England thrash the Netherlands to keep Euros dream alive
Goals from Lauren James, Georgia Stanway and Ella Toone helped secure a vital win in Zurich
Last updated 9th Jul 2025
England’s hopes of defending their European Championship title are still alive after a vital victory over the Netherlands in Zurich this evening.
The Lionesses secured a convincing 4-nil win in a must-win clash, knowing anything less could have seen them crash out of the tournament at the group stage.
Goals from Georgia Stanway, Ella Toone and a brace from Lauren James proved enough to get the job done – and keep their qualification hopes in their hands ahead of the final round of group games.
It was a particularly meaningful game for manager Sarina Wiegman, who was facing the country of her birth and the team she led to Euros glory in 2017.
The Netherlands went into the match with confidence after their opening win against Wales, but England responded well to the pressure and showed flashes of the form that made them champions in 2022.
**Match report**
From the minute the game kicked off, the Lionesses looked a different outfit from the one which fell to a 2-1 lost to France in their opening game.
The early pressure paid off in the 20th minute, when Hannah Hampton picked out Alessia Russo with a clever ball, before she set up Lauren James on the edge of the box, who smashed it into the top corner.
Then, just moments before half-time, and England free-kick was headed clear to Georgia Stanway, who rifled it into the bottom corner from around 25-yards out, albeit with a slight deflection.
The second half seemed to follow the same pattern as the first, with more dominant play from the Lionesses. The third goal came in the 62nd minute, when Lauren James latched onto the ball from around 6-yards out after a chaotic few moments in the box.
Striker Alessia Russo wasn't able to find the back of the net, but in the 67th minute she got an assist to her name, setting up Ella Toone who buried England's fourth of the evening, who pointed to the sky during her celebrations in honour of her dad Nick, who passed away in September.
**What now?**
The win lifts England to first in Group D, with 3 points ahead of their final group match against neighbours Wales.
As it stands, if they win that game, they will qualify for the knock-out stages of the tournament.