England Women showed their class and quality as they defeated Austria 7-2 in a friendly match in Marbella on Friday. The Lionesses scored four goals in the first half and added three more in the second, with debutant Grace Clinton, Alessia Russo and Beth Mead all netting twice. Virginia Kirchberger scored both goals for Austria, who were outplayed and outclassed by the European champions.
Clinton Scores on Debut
One of the highlights of the match was the performance of 20-year-old midfielder Grace Clinton, who scored on her international debut for England. The Manchester United player, who is on loan at Tottenham, headed in from Lauren Hemp’s cross in the 19th minute, after hitting the post with a powerful shot moments earlier. Clinton showed her confidence and composure throughout the game, linking up well with her teammates and creating chances. She was deservedly named the player of the match.
Russo and Mead Shine in Attack
Another standout performer for England was Alessia Russo, who scored the opening goal in the third minute, reacting quickly to tuck in the rebound from Mead’s cross-shot. Russo doubled her tally in the 61st minute, finishing off a swift counter-attack after Hemp won the ball back high up the pitch. Russo was a constant threat to the Austrian defence with her pace and movement, and also set up Mead’s second goal in the 89th minute with a clever pass.
Mead was equally impressive, scoring two goals and assisting one. She curled in a beautiful strike in the 37th minute to restore England’s two-goal lead, after Kirchberger had headed in from a corner for Austria. Mead also showed her versatility, playing in different positions and dropping deep to help the midfield. She capped off her performance with a clinical finish in the dying minutes, after Russo’s through ball.
Carter and Daly Add to the Scoreline
England’s dominance was reflected in the scoreline, as they scored seven goals against a hapless Austria. Jess Carter and Rachel Daly also got on the scoresheet, with Carter flicking in a corner from Mead in the 70th minute, and Daly slotting in a low cross from Russo in stoppage time. England had 23 shots, 12 of them on target, compared to Austria’s six shots, four of them on target. England also had 63% of possession and completed 512 passes, while Austria had 37% of possession and completed 303 passes.
Wiegman Pleased with Performance
England manager Sarina Wiegman was pleased with her team’s performance, praising their attacking display and their intensity. She said: “I think we played really well, especially in the first half. We created a lot of chances and scored some great goals. We were very aggressive and pressed them high. We wanted to show our quality and I think we did that.”
Wiegman also gave credit to Austria, who scored two goals from Kirchberger’s headers in the 30th and 88th minutes. She said: “Austria are a good team, they have some good players and they are well organised. They scored from two set-pieces, which is something we need to work on. But overall, I’m very happy with the result and the performance.”
The match was England’s first of 2024, after a frustrating 2023, which saw them lose in the final of the Women’s World Cup and miss out on Olympic qualification with their Nations League performance. The match was also part of their preparation for the Euro 2025 qualifiers, which will start later this year. England will play another friendly against Italy on Tuesday, before facing Northern Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg and North Macedonia in their qualifying group.
