90+15min – Goalkeeper Cata Coll claims an England corner and Spain have beaten England 1-0 to win the World Cup!
90+8min – Frustration for England as attacks break down with no clear sight of goal. Paralluelo wins a corner off Lucy Bronze at the other end to eat up some more time.
90+2min – Earps saves England again, with her left foot at the near post after Ona Batlle’s shot took a slight deflection off Carter.
90min – We are entering 13 (thirteen) minutes of stoppage time…
89min – A crucial block from Jess Carter denies Hermoso a clinching goal for Spain.
84min – A stoppage in play with two Spain players down injured, including Hermoso who slid awkwardly and was then caught by Georgia Stanway.
76min – Lauren James goes close for England with a languid strike from the left of the penalty area, tipped over by Coll.
72min – England’s men’s Test cricket captain enjoyed Mary Earps’ save!
69min – Jennifer Hermoso steps up for Spain… and Mary Earps saves! Poor penalty from Hermoso but take nothing away from Earps, who timed her dive low to her left.
67min – Penalty given, after a long time spent looking at the pitchside monitor.
64min – VAR is checking for a possible Spanish penalty, for handball against Keira Walsh.
61min – Aitana Bonmati zips a shot just over as Spain look to put this game beyond England.
55min – Spain still on top early in the second half, with Mariona Caldentey drawing a good save from Mary Earps. Hemp shot just wide for England but Kelly looked offside in the build-up.
46min – Sarina Wiegman has wasted no time in making changes. On come Euro 2022 hero Chloe Kelly and the returning Lauren James for the second half, with Russo and Daly making way.
Half-time – So if England are to lift the trophy they must come from behind – like they did against Spain at Euro 2022. Here’s how the country has taken in that first half.
45+1min – Salma Paralluelo clips the right-hand post for Spain on the stroke of half-time! The whistle blows and England will be relieved to go in only one down.
43min – England seek an equaliser before half-time, but Toone is just unable to connect in the six-yard box and Daly’s pass does not quite pick out Russo.
35min – Can England find a response? Spain are looking comfortable in possession inside the Lionesses’ half at the moment.https://twitter.com/BBCSport/status/1693209685673890139
29min – Spain open the scoring! The ball is worked forward down the left and full-back Olga Carmona fires low across Mary Earps and inside the far post.
17min – And immediately a glorious chance for Spain at the other end! Paralluelo fails to connect at the near post and Redondo somehow sidefoots straight at Mary Earps! Hemp then draws a straightforward save from Coll.
16min – Lauren Hemp hits the bar! Daly teed the forward up on the edge of the box but her left-foot curler was just too high with Coll beaten.
12min – Alessia Russo almost breaks through but is crowded out by the Spanish defence. Alex Greenwood’s corner is well claimed by Coll.
7min – Spain put together their first attack of note but Alba Redondo’s cross is overhit and Rachel Daly shepherds Aitana Bonmati’s delivery to safety.
5min – Hemp has the first shot on goal, but a weak left-footed effort is easily fielded by goalkeeper Cata Coll.
2min – England start on the front foot with Lauren Hemp leading the press. Jess Carter’s long ball is just too far ahead of Ella Toone.
1100 – Kick-off in Sydney! Here we go…
1055 – A final reminder of today’s line-ups as we prepare for kick-off.
1050 – Spain have plenty of support as well.
1040 – FIFA and Adidas have pulled out all the stops with a golden matchball for the final!
1030 – England fans are showing their support at Stadium Australia.
1025 – England are taking in the scene ahead of kick-off in Sydney.
1020 – Spain are ready to go, with Salma Paralluelo looking focused as she prepares to start.
1010 – Sarina Wiegman was characteristically restrained when asked about Lauren James’ return from suspension.
Wiegman told BBC Sport: “First of all we hope everyone on the pitch, starting, will have an impact on the game.
“We have players on the bench who can make an impact and it’s really nice to have LJ on the bench too, and if necessary she’s ready.”
1005 – England full-back Lucy Bronze is calm before kick-off, telling BBC Sport: “I’m just enjoying the moment like I have in every game.
“We’ve played in this stadium twice before so it’s quite familiar territory for us now, so I think a lot of the girls are pretty relaxed and just excited for the next 90 minutes.”
1000 – Pre-match preparations in Sydney.
0940 – England have arrived at the stadium, having earlier been cheered onto their bus by fans outside their hotel.
0935 – England have named an unchanged XI for the final, meaning Ella Toone keeps her place with Lauren James on the bench.
0920 – “If you bring this home, man, I’ll be in Trafalgar Square, I’ll be topless, I’ll be in the water!”
Rio Ferdinand promises he will be crying in the Trafalgar Square fountains if England win the trophy…
0915 – Kelly Smith, second on the Lionesses’ all-time goalscoring list with 46, is tipping England to win 2-0.
“I’m really calm, confident, I’ve got no nerves,” Smith told Sky Sports. “The way they played against Australia, they managed the game so well, all three forwards scored so that will have given them great confidence.
“It’s the belief they’ve experience winning a trophy last year at the Euros, it’s the manager – the best manager in the world, Sarina Wiegman.”
0910 – Support from former Lionesses forward Toni Duggan.
0855 – Former captain Faye White was fired up by the Lionesses’ hype video.
0845 – Spain have gone early with their team announcement! Super-sub Salma Paralluelo steps into a starting role for the big game, with Alexia Putellas on the bench.
Will Sarina Wiegman follow suit by unleashing Lauren James from the start? We await news of the England XI.
0840 – England fans gathered ahead of the match have some live rugby to entertain them as well as a visit from Chelsea manager Emma Hayes.
0830 – Our reporter Rachel Steinberg is in Sydney for the occasion and is bringing us some pre-match flavour, with both teams having strong support.
0820 – Euro 2022 hero Beth Mead tells Sky Sports: “I’m sure the nerves are setting in and I’m sure they’ll be excited and ready to go, and I’m super excited for them.”
“There’s a lot of experienced players on that bus, a lot who’ve experienced that final last year, and they can share that with the girls who’ve not been there before.
“It’s been a tough tournament to sit there and watch the games when you know you could have been involved if I didn’t have the injury. I’ll be so proud if the girls lift that trophy but a little touch of sadness because I want to be there with them. I know the others will be feeling the same, Leah Williamson and Fran Kirby and the other girls.”
0810 – England men’s captain Harry Kane urged the Lionesses to “bring that trophy home” and James Maddison said they are “putting so many smiles on faces that (they) probably don’t even realise” in a message of support on social media.
Coach Gareth Southgate admitted: “There is of course no advice because you’ve done more than us already!”
0800 – Good morning and welcome to the PA news agency’s Women’s World Cup final blog. Stay here for all the build-up, key match action and post-game reaction as England and Spain clash at a sold-out Stadium Australia.
Kompany wary of PSG quality despite European struggles
Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany is ignoring Paris Saint-Germain's poor start in the Champions League and expects a fierce test when the Parisiens visit Bavaria on Tuesday.
Six-time European champions Bayern are a lowly 17th in the 36-team Champions League table, currently occupying a playoff spot with just six points from four games.
PSG, meanwhile, are in danger of missing out on qualification entirely, sitting 25th with four points after being dealt a difficult draw.
Ahead of this week's fifth round of matches, the Opta supercomputer gave Bayern a 75% chance of reaching the last 16, either via automatic qualification or the playoffs.
PSG, meanwhile, are assigned just a 45% chance of making the round of 16.
However, Kompany will not take anything for granted ahead of the visit of Luis Enrique's men, saying: "We are playing against one of the big clubs in Europe.
They have a lot of individual quality and a very good coach. Both teams will want to win. We are playing at home and this match is of utmost importance to us.
"It's a squad with incredible talent. The spaces between the lines are never big, the pressing is very aggressive and good.
"When they have the ball, they have a clear attacking approach. As a team, they are really very good."
While the German giants have lost two of their four Champions League matches this season, they are undefeated in the Bundesliga and have not conceded a goal in five consecutive league games, but Kompany is still striving for more.
"There are many teams in the competition that we haven't seen yet. We often talk about finishing in the top eight... our goal is to finish top one," the Belgian added.
Bayern are without 20-year-old defensive midfielder Aleksandar Pavlovic, who broke his collarbone in October.
"Aleks is not yet fully integrated into training. It is going well and quickly, but it will still take a little while," Kompany said.
One man who is raring to go is Harry Kane, who has scored 50 Bundesliga goals since joining from Tottenham in August last year, needing just 43 games to reach that mark – fewer than any player in the league's history.
"It has been a long time since I felt as good as I do now," the England captain said. "As an experienced player, you learn a lot about different phases in a game.
"Since I've been at Bayern, my numbers have gone up. I hope that this continues and that we can keep raising our standards.
"Without the players around me, all of the goals I score would not be possible. They create space.
"We have a lot of competition for different positions, a lot of quality and a high tempo. Sometimes I also drop deeper to give my team-mates more space. We get on very well."
Leipzig in false Champions League position, says Inter's Inzaghi
RB Leipzig's lowly position in the Champions League standings does not reflect their performances, said Inter coach Simone Inzaghi ahead of their clash at San Siro on Tuesday.
Inter sit fifth in the 36-team group phase, having collected an impressive 10 points through four games, winning three in a row after starting with a draw at Manchester City.
Leipzig, meanwhile, are one of five teams still without a point.
If they lose on Tuesday, they will equal their longest-ever losing run in the competition, having lost five straight between February and October 2021 – two under Julian Nagelsmann and three under Jesse Marsch.
"Leipzig are a team that has been in the Champions League for six years and until Saturday they had the best defence in the Bundesliga," Inzaghi told a press conference on Monday.
"In the four Champions League matches they have played they deserved more, they have only clearly lost against Celtic.
"They have a coach [Marco Rose] who has been there for many years, they have many quality players and the ranking does not reflect their performances in Europe. We know that we are facing a strong team".
Leipzig, who are third in the Bundesliga after losing 4-3 at Hoffenheim on Saturday, kicked off their European campaign with a 2-1 loss at Atletico Madrid and home defeats by Juventus (3-2) and Liverpool (1-0). They lost 3-1 at Celtic last time out.
Inter, meanwhile, are unbeaten in 11 home matches in the competition (nine wins, two draws), keeping nine clean sheets during that run. Inzaghi, however, says they have further gears to find.
"We always have to work harder, this positive moment is the best to push and improve even more," Inzaghi said, reflecting on Saturday's 5-0 win at Verona in Serie A.
"We always try to see where we can do better. On Saturday in Verona, we scored five goals in one half, but we saw where we made some mistakes that could have cost us dearly.
"Last year it was one thing, this year it's different. Both in the league and in the Champions League there are many pitfalls."
Inter, who won the Scudetto last season and were Champions League runners-up in 2023, are third in Serie A, one point behind Napoli and level with second-placed Atalanta.
Midfielder Davide Frattesi is likely to miss the Leipzig game but Inzaghi will hope to have midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu and forward Lautaro Martinez available.
"Frattesi has been having a little problem with his ankle for 10 days. It will have to be evaluated. Yesterday it gave him some problems and today he didn't feel at his best," Inzaghi said.
"Calhanoglu and Lautaro were absent in Verona but had two good training sessions yesterday and today. Tomorrow morning, I will evaluate the lineup."
Calhanoglu was substituted at half-time in Turkiye's match against Wales on November 16 with a muscle issue, while Martinez, who scored in Argentina's World Cup qualifiers against Paraguay and Peru, fell sick as he returned from international duty.
Alonso's injury concerns growing amid Leverkusen fixture congestion
Xabi Alonso stressed that he needs all of his players to compete in Bayer Leverkusen's packed schedule, with Salzburg next up in the Champions League.
French striker Martin Terrier joined Leverkusen's long injury list when he fractured his right forearm during their 5-2 comeback win over Heidenheim in the Bundesliga on Saturday, while Jeremie Frimpong also had to go off before half-time.
Jonas Hofmann was ruled out for the rest of the year due to a thigh injury before that game on Saturday, joining Victor Boniface, Amine Adli, Nordi Mukiele and Jeanuel Belocian on the sidelines.
"We need the whole squad but with six injured players, everyone is even more important," Alonso told reporters.
"It's intense to play every three days. A special situation in which we need every single player."
Along with injury concerns, Leverkusen have struggled with form in the past weeks as they drew 1-1 with Brest and then lost 4-0 to Liverpool in Europe's top competition.
Since the start of last season, no team has won more games in major European competition than Leverkusen (11, excluding qualifiers), while only Liverpool (39) and Manchester City (38) have scored more than Alonso's side (37) in this period.
However, since the start of the 2023-24 campaign, Leverkusen have won six of their seven home matches in major European competition (D1), and beat Milan in their only match on home soil in the Champions League this term (1-0).
Leverkusen, winners of the domestic double last season, are 13th in the Champions League standings and will face Salzburg, who are 30th, but Alonso said Pepijn Lijnders' side cannot be taken lightly.
"We know how important the upcoming home games against Salzburg and Inter are. We expect a good opponent tomorrow," he added.
"Salzburg plays with a lot of intensity and dynamism. We want to get these important points in the BayArena. We need the energy from the fans. In difficult moments, they can influence and push us."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
