Stanway and the team.’
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