Lauren James double ignites England’s Euro campaign in thrashing of Netherlands | OneFootball

From shambolic to sublime, England, the reigning European champions, brushed off fears of a group-stage exit with a thrilling and clinical 4-0 defeat of the Netherlands which puts progression firmly in their hands.

Woken by a somewhat humbling 2-1 loss to France on Saturday, a more recognisable England arrived at the 2025 Euros, two goals from Lauren James and one apiece from Georgia Stanway and Ella Toone ensuring a win against Wales on Sunday will be enough to book a place in the knockout stage while France and the Netherlands battle it out for the other Group D spot.

“We finished the game against France and we got cameras and microphones shoved in our face telling us how bad we are, so it was important that we changed the narrative for ourselves and we stuck together,” said Lucy Bronze. “Drawing on experiences is obviously a huge part of that. Getting the noise out of your head and getting a different noise in.”

The bones of England’s defeat by France had been well and truly picked over, and there was a calmness around the England camp in the buildup to a game Toone described as “a final that’s come really early in the tournament”. In the morning Toone, Leah Williamson, Keira Walsh, Alessia Russo and Beth Mead played Monopoly; Bronze did a puzzle with Michelle Agyemang and Maya Le Tissier.

England know how to win knockout matches, having reached back-to-back major tournament finals, and that was the territory they had entered a little earlier than planned. They also know how to shake off a defeat against top level teams, their 2-1 Nations League loss to France in May 2024 followed by a 2-1 win over the same opposition in Saint-Étienne four days later. They also knew they had lost opening games and gone far at the World Cup in 2015 and the Euros in 2009. Messages came in from former Lionesses to remind them of those things, the Euro 2022 group chat still active.

“Jill Scott’s obviously hanging around, she’s a very positive influence,” said Bronze. “Toni Duggan was actually someone who texted me straight away after the game, sharing experiences. There’s plenty of them. They always put in messages to say good luck, to keep going. Millie Bright, Fran Kirby, loads of them are messaging.”

The Netherlands were a familiar foe, Sarina Wiegman’s former side having eight WSL players in the XI and two more who have played in England. From Wiegman’s selection it was clear she could see the issues many had theorised over since the France game.

Toone returned to the midfield, restoring some structure to it, generational talent James was not sacrificed but shifted wide, replacing Mead, and the left-footed Alex Greenwood returned to her old left-back berth with Jess Carter partnering Williamson in the middle of defence. James in the No 10 role had been a valid experiment, but it hadn’t paid off.

However, as Stanway had pointed out, a terrible England ran France close and an equaliser had not been out of the question as the clock ticked down in Zurich. They just needed to be better.

The difference between the sloppy and slightly shellshocked play against France and the focused and aggressive football played against the Netherlands in a sunny Stadion Letzigrund was night and day. The threat of an exit had sharpened the minds and the passing significantly, and Walsh, Stanway and Toone dictated play from the middle and increased the potency of Lauren Hemp and James out wide as Andries Jonker’s side got narrower and narrower. “Today we were a lot better individually and that adds to the collective,” said Bronze.

If this ground had been France’s playground on Saturday, it was England’s turn to play on Wednesday evening and by the 23rd minute they had a deserved lead. It was back-to-front route one football. Hannah Hampton’s pitch-splitting pass found Russo to the right, the forward played it to James and she cut inside and lashed past Daphne van Domselaar.

England had been worthy of a second and it came in added time at the end of the first half when a free-kick not far inside the Netherlands half was half-cleared as far as Russo and the Arsenal player flicked the ball on to Stanway, who fired in.

Russo was denied a goal shortly after the break, her header ruled out because Williamson had been offside in the buildup, but it mattered little. England were so rampant that Jonker had rung the changes at half-time, Caitlin Dijkstra, Sherida Spitse and Lineth Beerensteyn brought on for centre-back Veerle Buurman, midfielder Jill Roord and right-back Esmee Brugts.

The holders’ third arrived on the hour. Russo swiped and missed, Toone’s effort came back off a defender and James stroked in the loose ball. Toone made up for that miss shortly after, Russo cutting back for her to skip free of a challenge and poke home.

It was game over, the final minutes played out with little of note. The final whistle prompted a deafening rendition of Sweet Caroline from the stands, the vibe so different from the first game. England’s title defence is well and truly alive, but they will be cautious.

“On paper we know that Wales and England, to the rest of the world, might not look like an even, balanced game, but it’s a rivalry,” said Bronze. “I’m sure Wales will be wanting to spoil the English party, so I think we can’t look too far ahead.”

Header image: [Photograph: Gaetan Bally/AP]