Is England's name on the trophy?! Winners and losers after lucky Lionesses' late show secures spot in Euro 2025 final as super-subs Michelle Agyemang and Chloe Kelly again come to Sarina Wiegman's rescue

At this point, anyone who has paid attention to Euro 2025 will know Agyemang's story. They'll know that she wasn't in the Lionesses' picture until less than four months ago, when only a flurry of attacking injuries prompted Sarina Wiegman to call upon the inexperienced teenager; they'll know that she scored a beautiful goal just 41 seconds into her debut in Belgium; they'll know that she was a surprise inclusion in England's squad for this tournament, despite not playing for her country again after that debut; and they'll know that she is now justifying that selection and then some. Yet, all of that is worth repeating because Agyemang's story is incredible and its shine should not wear off just because it continues to be told again and again.

On Tuesday, she scored her third goal in four England appearances. That's as many goals as she scored in 17 Women's Super League games this past season, averaging a strike every 199 minutes during a loan spell at Brighton. For the Lionesses, she is finding the back of the net every 35 minutes. She is 19 years old.

The way Agyemang continues to impact games so forcefully makes her the perfect super-sub - or 'finishers' as managers, including Wiegman, like to call them nowadays. But has she gone beyond that now? Her ruthlessness in front of goal, her ability to cause chaos for opposing defenders and her raw and exciting talent is all game-changing for England. Could Wiegman be tempted to have it all in play from the start in Sunday's final? Perhaps it would be a risk, with Agyemang's inexperience. That said, it's hardly held her back so far.

It would've been so easy for Kelly to be on the opposite side of things on Tuesday. After all, she didn't convert her penalty in the 119th minute. She exuded calmness and composure beforehand, but got her calculations wrong while Giuliani got hers right, and suddenly it looked like the momentum could swing right back in Italy's favour before the seemingly inevitable shootout.

All of that was there for a brief moment, maybe a second or two, until Kelly pounced on the rebound and directed it beyond the goalkeeper. It all sealed the winger's place in England folklore once again, enhancing the hero status she secured when she stepped up in extra-time during the final of Euro 2022 and scored the goal that delivered the Lionesses' first major title.

It's not been an easy year for Kelly, who looked a long-shot to make England's squad for this tournament when she was struggling to get a kick at Manchester City in the first half of the 2024-25 season. But a deadline-day loan switch to Arsenal in January changed everything, led to her lifting the Champions League trophy with the Gunners in May and, thanks to her increased game time, got her on the plane to Switzerland. She might continue to struggle to make the England XI on a consistent basis, but she certainly makes her mark when she gets her opportunities.

Every time the camera panned to the Italy bench after the hour-mark on Tuesday, Cristiana Girelli looked to be having a truly awful time. The Italy captain has been exceptional throughout Euro 2025, guiding the Azzurre to an unlikely semi-final not only with her leadership but with her all-round centre-forward play, which has included three goals in five outings. As her nation battled for a place in the final, though, she could only play her part for 64 minutes, at which point she was withdrawn due to an injury sustained at the worst possible time.

Forced to watch from the sidelines, helpless as Italy tried to get the job done without her, the 35-year-old was transformed into a fan, peering through her fingers and praying for the final whistle to come while her side were still ahead. Below the surface, meanwhile, was the possibility of this being her last game for Italy, with her admitting that she will think about her international future after this tournament is over.

If that is how Girelli bows out on the big stage, it won't quite feel fitting. This is someone who has delivered some of the greatest moments for the Azzurre in recent memory and it would be a shame for it all to end on such a negative note.

There will be a lot of England fans out there who have mixed feelings about Wiegman after she guided the Lionesses into a third-successive major tournament final. Of course, that is a remarkable achievement - an unprecedented one, in truth. Until the Dutchwoman took over in September 2021, England had only ever been to one final of such magnitude, back at Euro 2009.

Yet, this was extremely close to being a semi-final exit instead - just as it was nearly a quarter-final exit six days ago, when the Lionesses scraped through against Sweden. In both games, Wiegman danced with death, waiting and waiting and waiting until she made her changes, showing an extreme lack of urgency in situations that seemed to need plenty of it. At the end of it all, though, Wiegman's subs paid off. Agyemang and Kelly scored the goals, with Beth Mead playing significant roles in both as well.

Of making big decisions as a coach, Emma Hayes once said: “If you get it right you’re an unbelievable manager. If you don’t, you’re a pile of sh*te." Wiegman certainly walked a fine line with her actions on Tuesday, that much is an understatement. But the final outcome means that when she walks out with her team on Sunday, she'll have coached in the final of Euro 2017, the 2019 World Cup, Euro 2022, the 2023 World Cup and Euro 2025. She is the best manager in the international women's game today - this latest accomplishment only emphasises as much.

It's hard to put into words just how transformative the Wiegman years have been for women's football in England. Yes, the game was already on the rise thanks to breakthrough semi-final runs at the 2015 and 2019 World Cups, as well as Euro 2017 sandwiched in between. There is also a lot of credit that must go to those who came before those teams and that success, to the pioneers whose incredible perseverance should never be overlooked or underestimated.

But the explosion the women's game has enjoyed since England lifted the Euro 2022 title is incredible, and it is only growing more and more thanks to subsequent runs to the finals of both the 2023 World Cup and Euro 2025. In a way, the ridiculously dramatic manner in which the Lionesses have made their third-successive major final only adds to the legacy. It's moments like Agyemang's late equaliser on Tuesday that will live long in the memory and light the fire in new fans, young and old, up and down the country.

What is becoming increasingly clear as this tournament progresses is that the England women's national team has won the hearts of a nation and, win or lose on Sunday, the effects of that will continue to be felt long after Euro 2025 is over.

For all the excitement, all the positives, all the exhilaration of Tuesday night - there was one big negative for England, and that was the sight of Lauren James with ice on her ankle after being subbed off at half-time. The winger looked leggy throughout the first half of this semi-final, perhaps feeling the impact of the 120 minutes she played just five days prior, something which - combined with a hamstring issue that sidelined her until late June - might've tempted Wiegman into naming her among the subs for this one. When she came off at the break with a knock, then, it made sense, given her performance.

It's unclear at this point just how serious the injury is. It could be something that is fine with a few days of rest, or it could be something that either limits her in or rules her out of Sunday's final. Given the contributions she has made to England's run, it would be a real shame for James to miss out - and given the magic she is able to conjure up, it would be a hit for the Lionesses to be without her in a monumental fixture.