Published 21 July 2022 4 min read
England Women's Senior Team
Stanway: 'I don't know what came over me!'
England's matchwinner reflects on her stunning goal against Spain as Lionesses progress to EURO 2022 semi-final
Welcome back knockout football.
In a breathless opening Women’s EURO 2022 quarter-final, Georgia Stanway’s standout performance in the tournament so far cemented Sarina Wiegman’s players in Lionesses’ history.
Not only did the Bayern Munich midfielder seal a 2-1 win over Spain in extra-time with a glorious strike, she also gave a hard-working and tireless performance in the centre of the field.
After going behind early in the second half, it was six minutes either side of the 90th when England overturned an anxious game into a delirious celebration in Brighton.
Stanway’s ever-present tenacity saw the space in midfield in front of her open, time warp and an instinctual unleash of an unstoppable drive past Sandra Paños.
“I honestly don’t know why I shot,” she said. “It all feels like a massive blur at the moment. I need to watch it back and see where I was, how it went in the net, I literally can't remember.
“I don't know what came over me. Usually I would probably pass that ball to the winger and expect the ball to be put back in the box. But I just thought, what's the worst that can happen?
“I remember saying to one of the girls, 'at what moment did we actually score?' The celebrations at the end showed how much it meant to us and the fans were unbelievable.”
In a breathless opening Women’s EURO 2022 quarter-final, Georgia Stanway’s standout performance in the tournament so far cemented Sarina Wiegman’s players in Lionesses’ history.
Not only did the Bayern Munich midfielder seal a 2-1 win over Spain in extra-time with a glorious strike, she also gave a hard-working and tireless performance in the centre of the field.
After going behind early in the second half, it was six minutes either side of the 90th when England overturned an anxious game into a delirious celebration in Brighton.
Stanway’s ever-present tenacity saw the space in midfield in front of her open, time warp and an instinctual unleash of an unstoppable drive past Sandra Paños.
“I honestly don’t know why I shot,” she said. “It all feels like a massive blur at the moment. I need to watch it back and see where I was, how it went in the net, I literally can't remember.
“I don't know what came over me. Usually I would probably pass that ball to the winger and expect the ball to be put back in the box. But I just thought, what's the worst that can happen?
“I remember saying to one of the girls, 'at what moment did we actually score?' The celebrations at the end showed how much it meant to us and the fans were unbelievable.”
21 Jul 2022
2:20
Highlights: England 2-1 Spain
See the goals and the best of the action as the Lionesses reach the EURO 2022 semi-finals
Stanway’s role on the international stage perhaps best resembles her versatility and grit. Her magical touches and inspiration in the final third may accumulate into a vivid turning point for England in the competition with her strike, but her work ethic in midfield to keep a gifted Spanish side at bay were just as important.
“The grit, the dirty work, getting up to the ball, putting the tackles in, making sure to challenge their decision making and making them uncomfortable; that's what we did tonight,” she reflected. “You've just got to expect to be doing the running, get across the pitch, up to players.
“(We’re) bound to be sore but we've got six days to recover. We’ll enjoy going back to our base camp and trying to get the recovery in.
“We felt we were in the game anyway and we rattled them. We were causing them problems. We were putting crosses in the box, having shots, we were breaking them down. It was just a matter of time but I'm glad we did it within the time.”
Juliet Nottingham is a Football Journalism student at the University of Derby, covering Women’s EURO 2022
“The grit, the dirty work, getting up to the ball, putting the tackles in, making sure to challenge their decision making and making them uncomfortable; that's what we did tonight,” she reflected. “You've just got to expect to be doing the running, get across the pitch, up to players.
“(We’re) bound to be sore but we've got six days to recover. We’ll enjoy going back to our base camp and trying to get the recovery in.
“We felt we were in the game anyway and we rattled them. We were causing them problems. We were putting crosses in the box, having shots, we were breaking them down. It was just a matter of time but I'm glad we did it within the time.”
Juliet Nottingham is a Football Journalism student at the University of Derby, covering Women’s EURO 2022
PLAYER PROFILE: GEORGIA STANWAY