Belgium 3-2 England
by Catherine MacKenzie (08/04/2025)
Above: Tessa Wullaert celebrates her brace. Photo: BelRedFlames on X
Belgium pulled off a shock 3-2 win against injury-ridden England in Leuven, three days after being beaten 5-0 by the same team.
Following a Lionesses game, the reaction on social media can vary from “we are going to win everything” to “we are never going to win a game again”. Fans are vocal and opinionated, their emotions irrevocably tied up in the performance of a team that has given them a huge amount of joy in winning England’s first major trophy since 1966.
This year, the Lionesses have won against Spain and Belgium in stellar performances whilst missing a substantial portion of the squad to injury. The narrative on social media has been positive; suggesting the team are ‘back’, that they have improved so massively that not even their so-called ‘bogey’ team could set them back.
Last time England were in Leuven, the Red Flames pulled off a stunning 3-2 victory. Ask any England fan and they will tell you about the context around that game; it was mere weeks after the world cup final, and the referee on that day got fundamental decisions wrong.
This time, the Lionesses have been in good form, beating the Red Flames 5-0 in the first leg of the double header. However, following the home game in Bristol, England’s injury woes worsened when two players withdrew from the squad: Lauren James and Alessia Russo. Both are fundamental to the team’s structure.
The Lionesses were already without Lauren Hemp, Georgia Stanway and Alex Greenwood, who would all likely be part of the starting eleven if fit. Losing James and Russo in addition to the trio was an immediate blow that turned the positive social media narrative around staggeringly quickly. Questions of man-management; should Wiegman have rested James for the first leg, or not played Russo? This led to further questions about the need for this international window, and the integrity of the UEFA Nations League.
With James’ injury in addition to Hemp and Greenwood, England’s left flank was most affected, with first choice left-winger and left-back both unavailable.
It was this left side that Belgium exploited in Leuven on Tuesday evening, using the pace of Belgian captain and star player Tessa Wullaert to outrun England’s left-back, Niamh Charles.
James and first-choice left winger Lauren Hemp have both become known for their tendency to track back and aid their defence. With both players injured, 21-year-old Chelsea starlet Aggie-Beever Jones was in their place.
Beever-Jones has yet to solidify her best position; she can play all over the front line. A key difference to James and Hemp is that she is not used to tracking back; a lethal attack-minded player, this is not something she has often had to do.
The lack of support from Beever-Jones left England’s left flank exposed, and Charles alone to face the speed of the Belgian counterattack. Charles is at her best when she can get forward, and as she did this, there was ample space for Belgium to hoof a long ball into because there was no James or Hemp to cover. Charles then struggled for the pace to get back, and found herself beaten by Wullaert every time the Belgian broke forward.
By half-time, England were 3-1 down thanks to two goals from Wullaert and one from Justine Vanhaevermaet. Esme Morgan and Jess Carter, who both play in the US’ NWSL, were brought on at half time for Bright and Charles. Morgan had more success in dealing with Wullaert’s pace, and Carter brought more physicality to the England back line. Whilst the first half could have been four or five to Belgium, they did not register a shot on target in the second half, owing to these changes.
Speaking post-match, Morgan said that “we had clear messaging that we needed to be tighter on the transition, get pressure on the ball and counter press”.
For England fans, the highlight of the evening will be when nineteen-year-old Michelle Agyemang made her debut in the 80th minute, scoring a brilliant goal a mere 41 seconds later. It is often a criticism levelled at Wiegman that she does not trust youth; few would have expected Agyemang to make her debut when she was playing for England’s under-19s a mere few days ago, called up to the senior squad as a replacement for the injured Alessia Russo.
She scored with her second touch in the match, getting hold of a cross from Leah Williamson and smashing the ball into the top left corner. England pushed for the remainder of the match, however were unable to find the back of the net.
Asked for her thoughts post-match, Wiegman said that “Belgium are a different team with and without Tessa Wullaert”, and that certainly proved to be the case. She added that for her team, it simply “was not good enough”; that it “does not feel good” but she and her squad will learn from this loss.
It is difficult to truly assess this performance for England given the number of injuries to important players. The next window includes the home game against Portugal and the away leg against Spain, and at least some of the injured players should have returned by then to provide a much more accurate view of where the Lionesses are in their preparations.
For Belgium, this is the first win under new coach, the Icelander Elisabet Gunnarsdottir. After narrowly losing to Spain 3-2, they will be hoping to use this result as a springboard to develop ahead of this summer’s European Championships. They remain bottom of the Nations League group, one point behind Portugal.
Spain returned to the top of the group, and as things stand, they will head to the finals later this year. If England win against Portugal, the group standings would come down to the final game in Spain, taking place in June.
TEAMS: BELGIUM (3-4-3): Lichtfus, Cayman, Tysiak, Deloose, Philtjens, Teulings, Vanhaevermaet, Janssens, Eurlings, Detruyer, Wullaert. Substitutes: Delacauw, Blom, Dhont, De Caigny, Evrard, Bastiaen, Elyn, Missipo, Van Kerkhoven, Wijnants, Toloba, Mathys.
Scorers: Wullaert 4’, Vanhaevermaet 16’, Wullaert 29’
ENGLAND (4-3-3): Hampton, Bronze, Williamson, Bright, Charles, Clinton, Walsh, Park, Mead, Parris, Beever-Jones. Substitutes: Earps, Moorhouse, Morgan, Le Tissier, Turner, Carter, Toone, Parker, Naz, Kirby, Symonds, Agyemang.
Scorers: Mead 35’, Agyemang 81’
Referee: Maria Caputi (ITA)
Attendance: 6,253.
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