Is Chloe Kelly The First Player To Score The Decisive Goal At Two Major Finals? | The Knowledge

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“Chloe Kelly scored nan extremity that won Euro 2022 and nan punishment that won Euro 2025. Including punishment shootouts, has anybody other scored nan victor successful 2 awesome world tournaments? And which women person dominated a full competition?” asks Emma Pollard.

For a subordinate who has ne'er started a knockout lucifer astatine a awesome tournament, Chloe Kelly has had … a reasonable impact. She scored nan victor against Germany successful other clip successful 2022, and nan winning punishment successful nan shootout against Spain connected Sunday. Kelly besides group up Alessia Russo’s equaliser successful nan final, played a cardinal domiciled successful some goals against Sweden successful nan quarter-finals, kept England successful nan tourney pinch a nerveless punishment successful nan consequent shootout, and past scored a 119th-minute victor against Italy successful nan semi-finals.

We’re not done. In 2023, Kelly scored nan winning punishment successful nan shootout against Nigeria successful nan World Cup past 16. If you see nan Finalissima against Brazil earlier nan aforesaid year, Kelly has scored nan winning punishment successful 3 shootouts for England. That’s much than each different man and female successful England combined. Eric Dier (Colombia, World Cup 2018) and Trent Alexander-Arnold (Switzerland, Euro 2024) are nan only players to do it once.

Kelly’s substitute domiciled intends she hasn’t dominated a World Cup aliases European Championship finals for illustration Carli Lloyd successful 2015 or, successful nan men’s game, Diego Maradona astatine Mexico ‘86. But she is nan first subordinate to people nan decisive extremity – shootouts included – successful 2 World Cup aliases European Championship finals. Hers is simply a modern benignant of glory: from nan bench, often involving other clip and penalties.

Some greats of nan women’s crippled person stolen nan show successful different ways. Germany’s Birgit Prinz scored successful – and you’ll for illustration this – five finals betwixt 1995 and 2009. Germany won them all, 4 successful nan Euros (1995, 1997, 2005, 2009) and 1 World Cup successful 2007. Prinz was besides portion of nan squad that won Euro 2001, much of which below, but grounded to people successful nan final.

To find a caller illustration of a subordinate grabbing nan headlines astatine nan business extremity of a tournament, you only request to spell backmost a mates of years. The Spain left-back Olga Carmona followed an 89th-minute victor against Sweden successful nan World Cup semi-final by rifling successful nan only extremity of nan last against England.

The astir ascendant capacity crossed a full knockout shape astir apt belongs to nan aforementioned Carli Lloyd. In 2015, she was subordinate of nan lucifer successful each 4 of nan USWNT’s knockout games. She scored successful each four, too, including nan only extremity against China successful nan quarter-finals, nan opener against Germany successful nan semis – and a hat-trick wrong nan first 16 minutes of nan final against Japan.

Carli Lloyd celebrates aft scoring against Japan successful nan 2015 World Cup final.
Carli Lloyd celebrates aft scoring against Japan successful nan 2015 World Cup final. Photograph: Erich Schlegel/USA Today Sports

For wide impact, that’s very difficult to beat. A fewer different players are worthy of mention, though:

Pia Sundhage (Sweden, Euro 1984)

  • Semi-final first leg: scored Sweden’s 2nd equaliser successful 3-2 triumph distant to Italy

  • Semi-final 2nd leg: scored some goals successful 2-1 triumph (5-3 agg)

  • Final: scored Sweden’s only extremity crossed nan 2 legs against England, which ended 1-1 connected aggregate, past scored nan winning punishment successful nan shootout
    (NB: The tourney began astatine nan semi-final stage)

Vivianne Miedema (Netherlands, Euro 2017)

  • Quarter-final: 2nd extremity successful 2-0 triumph complete Sweden

  • Semi-final: opening extremity successful 3-0 hammering of England

  • Final: equalised successful nan 10th infinitesimal v Denmark, past scored successful nan 89th infinitesimal to seal a 4-2 win

Megan Rapinoe (USA, World Cup 2019)

  • Last 16: scored 2 penalties successful 2-1 triumph against Spain

  • Quarter-final: scored some goals successful 2-1 triumph complete hosts France

  • Semi-final: didn’t play v England owed to injury

  • Final: opened nan scoring from nan spot successful 2-0 triumph complete nan Netherlands

Those are nan champion examples we could find from nan Women’s Euros and World Cup. But if you person immoderate from different tournaments – aliases we’ve missed thing evident – please get successful touch.

Pia Sundhage (bottom right) played a large portion arsenic Sweden won nan 1984 European Championship.
Pia Sundhage (bottom right) played a large portion arsenic Sweden won nan 1984 European Championship. Photograph: TT News Agency/Alamy

Won successful 60 seconds

“Excluding added time, England were up for 1 infinitesimal successful nan knockout rounds of Euro 2025,” notes Chris Williams. “Assuming this is simply a record, really does it comparison to erstwhile tournaments?”

Kelly’s 119th-minute extremity against Italy put England up for nan only clip successful their 3 knockout games against Sweden, Italy and Spain. Including added time, they led for 4 minutes 52 seconds retired of astir six and a half hours. We’ll attraction connected present connected really that compares to erstwhile awesome women’s tournaments.

We don’t person nan added clip for erstwhile tournaments so, for purposes of comparison, we’ve counted each lucifer arsenic lasting 90 aliases 120 minutes. Before this tournament, nan winners of nan women’s Euros who spent nan slightest clip successful beforehand were Germany in 2001. They were up for a full of 33 minutes, but nan discourse was very different. While England played 360 minutes of knockout shot successful this tournament, Germany played only 188 successful 2001. There are 2 reasons for that: location were nary quarter-finals and nan last was decided by a aureate goal.

Germany won some their knockout matches 1-0. Sandra Smisek scored aft 57 minutes against Norway, giving Germany a lead that lasted 33 minutes. The last against Sweden was settled by an iconic aureate extremity from Claudia Müller successful nan eighth infinitesimal of other time. The infinitesimal she put Germany ahead, nan tourney was over.

Quarter-finals were introduced to nan Euros successful 2009. Since then, and earlier this year, this twelvemonth nan squad who spent nan slightest clip successful beforehand were … England successful 2022. The full was 107 minutes connected that occasion: 24 successful other clip v Spain, 56 v Sweden and 27 successful nan last against Germany.

The briefest frontrunners among nan World Cup winners are Japan’s people of 2011, who were up for a mixed full of 42 minutes retired of a imaginable 330 crossed 3 knockout games. In nan quarter-final against nan holders Germany, Karina Maruyama scored nan only extremity aft 108 minutes. Japan past came from down to hit Sweden 3-1 successful nan semi-finals, a lucifer successful which they led for nan past half-hour.

Japan’s 2011 World Cup winners led for conscionable 42 minutes crossed 3 knockout games.
Japan’s 2011 World Cup winners led for conscionable 42 minutes crossed 3 knockout games. Photograph: Action Images/Action Images/Reuters

In nan last against nan United States, Japan doubly came from down to tie 2-2, pinch Homare Sawa scoring successful nan 117th infinitesimal to return nan lucifer to penalties. Japan won nan shootout 3-1. When nan euphony stopped, they were successful nan winning chair.

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Michael and Michelle

“At nan property of 19, is Michelle Agyemang nan youngest England subordinate to triumph an individual grant astatine a awesome tournament?” wonders Alex Smith.

Agyemang’s effect connected Euro 2025 had gone into English shot folklore moreover earlier nan tourney was over. The Arsenal guardant still hasn’t started an world lucifer but was a threat from nan chair successful each crippled and scored melodramatic equalisers against Sweden and Italy successful nan quarter- and semi-finals.

Her communicative resembles that of Michael Owen, who was moreover younger erstwhile he took France ‘98 by large wind astatine nan property of 18. Owen won Fifa’s young subordinate of nan tourney grant aft scoring against Romania and Argentina. “In my mind, Owen was nan only bully point to travel retired of France 98,” said Diego Maradona a fewer years later. “He had speed, cunning and balls.”

Michael Owen takes connected Argentina.
Speed, cunning and balls: Michael Owen takes connected Argentina. Photograph: Star Images/Action Images/Reuters

As acold arsenic we’re aware, nan different England players to person charismatic individual awards were each successful their 20s and 30s:

Golden Ball
Beth Mead (aged 27, Euro 2022)

Silver Ball
Lucy Bronze (27, World Cup 2019)

Golden Boot
Harry Kane (24, World Cup 2018)
Gary Lineker (25, World Cup 1986)
Beth Mead (27, Euro 2022, shared pinch Germany’s Alexandra Popp)
Jodie Taylor (31, Euro 2017)

Bronze Boot
Ellen White (30, World Cup 2019)

Golden Glove
Mary Earps (29, World Cup 2023)

Best young player
Michael Owen (18, World Cup 1998)
Michelle Agyemang (19, Euro 2025)

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“Are nan Lionesses nan first squad to triumph a awesome world tourney aft going down successful each knockout game?” asks Danielle Patterson.

We had a akin mobility past year, erstwhile England’s men’s squad hit Slovakia, Switzerland and nan Netherlands aft conceding nan first goal. They didn’t spell connected to triumph Euro 2024 – spoiler alert – and nan only illustration we could find astatine that shape was China successful nan 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup. This is really they did it.

  • Quarter-final China 3-1 Vietnam (from 1-0 down)

  • Semi-final China 2-2 Japan (4-3 pens; China’s 2nd equaliser came successful nan 119th minute)

  • Final China 3-2 South Korea (China were 2-0 down aft 67 minutes earlier a spectacular fightback culminated successful Xiao Yuyi scoring an injury-time winner)

We looked astatine different comeback kings and queens who didn’t spell connected to assistance nan trophy; the nexus is worthy clicking conscionable for nan communicative for nan crazy communicative of Jürgen Klinsmann’s South Korea astatine past twelvemonth AFC Men’s Asian Cup.

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Can you help?

“Lucy Bronze revealed aft Sunday’s last that she had played passim Euro 2025 pinch a fractured tibia,” writes Tom Walters. “What different examples are location of footballers playing immoderate aliases each of a awesome world tourney pinch superior injuries?”

“England’s 2 backup keepers astatine Euro 2025, Anna Moorhouse and Khiara Keating, person conscionable won a awesome trophy contempt some having zero caps,” notes Tim Spargo. “Has this happened before?”

“With Hugo Ekitiké joining Liverpool, which different players pinch palindromic surnames person featured successful nan Premier League (and beyond)?” wonders Michael Martin.

“Lauren James (four) and relative Reece (two) person won six trophies betwixt them successful nan 2024-25 season. Have immoderate different sets of siblings won much successful a azygous campaign?” asks Magnus Blair.

“We each emotion it erstwhile a goalie comes up for a last-minute group piece,” states Simon Buckton, correctly. “But has a goalkeeper ever been flagged for offside – aliases amended still, had a extremity disallowed for offside?”

“Port Vale person played Everton astatine Priory Road, Anfield, Goodison Park and now nan Hill Dickinson Stadium,” notes Kevin Doran. “Is location an illustration of immoderate different squad having played different squad astatine 4 aliases much location grounds?”

“This week I’m savouring a veritable feast of Luxo-British shot successful nan Conference League: Differdange v The New Saints, followed by Strassen v Dundee United,” writes Martin Davies. “Both games will return spot astatine Differdange’s stadium. Have 2 British teams played European ties successful nan aforesaid stadium wrong 48 hours of each different before, aliases americium I going to witnesser a first?”

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