England v Germany
Women's International
7.30pm BST, Friday 25 October 2024
Wembley Stadium connected by EE

England women’s head coach Sarina Wiegman and captain Leah Williamson faced the press on Thursday morning ahead of Friday evening’s match with Germany at Wembley Stadium.

The pair discussed competition for places, what they hope to get out of the encounter, memories of their last clash with the Germans under the arch, and much more.

Here is what they had to say in full.

Wiegman on team news:

The squad is good. We have two players not available tomorrow – Fran Kirby, who might be ready for Tuesday, and Lotte Wubben-Moy, which has to do with the concussion protocol. Fran wants to be available so badly, she moved club and has played four games in a row, and unfortunately she has an injury which isn’t big. She needs minutes so hopefully she gets fit and starts playing again.

On her options at centre-back:

Centre-back is absolutely a headache because they are all really good and really competing but they are headaches I want to have. Everybody wants minutes, we want to try things, and hopefully by the end of year we have lots of information.

On memories of the EURO 2022 final against Germany:

Of course we will always cherish that memory and it was one of the biggest moments in my career, in my life. We are focused on now with a different team and it’s the start of the next EUROs cycle. So many things have happened to the team since. Germany have always been a powerful team, who want to play the possession game but don’t hesitate to play the long ball either. They have a new coach now who might want to do different things so we’ll prepare for everything. It's really good for us to get that experience at the highest level.

On how the team has developed since that final:

You always want to develop faster. The game has increased, the level of the league has increased, meaning international football has too. There is some transition in our team, the more experienced players are trying to help, and the main thing is we know where we want to be on July 2. The start of that is tomorrow evening and we want to play top-level opponents to find out where we are at. It’s really important to have this game against a top-level team to try out things to get information about where we are at and our individuals moving forward.

On Lauren James’ withdrawal from the squad:

We want her to be fit, that’s the main thing. Unfortunately she’s injured and she’s working on her recovery. She’s in a great environment at her club and as soon as she gets minutes she’ll show quality because that’s the quality Chelsea play at. Then we’ll see how she can fit into the team.

We're LIVE from St. George’s Park as Sarina Wiegman and Leah Williamson preview tomorrow’s game against Germany @wembleystadium https://t.co/SeLgvmRuVG

— Lionesses (@Lionesses) October 24, 2024

Williamson on the competition at centre-back:

It’s been that way since I’ve been in the England squad. I was once on the outside and trying to push others and catch up, and we’ve always had a very strong unit. I think it’s fair to say that’s why our output has been successful, because of how much competition there is.

Williamson on the season so far:

It’s been a bit different being with the club for so long, usually we would have had an international window so we’re not used to that. But this is a EUROs year and you’ll see our plans iron out over the next few months. Everyone plays for a club so they can play for their country and everyone knows how much we love it. I’m no different.

Williamson on Lauren Hemp’s form:

Everybody knows the talent Hempo has. She’s in great form, looks happy, which is what I care about as a teammate, and I’ve always said I’m glad she’s on my team and I get to play with her for England.

Williamson on EURO 2022 final memories:

I’ll never get tired of talking about it but we have a new job, a new focus, and it’s exciting. Obviously we have great memories and there will be people there tomorrow who will wish they were there two years ago so it’s a great fixture and we want to entertain the fans.

Germany in profile

Match Stats

● After winning just one of their first 26 meetings with Germany across all competitions (D4 L21), England have won back-to-back games against the Germans, most recently in the EURO 2022 final (2-1 AET).

● Germany have won seven of their previous eight friendlies with England (D1), most recently at Wembley Stadium in November 2019 thanks to a last minute Klara Bühl goal (2-1).

● England have only lost two of their last 30 games in England across in all competitions (W22 D6), losing to Australia in April 2023 and France in May this year at St James’ Park in Newcastle.

● Germany have won three of their last four away games in all competitions but did lose their most recent such game in a EURO 2025 qualifier, 0-3 to Iceland.

● England have failed to win their last three home friendlies without scoring, losing 0-2 to Australia last year in between goalless draws with Czechia and Portugal; they did win their last such match at Wembley Stadium however, 2-1 against USA in October 2022.

● Germany have kept a clean sheet in two of their last three games (vs. Canada and Spain at 2024 Olympic Games), as many shutouts as across their previous nine matches across all competitions.

● England scored 12 goals across their opening two games of 2024 (7-2 v Austria, 5-1 v Italy) but have netted just eight goals across their six outings since, drawing 0-0 with Sweden last time out.

● This will be Christian Wück’s first game in charge of Germany, with each of their previous six national team managers winning their first game: Gero Bisanz in 1982 (5-1 v Switzerland), Christina Theune-Meyer in 1996 (3-0 v Netherlands), Silvia Neid in 2005 (3-1 v Canada), Stephanie Jones in September 2016 (4-0 v Russia), Horst Hrubesch in 2018 (4-0 v Czechia) and Martina Voss-Tecklenburg in 2019 (1-0 v France).

● Georgia Stanway has been directly involved in six goals across her last 10 England appearances (three goals, three assists) while eight of her last ten national team goals have come in England.

● Lea Schüller is Germany’s top goalscorer in 2024 with ten goals – only in 2021 (eleven) has the Bayern Munich forward ever eclipsed that tally in a calendar year for DFB-Frauen. She has never scored against England in three previous appearances, however.

England Squad News

Ticket Information

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How to watch or stream

A Georgia Stanway double was not enough to prevent England from losing 4-3 to Germany in an end-to-end game at Wembley.

In a rematch of the Lionesses' classic Euro 2022 final triumph, neither side disappointed, with the goals flowing freely.

Germany broke the deadlock after just four minutes of play when they were awarded a penalty from Millie Bright's foul.

Giulia Gwinn made no mistake from the spot, scoring emphatically past Hannah Hampton despite the Chelsea goalkeeper guessing correctly.

And it was not long before Gwinn added a second, firing home in the 11th minute to double Germany’s lead.

Undeterred, England made more in-roads into Germany's half and came close to scoring themselves when Alessia Russo's low strike hit the woodwork.

The hosts were then forced into evasive action down the other end of the pitch and the Lionesses counted their blessings when Hampton expertly cleared her lines.

But it would not be long before Germany would find the net for a third time, with Klara Bühl finishing off a ruthless counter-attacking move in the 29th minute.

Yet the Lionesses would soon strike, with Georgia Stanway converting from the spot after Gwinn's hand met Lauren Hemp's low cross.

And spurred on by a vociferous Wembley crowd, England promptly found a second, with Stanway clinching her brace after powerfully firing past Berger once more to finish off some excellent combination play.

The Lionesses had roared back into the game, and came close to completing a stunning turnaround, only for Ella Toone's effort to narrowly whizz past the post

With the first-half nearing an end, Germany almost had a fourth as Leah Williamson heroically blocked Bühl's cross into Hampton's hands.

The last action of the half then saw the Chelsea goalkeeper soar to deny Linda Dallman's long-range drive by tipping over the bar.  

Germany found the net minutes after the restart, only for it to be ruled out for offside before Hampton brilliantly denied Jule Brand's close-range strike.

But with the pressure mounting, Germany grabbed their fourth with just under 20 minutes left in the second-half when substitute Dabritz converted from the spot after Russo was adjudged to have caught Pia-Sophie Wolter.

Hemp appeared to have pulled one back for the Lionesses in the 77th minute only for her clinical finish to be flagged for offside.

Four minutes later, Lucy Bronze did narrow the visitors’ lead after Berger fumbled a free-kick before Alex Greenwood heroically cleared Cerci's goal-bound strike.

With time running out, England mounted wave after wave of attack - but Germany would prove the victors.

An eventful night at Wembley. Plenty to learn from. 👊 pic.twitter.com/6QdupFJY92

— Lionesses (@Lionesses) October 25, 2024

England: 1 Hannah Hampton (Chelsea), 2 Lucy Bronze (Chelsea), 3 Jessica Carter (Gotham FC), 4 Keira Walsh (Barcelona), 5 Millie Bright (Chelsea),6 Leah Williamson (Arsenal), 7 Beth Mead (Arsenal), 8 Georgia Stanway (Bayern Munich), 9 Alessia Russo (Arsenal), 10 Ella Toone (Manchester United), 11 Lauren Hemp (Manchester City)

Substitutes: 14 Jess Park (Manchester City) for Toone 46', 16 Alex Greenwood (Manchester City) for for Williamson 61', 19 Chloe Kelly (Manchester City) for Russo 72' 20 Jess Naz (Tottenham Hotspur) for Mead, 12 Maya Le Tissier (Manchester United) for Bronze 81'

Subs not used: 13 Mary Earps (Paris Saint-Germain), 21 Anna Moorhouse (Orlando Pride), 15 Esme Morgan (Washington Spirit), 17 Aggie Beever-Jones (Chelsea), 18 Grace Clinton (Manchester United), 22 Lucy Parker (Aston Villa)

Goals: Stanway 33’, 36’, Bronze 81’

Coach: Sarina Wiegman

Germany: 1 Ann-Katrin Berger, 2 Sarai Linder, 6 Janina Minge, 9 Sjoke Nüsken, 15 Giulia Gwinn, 16 Linda Dallmann, 19 Klara Bühl, 20 Elisa Senß, 22 Jule Brand, 23 Sara Doorsoun, 24 Giovanna Hoffmann

Substitutes: 17 Felicitas Rauch for Sarai Linder 46', 25 Selina Cerci for Giovanna Hoffman 46', 5 Pia-Sophie Wolter for Gwinn 62', 13 Sara Däbritz for Nüsken 62', 4 Sophia Kleinherne for Doorsoun 67', 26 Vivien Endemann for Bühl 82'

Subs not used: 12 Stina Johannes, 21 Sophia Winkler, 8 Sydney Lohmann, 14 Lisanne Gräwe, 28 Nicole Anyomi,

Goals: Gwinn 4’, 11, Bühl 29’, Dabritz 72’

Coach: Christian Wück