Sarina Wiegman has some huge decisions to make for Sunday's showpiece event, especially after Lauren James limped off at half-time against Italy
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And so it all comes down to Sunday. In a rematch of the 2023 Women's World Cup final, England and Spain will meet at St. Jakob Park this weekend with the Lionesses looking for revenge and to defend their European Championship title. La Roja, meanwhile, will be out to add the status as European champions to the title of world champions they have already held for the past two years – and will hold for at least two more.
It will be the third meeting of these two juggernauts in 2025 alone, after they landed in the same Nations League group at the start of the year. Despite the recency of those encounters, though, it's hard to know how much to read into either. In February, England were 1-0 winners at Wembley, albeit while Spain were without both Patri Guijarro and Alexia Putellas. The Lionesses' best player that day, too, was Millie Bright, who hasn't travelled to Euro 2025. When the rematch played out in early June, Spain had their turn in a 2-1 win, but Sarina Wiegman did make changes to rest players while England were still ahead, with one eye on this summer.
It's hard to predict how things might pan out on Sunday, then, but if one thing is for certain, it is that this final will be close, it will be tight and it will be decided by the finest of margins. So, in such a high-pressure moment, who will Wiegman trust to deliver for England? GOAL takes a look at how the Lionesses line up in Basel…
Getty ImagesGK: Hannah Hampton
Hampton had some big boots to fill in this tournament, given how well Mary Earps performed at Euro 2022 and the 2023 World Cup. She's lived up to expectations in her first summer as England No.1, though, with her double-save against Italy the latest example of her brilliance. Now comes her biggest challenge yet, in her first major tournament final.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesRB: Lucy Bronze
Though she would surely like to have the moment back where Italy broke the deadlock in the semi-finals, Bronze has been one of England's best players at this tournament, with her big moment coming in the quarter-finals when she started the Lionesses' comeback and swung the momentum in their favour in the penalty shootout. It's vital for England that she has another big game in this final.
Getty ImagesCB: Leah Williamson
Switching to a 3-5-2 set-up has made more sense for England through this tournament, given the frailties that have stood out in defence, in particular. However, Wiegman has thus far resisted the urge to deploy her team in that system from the first whistle and it could create confusion and risk to suddenly start in that shape now, in a final.
As such, it makes more sense to stick with the 4-3-3 set-up for now, with Williamson key at the heart of a defence that has looked fragile. Her individual performance against Italy, at least, was improved.
Getty ImagesCB: Esme Morgan
It was always going to be tough for Morgan to come into the heart of this defence for a major tournament semi-final, especially given she had never started at an event of this magnitude before. She was selected by Wiegman over Jess Carter, who struggled in the quarter-finals against Sweden, and though she was exposed down the team's weaker left side early on, she grew into the game.
It's going to be a new challenge altogether on Sunday, but she feels like the better option at this point.