England Women lifted their first major trophy at Euro 2022, beating Germany at a joyful Wembley – 31-cap Lionesses midfielder Izzy Christiansen covered the epic competition for BBC Radio 5 Live and talks FFT through an inspirational summer...
GROUP A ENGLAND 1 AUSTRIA 0
“When the tournament got underway, you could sense that something special was in the air. There were 68,000 fans at Old Trafford – it felt like a Manchester United matchday, with the quantity of people around the city before kick-off, wearing shirts and singing. Something big was about to happen.
The match itself was very tense – the crowd were waiting for a goal. When it finally came, it was beautifully crafted by Fran Kirby, who was magnificent that night, and finished by Beth Mead. It lit up the whole stadium – the way fans celebrated was really special, and it started to capture the imagination of people around the country. It was a great way to start the tournament.”
GROUP A ENGLAND 8 NORWAY 0
“The team had received a bit of flak in the media after the opening match – I think a lot of people were slightly disappointed we’d only beaten Austria by a single goal, and said we weren’t clinical enough. Well, what better way to answer that than by smacking eight past two-time Euros winners Norway, who we thought would be the toughest opponent in the group?
With respect, Norway were nowhere near where people thought they’d be at this tournament, in terms of their performance levels, but the squad was still filled with top players who turn out for teams in the best divisions around the world. Credit to England for taking them to pieces. They were ruthless.”
GROUP A ENGLAND 5 NORTHERN IRELAND 0
“It was a nothing game, as England had booked their place in the quarterfinals and Northern Ireland were out. But with the mentality of the Lionesses, there was never going to be any let up, given the attention to detail that the coaching staff have become known for. They wanted to win this one in style to keep the momentum.
Alessia Russo was sensational at this tournament. Like a lit match, she burst into life when she scored her first goal of this game. That was a decent finish, but her second... wow. The control on the spin, then the composure to slot it away. She’s phenomenal. World class.”
QUARTER-FINAL ENGLAND 2 SPAIN 1
“I could talk for hours about this game. The level of quality from both sides and the level of entertainment was out of this stratosphere. England’s ability to just stay in the game was inspirational – they were being passed off the park, and it’s demoralising whe
