Lauren Hemp hailed England as “a special team” and Ella Toone toasted the best shot of her life after the Lionesses reached their first World Cup final with a 3-1 victory over co-hosts Australia.
Hemp restored England’s lead in the second half, after Matildas captain Sam Kerr cancelled out Toone’s stunning opener, and provided the assist that allowed Alessia Russo to put the game away after 86 minutes.
England, who will face Spain in Sunday’s showdown in Sydney, are just one win away from securing the second major trophy in their history just under 13 months after becoming European champions at Wembley.
Player-of-the-match Hemp, who started every game of that triumph, said: “Oh my god, what a feeling. I feel like there are no words to describe what we all feel right now.
“It’s an unbelievable achievement, getting to a World Cup final. It’s every kid’s dream. I mean, I’ve got no words, I’m absolutely knackered right now. We’ve got a few days to recover but then we go again.
“We want to win this, obviously we’ve come so far now, so why not?
“I feel like as a team we have got such an inner-belief and also so much confidence as the group. No matter what happens on the outside, no matter who we come up against, every challenge we’ve managed to solve.
“I feel like this team is so special. You saw last year how successful we were. We want to do the same again and we want to go one step further.
“We have all got a dream. We’re pushing each other to be the best that we can and we know that whenever a player gets beaten by their opponent, we know there will be someone there, having each others’ backs, no matter what.”
World number four England have grown into this tournament since eking out a 1-0 win against Haiti, 49 places below them in FIFA’s global rankings, to open their campaign – sparking concerns about the Lionesses’ prowess in attack.
Russo and Hemp have netted three goals each in this tournament, equalling the contribution made by Chelsea forward Lauren James before she was sent off late in the second half of England’s victory over Nigeria in the last 16.
England have never had two different players score three or more goals at a single edition of the tournament before, with James also set to be available for Sunday’s final after serving the second match of her two-game suspension on Wednesday night.
That might put Toone’s chances of starting the final at risk, but the Manchester United midfielder could not have done any more to impress head coach Sarina Wiegman, lashing in a thunderous strike to set England on their way in Sydney.
“It fell straight to me in the box and I just thought ‘why not just smack it?’ Honestly, that’s the best shot I’ve hit in my life,” said Toone, who scored the opener in last summer’s Euro 2022 final triumph.
“Sometimes when you hit a ball, you just know I’ve caught that perfectly and I was like ‘wow, that was alright’. I think I knew as soon as it left my boot that it was going to end up in the back of the net.
“It seems to be I like the big stage in tournaments, but in tournament football it is often about taking those moments and it was my turn to do so tonight.
“I had my moment, it fell to me and I put it in the back of the net. Even if I hadn’t scored, I would still have done my job for this team, worked hard and did what I needed to do.
“When big moments fall to me in tournaments, I’ve taken them.”
Nuno demands Premier League resolves PSR 'mess' as Forest await appeal verdict
Nuno Espirito Santo has called for the Premier League to provide clarity as Nottingham Forest wait on their appeal against a four-point deduction for breaching profit and sustainability rules, describing the situation as a "mess".
Forest were deducted four points in March after being found to have breached the competition's financial rules in the assessment period culminating in the end of the 2022-23 season.
Everton have also had a total of eight points deducted for two separate breaches, but with the Toffees pulling clear of the relegation zone, it is Forest who are looking over their shoulders.
Nuno's team sit just one point clear of 18th-placed Luton Town as they await the outcome of an appeal against their penalty, and he says the lack of clarity is affecting several clubs.
Asked whether he had received an update on Forest's appeal on Thursday, Nuno said: "Unfortunately we haven't heard yet.
"We are expecting to, but not yet. It is very difficult. We have been dealing with this situation for a while.
"We all expected the decision to come sooner, so we would know exactly how many points we have. Do we have 30, 29, 28, 27? We need it as fast as possible.
"To have 30 points would be fantastic, because this is the number of points that the boys achieved on the pitch.
"It is a mess. It should have been decided before. They have had enough time. It is very difficult for us but also for the rest of the league. It is very hard to be in this situation."
Forest visit already-relegated Sheffield United on Saturday, having taken just one point from four Premier League games since beating Fulham 3-1 in early April.
They could be in the relegation zone by the time that match kicks off, with Luton hosting Everton in a huge clash at Kenilworth Road on Friday.
France defender Hernandez to miss Euro 2024 after suffering ACL injury
Lucas Hernandez will miss France's Euro 2024 campaign after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament during Paris Saint-Germain's 1-0 Champions League defeat to Borussia Dortmund.
Dortmund will take a slender lead to the Parc des Princes for next week's semi-final second leg after Niclas Fullkrug's strike powered them past PSG in Wednesday's first leg in Germany.
Hernandez sustained a knee injury while chasing after Fullkrug in the build-up to the goal and was substituted after a brief attempt to play on.
On Thursday, PSG announced an MRI scan had revealed an ACL tear in his left knee, which will require surgery in the coming days.
Hernandez, who has 37 senior international caps, will now miss Euro 2024, with France set to open their Group D campaign against Austria in Dusseldorf on June 17.
Didier Deschamps' side then face the Netherlands in Leipzig four days later, before taking on Poland in Dortmund on June 25.
Hernandez was part of France's squad for the 2022 World Cup but sustained another ligament injury during Les Bleus' opening match against Australia, missing the rest of the tournament and not returning to club football until the start of 2023-24.
Tonali set for August return after receiving suspended two-month ban from FA
Sandro Tonali has been given a suspended two-month ban by the Football Association (FA) after admitting to breaching gambling rules.
The sanction means the Newcastle United midfielder will be eligible to return to action on August 27, 2024, when his 10-month suspension issued by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) expires.
FIFA ratified that ban, causing it to become applicable worldwide, after Tonali admitted to placing bets on matches as part of an investigation into unregulated betting platforms in Italy.
In March, the FA charged Tonali with breaching English football's gambling rules 50 times between August and October last year, leading to fears his spell out of the game could be extended.
However, on Thursday it was confirmed that the FA had suspended Tonali's punishment for the duration of the 2024-25 season, meaning he can return in August if he does not reoffend.
In a statement, Newcastle said: "Sandro Tonali has been given a suspended two-month ban from competitive football by an independent regulatory commission after self-declaring breaches of FA betting rules.
"He has also been fined £20,000 and warned by the FA as to his future conduct.
"Provided that he does not commit any further breach of the FA betting rules during the suspension period, Sandro will not serve any part of the two-month sanction.
"As acknowledged by the FA in the independent regulatory commission's written reasons, the level of assistance Sandro has provided by self-referring and fully cooperating with a subsequent investigation is extraordinary and unprecedented.
"Sandro is continuing to follow a therapeutic plan and educational programme with the club's full support and will continue to train with his team-mates."
Tonali's initial ban has limited him to just eight Premier League appearances since he joined Newcastle from Milan in a £55million deal, while he will also miss Italy's Euro 2024 campaign.
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