Aggie Beever-Jones scored a first-half hat-trick as England responded to a difficult week by thrashing Portugal in an impressive Women’s Nations League victory.
It came days after goalkeeper Mary Earps announced her shock international retirement at 32 – and just five weeks before England begin the defence of their European title.
Sarina Wiegman was under pressure to perform at Wembley as the week progressed regarding the upheaval and unsettling period following Earps’ decision. But newly confirmed number one Hannah Hampton was barely called into action as her team-mates put on a dominant show at the other end of the pitch in their Group A3 tie.
Chelsea forward Beever-Jones seriously boosted her chances of Euro 2025 selection with a stunning individual display – her treble coming in just 33 minutes as the hosts hit five goals before half-time.
Her opener – a composed stroke into the far corner – was quickly followed by a Lucy Bronze header to make it 2-0 within the first five minutes.
With Bronze turning provider in the 26th minute, England did not let up, allowing club teammate Beever-Jones to score her second. Three minutes later, Beth Mead added a fourth goal, and Beever-Jones scored her first international hat trick in her debut appearance at Wembley.
With a commanding lead, Wiegman was able to rotate and give defender Alex Greenwood, who was playing her first England game this year after knee surgery, valuable playing time. Lauren Hemp also impressed in her first start since October because of an injury. Those two could prove key for England at this summer’s Euros, while Bayern Munich midfielder Georgia Stanway was also fit enough to play 15 minutes from the bench.
Substitute Chloe Kelly made an impression too, scoring four minutes after coming on, heading in a perfectly timed Mead cross.
All-in-all, it was a hugely successful night for England and any pre-match nerves from goalkeeper Hampton were never put to the test.
The success left them two points behind Spain and victory against the leaders in Tuesday’s final group game in Barcelona will send them into the semi-finals.
England enjoy themselves to block out noise
Wiegman admitted before kick-off it had been a “hard” start to the week following Earps’ announcement, which led to criticism over the Paris St-Germain keeper’s timing and whether the squad would be affected.
The manager fielded questions on the pressure it could put on Hampton and other members in the squad who would be forced to step up in the absence of Earps’ experience and leadership.
But the goalkeeping position was not the story at full-time as England’s creators enjoyed themselves and showed their attacking quality.
Beever-Jones, who played 22 games this season for Chelsea and scored nine goals, has developed a lot over the past year and has done well on the big stage. The 21-year-old looked at home from the first minute, hassling Portugal’s weary defence and linking up well with Manchester City’s Jess Park and Arsenal forward Mead.
She was deserving of her hat-trick and also played a role in Bronze’s header, flicking on Hemp’s cross to tee up the Chelsea defender to nod the ball home from a few yards.
Together with Mead, Beever-Jones became the only female England player to complete a hat trick at Wembley.
The job was done at half-time but England took their opportunity to build momentum, pinging the ball around from back to front and linking up nicely in attack.
It was a completely different performance from the jumbled ones they gave in the 3-2 loss to Belgium last month and the 1-1 draw in Portugal in February. When the heat was on, when the noise was dialled up, the Lionesses rose to the challenge and that will give them huge confidence as they prepare to travel to Switzerland for their Euro 2025 opener on 5 July.
Return of key stars provides major boost
With time running out before the start of the Euros, Wiegman will be keen to use these Nations League matches to build the fitness and form of her returning stars following injury.
They travel to Spain on Tuesday (18:00 BST) hoping to end on a high in Group A3, with victory putting them above the world champions in the standings.
But while success in this tournament would be welcome, the priority is their Euros preparation and no sight was better than seeing Stanway, Hemp and Greenwood all returning against Portugal.
Hemp returned to Manchester City in April after five months off, but she only played 90 minutes. In her first England game since October, she looked very sharp. Greenwood started City’s final two Women’s Super League games of the season and did not look out of place when she came on at centre-back, spraying passes over the top and combining well with Leah Williamson.
She almost got her name on the scoresheet when her fizzing free-kick was touched on to the crossbar by visiting keeper Ines Pereira.
And after watching Bayern Munich win the inaugural Women’s World Sevens tournament in Portugal last week, Stanway was in action for England for the first time this year after tearing the lateral ligament in her right knee during a training session with her club in January.
The crowd at Wembley gave the trio a warm welcome back, which was important because it gave Wiegman a huge boost as she plans for England to defend their European title.