Zurich: Spain’s Aitana Bonmati struck a superb extra-time winner to fire her side to a 1-0 victory over Germany on Wednesday and send it through to the Women’s European Championship final for the first time.
The win set up a decider against holder England in Basel on Sunday in a repeat of the 2023 World Cup final that saw the Spaniards crowned world champions for the first time.
Bonmati finally broke the deadlock in the 113th minute, picking up a ball in the left channel and spotting a gap left by Germany keeper Ann-Katrin Berger at the near post before whipping a shot from a tight angle into the net.
Spain captain Irene Paredes struck the foot of a post with a first-half header as her side dominated possession, with the Germans building a solid block and inviting the Spaniards to attack while they attempted to strike on the counter.
Germany winger Klara Buehl was impressive throughout, getting in behind the Spanish defence in the 63rd minute but shooting straight at keeper Cata Coll.
With the Germans defending superbly, Spain struggled to break them down, and it was almost caught out in stoppage time when Buehl had a deflected effort that Coll had to claw away, but the game ended scoreless, forcing extra time.
The Germans, who came into the game with a record of nine wins in 10 previous Euro semifinals, looked set to drag the match to penalties, but Bonmati had other ideas.
For Bonmati, who suffered a meningitis-related health scare in the lead-up to the tournament, the goal was a sweet one as the Spaniards defeated Germany for the first time at a major finals. Agencies
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