Heartbreak. Sarina Wiegman had urged her European champions to play the game of their lives in the World Cup final. They did, but against a mesmeric Spain the game of England’s lives was not enough to put a first star on the shirt.
Instead, a Spain side who dominate the ball with fluid, efficient beauty will have a first gold star stitched above their crest. A Spain side riddled with controversy and divisions still prevailed, the left-back Olga Carmona’s first-half strike the difference, because their brand of football just cannot be stopped.
