Familiar rivals and new faces: England prepare for ‘weight’ of another Spain test
Lionesses take on world champions in 2027 Women’s World Cup qualifier at Wembley
England-Spain is a fixture women’s football has seen almost too many times in recent years.
The 2023 Women’s World Cup final, last summer’s Euro 2025 final, and in the Uefa Nations League, England have faced their European rivals in games across three consecutive years. Those matches have all delivered drama in their own right, with penalty shootouts, narrow victories, and plenty of bite.
This is a game that gets fans excited, with over 70,000 tickets sold for Tuesday night’s clash at Wembley. When it comes to drawing up matches for the neutral, there’s nothing better than two of the best teams in the world meeting for a competitive clash.
This fixture also gets the media energised. Given the likelihood of these two meeting in a major final at some point again in the next few editions of any World Cup or Euros, any game they play allows us to draw widely over-the-top conclusions about both teams.
England’s 1-0 win over Spain in February last year, almost served as the blueprint for how England navigated the Euro 2025 final. While Spain’s 2-1 victory in June 2025 was more of a cautionary tale about the way they can punish any team in a flash, primarily through the sheer quality of Claudia Pina.
Lotte Wubben-Moy summed up the status of this fixture perfectly when she referenced the “talent”, “weight” and “competition” that an England-Spain match-up presents.
However, this latest edition, which comes in 2027 Women’s World Cup qualifying, has taken on its own identity.
Not only does this game serve as one of two straight shootouts for World Cup qualification - as only the winner of this group will automatically qualify for the tournament in Brazil - it could feature some more unfamiliar names on both sides.
Spain head into this game without Ballon D’or holder Aitana Bonmati, who fractured her left fibula in November last year. The midfielder is aiming to work her way back to full fitness in time for Barcelona’s Champions League semi-final against Bayern Munich.
Barcelona defender/midfielder Laia Aleixandri is also a long-term absence after tearing her ACL in February.
Spain manager Sonia Bermúdez still has plenty of midfield depth with Mariona Caldentey, Clara Serrajordi, Alexia Putellas and Patri Guijarro all included in the squad for this international window.
Spain are very much in cycle reset mode, having recovered from the heartbreak of the penalty shootout loss to England in the Euro 2025 final by beating Germany to claim a second Uefa Nations League title. That victory was the first significant moment for Bermúdez, who replaced Montse Tomé in August.
Bermúdez’s appointment continues Spain’s run of promoting coaches internally into the head coaching role. She had been leading Spain’s Under-23s until Tomé departed after the Euro 2025 final.
In her pre-match press conference on Monday, Wiegman acknowledge that Spain’s “DNA” has remained the same despite the change of coach.
“They really want to have the ball, they play very dynamically and they really want to go forward. Whether that’s in possession or out of possession. I don’t think that’s going to change because that’s in their DNA.”
For Spain, this Wembley encounter is not just about stamping authority on this World Cup qualifying group; they need to claim some revenge after a Euro 2025 final which they firmly believe they didn’t deserve to lose.
Sarina Wiegman’s side have a similar objective when it comes to World Cup qualifying, but this cycle almost feels like more of a “try before you buy” moment for the Lionesses.
Since the end of last year, Wiegman has called up several uncapped players into England’s senior squad. Lucia Kendall, Freya Godfrey and Katie Reid - who unfortunately tore her ACL in November - have all joined Michelle Agyemang in making the recent step up into England’s top group.
This camp, Wiegman made even more of a statement with the call up of 17-year-old Erica Meg Parkinson. The young midfielder has been catching plenty of attention in the Portuguese top tier and had only just stepped up into England’s Under-23s in November.
Parkinson’s inclusion is much more of a chemistry test than an expectation of minutes. History tells us Wiegman often doesn’t give England’s next generation minutes instantly. Instead, they have to sometimes wait patiently to get on the pitch, albeit Lucia Kendall broke the mould when she started against Australia during her first England senior camp. But what these recent call-ups reveal is who Wiegman thinks may be able to make the step up with just over a year to go until the 2027 Women’s World Cup.
England have an ageing starting line-up with many of the squad heading into what will be their last World Cup. Lucy Bronze leads the list at 34, but Alex Greenwood (32), Leah Williamson (29) and Keira Walsh (29), Chloe Kelly (28), could all realistically have called time on their international careers before the 2031 World Cup comes around.
Wiegman also needs to ensure she beds in the younger squad players who are no longer just the “kids” but are in their 20s and struggling to claim a regular spot in the England starting line-up.
Much of that is down to a gap in quality. Bronze is still England’s best right back and the same can be said for many of England’s most experienced names.
Wubben-Moy is someone who has been looked to as a regular deputy for Williamson, but in the midst of a good season for Arsenal, could be trying to stake a claim for something more consistent, especially given the England captain’s ongoing injury issues. Williamson is part of this latest England squad but she hasn’t featured for Arsenal since the middle of March. Wiegman said on Monday that the England captain’s inclusion at Wembley was a “question mark".
In Monday’s pre-match press conference, Wiegman also highlighted how much her squad are “developing” and “improving” at the moment.
Speaking alongside Wiegman on Monday was Walsh, who is set to make her 100th appearance for England if she features at Wembley.
The England coach praised her “vision” and “talent” ahead of a huge milestone. Walsh has personified England’s ability to match Spain on the ball, something very few sides are able to achieve.
Wiegman will want to give England the advantage in this World Cup-qualifying chase and therefore her strongest team available will be starting. It’s not a time for experimentation. However, the new names that we see in and around this England squad are ones for the future.
With absences and new dynamics playing out across both teams, it’s hard to know what version of England-Spain we’ll get on Tuesday night at Wembley. What is clear is that this rivalry will continue to deliver.