Spain beat Sweden to reach first final as spy row overshadows Australia, England semifinal

Spain’s forward #09 Esther Gonzalez and Spain’s midfielder #06 Aitana Bonmati celebrate their team’s victory after the end of the Australia and New Zealand 2023 Women’s World Cup semi-final football match between Spain and Sweden at Eden Park in Auckland on August 15, 2023. (Photo by Michael Bradley / AFP)

Olga Carmona struck late to lift Spain to a thrilling 2-1 semi-final win over Sweden yesterday, sending the Iberians into a first Women’s World Cup final, as the tournament signed off in New Zealand with a flurry of goals, writes scmp.com.

Wearing the captain’s armband, Carmona’s 90th-minute strike from the edge of the area pinged off the crossbar and into the net two minutes after Rebecka Blomqvist had levelled the match for Sweden in front of a baying crowd of 43,217 at Eden Park.

Spain will meet the winner of today’s semifinal between Australia and England in the final.

The game between the Matildas and the Lionesses has been overshadowed by a spying incident involving the Australian Daily Telegraph, which sent a helicopter to film Sarina Wiegman’s side as they aim to knockout hosts in much-anticipated showdown.

The semifinal showdown has been soured by a spying controversy after a helicopter was used to film the Lionesses final training session before the match in Sydney.

Despite a largely amicable build-up, the underhand methods deployed by a prominent Australian newspaper will anger players and supporters alike.

“If England’s Lionesses thought they would happily fly under the radar into the World Cup semifinal under the radar they were in for a rude shock,” boasted the Australian Telegraph.

“We’ve sent the chopper up to see how the old enemy are preparing… Welcome to the jungle, Lionesses, we’ve got fun and games.”

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