Noe Llamas / SPP
Olga Carmona’s first-half goal held up for Spain in a 1-0 victory over England on Sunday at Stadium Australia in Sydney, delivering Spain its first Women’s World Cup title.
The Big Story: Both Spain and England were in search of their first Women’s World Cup titles on Sunday, and while England had more experience at this stage as semifinalists in the past two editions and reigning European champions, Spain dictated play from the start.
England head coach Sarina Wiegman started the game with the 3-5-2 formation that she had settled on mid-tournament, but Spain pounced on the vacant space left by England behind wingbacks Rachel Daly and Lucy Bronze, with Aitana Bonmati pulling the strings in midfield to quickly switch play. The strategy paid off in the 29th minute, when Carmona scored.
Wiegman made two substitutions at halftime and shifted to a 4-2-3-1 to counteract Spain. The strategy worked only to a degree. England conceded a penalty kick that Jenni Hermoso eventually struck in the 69th minute, but it…
