NorthernIreland

Brilliant and unreadable Fran Kirby locks herself into England team | Jonathan Liew

15-Jul-2022 22:34:14 | Guardian

Kirby stands alone as the tournament’s primary creative force with England facing a tougher assignment in the quarter-finals

As the old maxim goes, there are no easy games at this level of international football. And yet, and yet. Five years ago, Sarina Wiegman’s Dutch side scored 13 goals on their way to winning Euro 2017. Now Wiegman’s England side have matched that in their past two games, converting what looked and felt like a dangerously tight Group A into a sort of gleeful joyride.

Here Northern Ireland were the latest team to step into England’s headlights and palpably regret the experience. The scoreline certainly suggested a strong degree of comfort. The number of chances – 27 shots in total – suggested that with a little luck England might conceivably have surpassed their 8-0 demolition of Norway. But there was still plenty to be learned here, not least during an opening 40 minutes during which England fleetingly had a scrap on their hands.