Spain to play England in Euro 2025 final after Bonmatí’s extra-time goal beats Germany

Admin, The UK Times

24 Jul 2025 • 05:47 am

Spain to play England in Euro 2025 final after Bonmatí’s extra-time goal beats Germany

In a rainy stadium, Spain’s players stayed on the field long after the match ended, celebrating with their families. They had just made history by reaching their first European Championship final. Although many expected them to reach this point, it still felt special. Now, they will face England in the final—a tough opponent, and it should be a close match between two strong teams.

In the end, it was Aitana Bonmatí who made the difference. As extra time was nearly over, she finally gave Spain the magic moment they needed. Spain had many chances to win in regular time, but Germany were excellent too and could have won themselves. Spain’s goalkeeper, Catalina Coll, made an amazing double save at the end of the 90 minutes to keep them in the game. Bonmatí didn’t want to leave anything to chance again.

Her winning goal came from quick thinking and skill. Some might say Germany’s goalkeeper made a mistake, but most would call it a brilliant goal. When Athenea del Castillo passed to her, Bonmatí let the ball run through her legs and shot quickly at the near post. Germany’s keeper, Ann-Katrin Berger, seemed to expect a cross and couldn’t react in time. Bonmatí later said they knew Berger sometimes left that part of the goal open.

This goal was even more special because Bonmatí had been in the hospital with meningitis just a month ago. Back then, no one knew if she would even play. Now, she’s leading Spain into the final. England will have to work hard to stop her and the rest of the talented Spanish team.

The final will be a rematch of the 2023 World Cup final, so both teams know each other well. Spanish midfielder Mariona Caldentey said, “We know how good England are. It will be a tough game. They haven’t played their best yet, but they made it to the final. We respect them, but we want to win.”

For a long time, it looked like Germany might win, even though they were missing players due to injury and suspension. Germany has won the Euros eight times before, but now they’ll have to wait until at least 2029 for another chance. They were well-organized and gave Spain a real challenge. If things had gone slightly differently, they could have been in the final.

Klara Bühl was full of energy and very hard to stop on the left side. She had several chances to score for her team, including an early opportunity she missed. In the second half, she forced a save from Coll and came close with a free-kick. Just before extra time, a shot from Elisa Senss was deflected and nearly went in. Coll had to move quickly to stop it right under the crossbar. When Carlotta Wamser tried to score on the rebound, Coll blocked it again. That moment was just as important as Bonmatí’s brilliant play later on.

Earlier, Berger — who was the star in the match against France — made a great save to push Esther González’s shot over the bar. She was lucky when Irene Paredes hit the post, but overall, Spain didn’t create many big chances, especially compared to their usual high level. Their opponents worked very hard, just as they had planned.

Now, the rivalry between Spain and England continues, moving from Sydney to Basel. Two years have passed since their last big match, but for those who watched both Euro 2025 semi-finals, it felt like ages.

“We stayed focused at the key moments,” said Bonmatí.

No one showed that better than her.