‘It’s almost as if we’ve won the World Cup!’ – Sarina Wiegman praises England’s ‘unbelievable’ triumph against Australia as the Lionesses advance to the final

Sarina Wiegman praised her gallant players after the Lionesses defeated Australia to reach the World Cup final.

England defeated tournament co-host Australia 3-1 on Wednesday to reach the Women’s World Cup final for the first time. Ella Toone, Lauren Hemp, and Alessia Russo scored to earn the victory, igniting wild celebrations at the final whistle.

After the game, England manager Wiegman told BBC One: “We made it to the finals! It feels like we won the entire thing, but we didn’t. It was a difficult road game at this wonderful stadium, but we found a way to win once again. We scored three goals because this club is relentless both up front and on defence. We are desperate to win. We stuck together and stuck to the strategy, and it worked once more.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: England’s win was a historic one for Wiegman herself, as she is the first manager to guide two different countries to Women’s World Cup finals.

IN THREE PHOTOS:Getty ImagesGetty ImagesGetty

WHAT NEXT FOR ENGLAND?: England will take on Spain – another final debutant – on Sunday. Before the competition, Jorge Vilda’s side had never won a knockout match at a major tournament.