Key events
One player we could see in action this evening, albeit off the bench, is 19-year-old Michelle Agyemang. The Arsenal striker was introduced for her major tournament debut in the 86th minute against France at the weekend and impressed with her short cameo, adding a refreshing level of energy to the England attack. She is now prepared to make an impact with any time she gets on the pitch.
“It’s easy to look at the time and think there’s not enough left,” Agyemang said this week. “That’s the beauty of the game. It only takes 10 seconds to make an impact. Any time is good enough for me, so I’m grateful for that opportunity.”
She also said: “Most of the pressure comes from myself. I don’t try to listen to the noise. I appreciate the support from everyone. Focusing on what I can do is most important and then the noise will come around no matter what happens. I just focus on how I can improve my game and how I can help the team.”
Peter has messaged in with his take on the England line-up:
“Alas, Sarina has chosen the best team of three years ago, not the best
team of the present, which should include Beever-Jones.
“Stanway, based on her performance against France, should be dropped for
this game.
“You have to use Beever-Jones at some time, before it’s too late. She is a match-winner, a goal-scorer and the trump card to win the Euros. Please use her today.”
It was the tournament where the Netherlands were going to show they could survive the group of death. That they were not too old and that Vivianne Miedema and Daniëlle van de Donk could still shine at the highest level.
Then it all turned into the Andries Jonker show…
During her pre-match press conference ahead of this evening’s match, England manager Sarina Wiegman said: “It’s going to be an intense game. We knew this was going to be a hard group. What we are focusing on is our game-plan and executing that, doing your task and having conversations with players together and talking together, and that is what we want to do in the game too.
“What we are occupied with is playing football, executing a task and sticking together, getting the right connections, working really hard, and doing everything to win the game.”
She later added: “We don’t talk about consequences. We talk about the game-plan, what we have to do to be at our best and how we can exploit spaces that the Netherlands leave behind.”
If you’re checking out our England page, you might as well look at our Netherlands team guide as well…
Be sure to check out our England guide before kick-off in 30 minutes.
Vivianne Miedema has insisted she will “not be friends” with her partner Beth Mead tonight and vowed to do everything in her power to send her team to the knockout stages of Euro 2025 and eliminate England.
Miedema said: “If it’s not a nice moment for Beth, it’s not a problem for me. Tomorrow for once we will not be friends. I will do everything I can to win tomorrow. If I have to do something that is not good for Beth, then I will do it.
“I don’t think she’ll speak to me for a bit [if we win] but it’s tough. I also have some of my best friends on that [England] team. It’s part of football. It’s part of the game. I’ve probably been on the other end of it [more, losing]. I’ll be happy for us if we get through tomorrow.
“We both know what we’re going through. It’s a very important tournament. Our golden rule is we do not discuss anything [pre-match]. I don’t know whether she’ll be starting tomorrow or whether she’ll be on the bench. As a Dutch player I will do everything possible to win the game.”
Sarina Wiegman has plenty of history with the Dutch national team. Born in the Netherlands herself, she represented the country as a player from 1987 to 2001, earning over 100 caps. She was appointed the assistant coach of the national team in 2014 before eventually getting promoted to head coach two years later. And in 2017, she led Oranje to a European title, winning every match along the way.
England fans, I want to hear from you this evening! Let me know your thoughts on the team selection, who you think will be the biggest threat for England and the Netherlands, as well as any score predictions.
Netherlands fans, feel free to message in too!
England have arrived at Stadion Letzigrund.
Andries Jonker has also made just the one change to the Netherlands line-up that started against Wales on Saturday, with Daniëlle van de Donk replaced by Chasity Grant.
Sarina Wiegman has made one change to the line-up that started against France at the weekend, with Ella Toone replacing Beth Mead.
Toone will start in midfield, with Lauren James moving onto the right.
Team news
England starting line-up: Hannah Hampton; Lucy Bronze, Leah Williamson (C), Alex Greenwood, Jess Carter; Keira Walsh, Georgia Stanway, Ella Toone; Lauren James, Alessia Russo, Lauren Hemp. Substitutes: Niamh Charles, Beth Mead, Maya Le Tissier, Anna Moorhouse, Grace Clinton, Esme Morgan, Michelle Agyemang, Chloe Kelly, Aggie Beever-Jones, Jess Park, Khiara Keating, Lotte Wubben-Moy.
Netherlands starting line-up: Daphne van Domselaar; Kerstin Casparij, Dominique Janssen, Veerle Buurman, Esmee Brugts; Wieke Kaptein, Jackie Groenen, Victoria Pelova; Chasity Grant, Vivianne Miedema (C), Jill Roord. Substitutes: Lize Kop, Danielle de Jong, Lynn Wilms, Caitlin Dijkstra, Romée Leuchter, Lineth Beerensteyn, Sherida Spitse, Daniëlle van de Donk, Renate Jansen, Katja Snoeijs, Damaris Egurrola, Ilse van der Zanden.
Wales take on France in the second Group D clash of the day later this evening. A loss will see them knocked out of the tournament.
The Dutch fans are out in full voice ahead of the match.
Here’s a reminder of what happened in yesterday’s Group C fixtures…
Preamble
Hello, hallo and welcome to coverage of the huge Euro 2025 clash between England and the Netherlands. This could prove to be one of the games of the group stage with both teams vying for a place in the quarter-finals.
For the Lionesses, a win today is absolutely imperative. Anything less and they can pretty much wave goodbye to any hope of progressing which, quite frankly, would be a disaster.
England fans know just how important a win today is, Sarina Wiegman knows it, the players know it. But getting such a result will not be easy. The Netherlands possess one of the strongest squads in Europe and can pose a huge threat to any opponent.
This is where Group D will really come to life.
Kick-off for this one is at 5pm BST – you don’t want to miss it!
