Chelsea captain Millie Bright said the Lionesses’ approach was “proper English” following their big 1-0 Nations League victory over Spain.
Jess Park scored the only goal in the 33rd minute at Wembley Stadium in what was the first meeting between world number four England and second-ranked Spain since the latter beat the former in the 2023 World Cup final.
It was a much more cohesive effort than their 1-1 competition-opening draw with Portugal on Friday, and one Sarina Wiegman’s side will hope sends a message ahead of their European title defence in Switzerland this summer.
“After the last game, I think we said we are a new team, we’re on a new journey, and we’ve been working really hard to build those connections,” said Bright.
“And after the last game we wanted to be even more connected. And to be honest, we spoke about just being proper English and having that fight and that desire to defend for each other, work hard for each other and be hard to beat.
“I think it’s so important in football to be hard to beat, first and foremost, and obviously getting the clean sheet, I think you’ve seen the performance from everyone.
“Yeah, it was outstanding.”
Spain came close to an opener when Lucia Garcia clipped the underside of the crossbar from a corner in the first half.
The build-up, the Russo™️ spin, the flick from JP!
COME ON! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/agXBDWnnPL
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) February 26, 2025
But it was Manchester City’s Park who ultimately scored the game’s only goal after some excellent work from Arsenal striker Alessia Russo, who carved through the Spanish defence then had an attempt blocked by Spain skipper Irene Paredes.
The rebound fell favourably for Park, who prodded home, and England were able to cling on for the clean sheet despite a considerable Spanish threat thanks to a strong defensive effort.
England boss Wiegman agreed with Bright’s “proper English” assessment, saying victory was a result of “working hard, being together as a team, I think that’s what you can see today.
“I think we had a point to prove, we just wanted to do a lot better than Friday,” she added. “I think on Friday we spoke about the fact we have momentum, and then of course we tied, and we wanted to prove to ourselves we can do better.
“And we absolutely knew that we had to step up and do better.”
Spain boss Montse Tome singled out Chelsea winger Lauren James, who created a number of chances and was also strong defensively.
She said: “We had chances that we simply didn’t take. That’s a scenario that we need to improve on and we will improve.
“England could have scored more as well. Cata Coll made at least three very good saves, it was a high-level match.
“England scored their goal, we didn’t, and we just need to keep improving for the next game.”
[(Gangwon FC) Strength]: 1. Last season in the Korean FA Cup, Gangwon FC were eliminated in the Round of 16. This season, the team have made a breakthrough so far and have advanced to the semi-finals. In this second leg, they will play at home and have a strong desire to win.2. Lee Ji Ho, a forward of Gangwon FC, has had limited playing time this season. However, he has maintained high offensive e...
[(Everton F.C.) Strength]: 1. On August 24th, in the 2nd round of the Premier League, Everton F.C. secured a comfortable 2-0 home victory over Brighton & Hove Albion F.C., with Jack Grealish providing two assists and putting in an impressive performance.2. Everton F.C. kept unbeaten in the last 3 Premier League home games with 2 wins and 1 draw, showing excellent performances.3. Everton F.C. h...
[(Nagoya Grampus) Strength]: 1. Nagoya Grampus are on a 2-game losing streak. They are motivated to win this home game to boost their morale.2. Soichiro Mori scored a goal and made an assist in the last game, showing outstanding form.3. Nagoya Grampus secured a 3-game winning streak in their last 3 encounters between both sides, giving them a better mentality.[(Nagoya Grampus) Neutral]: 1. Nagoya ...
[(Grimsby Town F.C.) Strength]: 1. Grimsby Town F.C. player Jaze Kabia scored in the last game, with reliable form.2. Grimsby Town F.C. drew 1-1 against Accrington Stanley in the last game, but they still kept unbeaten among all events in the new season, being in stable form.3. Grimsby Town F.C.'s home performance was outstanding. They won all the last 3 home games.4. Grimsby Town F.C. have a good...
[(FC Machida Zelvia) Strength]: 1. FC Machida Zelvia are undoubtedly motivated to win this home game to qualify for the semi-finals.2. Yuki Soma scored 10 goals and made 6 assists across all competitions this season, being important on the team's offense.3. FC Machida Zelvia drew 0-0 with Yokohama F. Marinos in the last game. They were unbeaten with 11 wins and 1 draw in the last 12 games, showing...
[(Reading F.C.) Strength]: 1. Reading F.C. are playing in the EFL League One this season and are on a 3-game winless run lately. They need to return to winning ways, indicating full motivation in this game.2. Lewis Wing scored a goal and made an assist in the last game, helping the team tie with Wycombe Wanderers F.C.3. Reading F.C. won the last 2 games in AH, revealing recent performances in line...
[(Sheffield Wed) Strength]: 1. Sheffield Wed have a rather impressive track record in the EFL Cup. In the first round of this season, they defeated Bolton Wanderers F.C., another team from the EFL Championship, and have posted 3 wins and 2 draws in their last 5 EFL Cup games.2. Sheffield Wed lost only 1 of the last 5 games in AH with stable performances. They ended all the last 4 games with OVER.[...
[(Eintracht Braunschweig) Strength]: 1. As a 2. Bundesliga side, Eintracht Braunschweig have made a solid start to the new season. Having been eliminated in the first round of the DFB-Pokal in each of the past two seasons, the team will undoubtedly be eager to achieve a better performance when they compete in the tournament again this season. Therefore, they will be full of determination when faci...
[(Sturm Graz) Strength]: 1. Sturm Graz suffered a crushing defeat in the first leg on the road. In this home match, they have to go all out to attack, with full motivation to win.2. Sturm Graz midfielder Otar Kiteishvili scored 4 goals in three league games this season, performing excellently in the league. As the starting forward of the team, his performance in this match is worth keeping an eye ...
[(Burnley) Strength]: 1. Burnley's key midfielder Josh Cullen not only opened the scoring for the team in the last game but also provided an assist, emerging as the biggest contributor to the victory with an outstanding individual performance.2. Burnley claimed a comfortable 2-0 win over Sunderland in their last game, securing their first victory of the new Premier League season and boosting the t...
- 1 Ruben Amorim gives cryptic response when asked about Andre Onana returning to starting XI for Fulham clash after Altay Bayindir blunder handed Arsenal victory
- 2 'Victory Bodes Well for Future' – Gasperini Delighted with Roma’s Opening Day Win
- 3 TIPS - Eintracht Frankfurt VS Werder Bremen
- 4 Transfer rumors, news: Arsenal could turn to Lyon's Fofana
- 5 Antony’s Man United Exit Hopes Rest on Fresh Real Betis Bid Within 'Next 24 Hours'
- 6 TIPS - Cerezo Osaka VS Vissel Kobe
- 7 TIPS - Gamba Osaka VS Yokohama FC
- 8 TIPS - Schalke 04 VS VfL Bochum
- 9 TIPS - Sunderland A.F.C. VS Huddersfield Town A.F.C.
- 10 TIPS - Olympique de Marseille VS Paris FC