#UWNL

[theitaliansalad]

she’s hearing voices. she’s hearing Jenni Hermoso laughing in the background.

[pitchsidestories]

Voices ahead of the England vs. Spain Women's Nations League game tonight

During their press conference on Tuesday, the forward Alessia Russo and England head coach Sarina Wiegman were speaking on their solidarity with Jenni Hermoso and the Spanish team.

"It says how brave they are. It says, first of all, that it is a very good team. Spain has a very good team. But it also says that they show resilience and they're so brave. We're talking about it again today. I think we have to keep talking about it, I would almost say unfortunately, and we have to keep telling the world that we stand in solidarity with them and hopefully it will make change. I think it already made change, but now we want to talk football again and play an incredible game tomorrow here at Wembley." (Sarina Wiegman)

"We've stood in solidarity with them since the moment that it begun and it's really a shame that they've had to have gone through this, but we hope that it makes change going forward. It's a testament to the players to be so brave to speak out but also to still be performing at the level that they are. I've got teammates that have been through it and they've acted with so much class through it all. We stand with them and back them all the way. "We're all with them through the process. I know it's been tough on teammates who I've played with. They're fantastic girls and they act with so much class. I think it's a real shame, what they've been through, but they've been professional through it all and have never let their football standard slip, so massive respect to them all." (Alessia Russo)

They both highlighted the importance of community in the women's game.

"I think in the women's game, that community, that's kind of special," Wiegman said. "We're absolutely competing when we play each other but when we go off the pitch, we support each other, we support the Spanish, they're in a situation, but I think overall, women's football players are supporting women's football players and women in society. I think that's a bigger picture than just that." (Sarina Wiegman)

"I think the community that women's football has is really special and quite unique about the game," she said. "I think whether it be good or bad, we help and we come together as one. I think we're really good at celebrating each other's successes. Ultimately, we all want the same for women's football. We want it to be at the highest level without moments like this happening. But I think the community of women's football in general is really special." (Alessia Russo)

Spanish head coach Montse Tome, who was Jorge Vilda's assistant at the Women's World Cup in 2023, said she was solely concentrating on the football ahead of Spain's game against England, meaning she would not answer questions about the Luis Rubiales case.

“I appreciate Sarina’s words and she’s a great coach who I respect,” Tome said. “My intention has been to ensure that whenever we are together on international duty and training camps we need to talk about football." “I would be grateful for questions about football. Now the case is coming to an end, it is clear we have sided with the player. We hope things will go back to normal now. We want to focus on football and we are focused on the match tomorrow.”

The midfielder Aitana Bonmatí, who, contrary to Tome, gave an statement. She thanked Sarina Wiegman and English players such as Alessia Russo and Lucy Bronze for supporting them The two times Ballon d'Or winner added:

“Everybody here knows what has happened in the last few months and years. The sentence is correct, it is a positive thing and the team feel the same,” Bonmati said before Tome’s press conference. “I was surprised that there was no sentence linked to coercion but the trial has served a purpose. We are all happy. We have been doing well on the pitch and supporting our teammates. We have battled hard and we know what we have done has not been in vain. “I hope that this case makes changes in our country, in our football, to respect us better as footballers. But it’s also a global case. I don’t want to only speak about footballers. I think this happens in other jobs. I hope this case helps anyone who is going through these things. I hope this will help to respect women's rights.”

Will you be watching the game tonight? You might be as excited as Arsenal's Spanish defender Laia Codina, who is looking forward to playing at Wembley Stadium.

"When we found out the groups, we were speaking a lot in the [Arsenal] changing room. I spoke with Alessia [Russo] because she is next to me," said Codina. "It is special - not just because it is against England - but also because we are playing in Wembley. It is such a nice stadium." "I said to [my Arsenal team-mates] that we have to get to the FA Cup final because I want to play at Wembley. Now we have the opportunity with Spain. "That is so special. Now England is home to me - so I feel like I'm coming back home with my national team."

[wosol0ver]

them: why are you crying?

this sequence of photos existing:

[katelynnwrites]

bless laura for this

[imverits]

Ona Batlle

via Twitter

[onabatlle-2]

alexia and her kids 🥺, via sefutbolfem’s ig, 23/9/23

[freibleibend]

ig:dfb_frauenteam

[frauenfootball]

UEFA Women's Nations League 2023/2024

Semi-final - Full Matches - Google Drive

Semi-final - France vs Germany - YouTube

Semi-final - Spain vs Netherlands - YouTube

Third Place Match - Netherlands vs Germany - YouTube

Final - Spain vs France - YouTube

Please do not stream the videos directly from the Google Drive. Download them instead. Refer to this post or this guide if you have trouble downloading.

[22plus15]

rewatching the uwnl final and i'm gonna need ona to pull this out against cascarino again on saturday 🤞

[themanbexl]

Ewww no not Athenea

[cee-jay-mcwfc]

The madness of just one day of internationals 🤯

[theitaliansalad]

I don’t think Lucy Bronze remembers she’s English.

[pitchsidestories]

Opinions on the Nations League?

Thanks for the question, anon. We do have an opinion on the Nations League.

UEFA introduced the Women’s Nations League based on the model of the Men’s Nations League, with the goal to eliminate boring friendlies and make games more competitive by introducing a tournament format. On one hand, this makes sense—it’s more engaging for fans and more profitable.

However, for us, this comes with many disadvantages. First, teams have no control over their opponents, meaning they can't strategically choose to face teams with different playing styles in preparation for upcoming tournaments. Additionally, the high level of competition leaves fewer opportunities to experiment with new tactics or include younger, less experienced players since every game is essentially a must-win.

The increased intensity also seems to cause problems for the players. As we’re seeing now, the heightened competitiveness comes with a greater risk of injuries.

So, while the idea of the Nations League sounds great, especially for women’s football, we’re not convinced that UEFA had the best intentions for the players and teams.

The injury list in this International window after Matchday 1 alone:

Danielle van de Donk (Netherlands)

Kika Nazareth (Portugal)

Ingrid Engen (Norway)

Leanne Kiernan (Ireland)

Sarah Zadrazil (Austria)

Geraldine Reuteler (Switzerland)

Sophia Winkler (Germany)

Marie Müller (Germany)

Natalia Kuikka (Finland)

We can't guarantee that the list of injured footballers is complete, but we wish all affected players a speedy recovery.❤️‍🩹

And now to you, what do you think of the Women's Nations League ?

[wosol0ver]

I’m not having a good time. Bring then home right now! I swear to god

[katelynnwrites]

they deserve everything 🥹