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Ameé Ruszkai
Jun 06, 2026 03:02+06:00
England women's player ratings vs Spain: An historic low! Lionesses suffer heaviest defeat of Sarina Wiegman's tenure to lose pole position in hunt for automatic World Cup qualification
Player ratings | England | World Cup Qualification | UEFA | H. Hampton | A. Greenwood | Spain vs England | FEATURES
England are on the brink of having to navigate the play-off route in Women's World Cup qualifying after a 4-0 defeat to Spain, the Lionesses' worst result under Sarina Wiegman, put La Roja in pole position for the group's one automatic berth instead.
England flew to Mallorca knowing that a draw would be enough to secure their spot at the tournament in Brazil next summer but goals from Patri Guijarro, Alexia Putellas and Claudia Pina saw them leapfrogged in the table by their hosts, with one game to go.
Coming into the match with a perfect record in qualifying, which included a 1-0 win over Spain at Wembley in April, England didn't start badly. La Roja had a decent early chance that forced Hannah Hampton into action, when Putellas' lovely cross was met by Edna Imade, but Keira Walsh also went close at the other end when her effort from the edge of the box flew narrowly over Cata Coll's crossbar.
It was when Guijarro broke the deadlock, though, that things changed. Cleverly nutmegging Georgia Stanway before driving into the acres of space left in England's midfield, Guijarro had plenty of time to pick her spot as she beat Hampton from range, with the aid of a deflection.
From there, the Lionesses looked sloppy and disorganised, with Spain carving them open at will, only to let their opponents off the hook with a poor final ball on several occasions.
England didn't take advantage of that good fortune, though, and poor positioning from Alex Greenwood, to play Putellas onside, was followed up by some surprisingly unconvincing goalkeeping from Hampton, who got a strong hand to the Spain midfielder's shot only for it to fly into her net anyway, as the hosts doubled their lead.
It was a vital goal for the world champions, eliminating the possibility of England beating them on a head-to-head tiebreaker, if it came to that, because the Lionesses only scored once in the win at Wembley.
But while that meant Wiegman's side could let loose and go for it in the second half, with it no longer mattering how many goals they lost by, Spain never let that play out. It was the visitors who remained under constant pressure and, before the hour, it was 3-0, as heroic defending from Lucy Bronze was undone by indecision by Greenwood as Putellas added her second.
There was still time for it to get worse, with Pina off the bench to add a fourth for La Roja, making this the heaviest defeat for the Lionesses in the Wiegman era by some margin.
England had never lost by more than two goals under the Dutchwoman, who took over in September 2021, with this representing the biggest defeat for the team in an incredible 17 years, since Germany were 6-2 winners in the European Championship final in 2009.
Most significantly, it means the runners-up from the 2023 Women's World Cup will likely need to navigate play-offs in order to qualify for the 2027 edition, unless something completely unexpected happens when Iceland host Spain on Tuesday night.
GOAL rates England's players from Estadi Municipal de Son Moix...
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Goalkeeper & Defence
Hannah Hampton (3/10): Made a big save early on to deny Imade but was otherwise below her usual very high standards, failing to keep Putellas' shot out and lacking accuracy with her distribution.
Lucy Bronze (4/10): A tough day at the office, which began with her losing the ball in a dangerous area in the build-up to Guijarro's opener. Made a great block on the line in the second half, but it was in vain as Putellas scored anyway. Just over-matched for the most part.
Lotte Wubben-Moy (4/10): Had no answer for Spain's constant attacking threat, easily beaten by Pina's incision for the fourth goal.
Esme Morgan (4/10): Like her centre-back partner, she just could not deal with the constant pressure piled on her.
Alex Greenwood (3/10): Was far too deep to play Putellas onside for the second goal and then didn't deal with the loose ball before Spain's third.
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Midfield
Keira Walsh (4/10): Needed to press Guijarro with more urgency in the build-up to the first goal. Was one of England's better players when she did get on the ball, but the bar was low.
Georgia Stanway (4/10): Went closer than most to getting England on the board with an effort that flew just wide at 2-0. Couldn't really get involved otherwise.
Ella Toone (4/10): Another who just couldn't get on the ball or impact the game on a brutal night.
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Attack
Lauren Hemp (5/10): Was England's brightest spark throughout the game, with her directness and ability to put Spain on the back foot causing a few problems, albeit nothing major.
Alessia Russo (4/10): Had no service all evening.
Lauren James (5/10): Put in a good defensive shift, which helped stifle Spain a few times, and played some good passes which actually created some openings. Unlucky to lose her footing on the advertising banners when tracking back for Spain's third goal.
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Subs & Manager
Beth Mead (5/10): Actually got into some good positions after coming on with half an hour to play and picked up the ball in decent areas, just lacked the conviction needed to make the most of those moments.
Chloe Kelly (4/10): Unable to make any tangible impression on the game, which wasn't a huge surprise given the state when she came on.
Jess Carter (N/A): On for the final few minutes.
Niamh Charles (X/10): Another late sub.
Sarina Wiegman (3/10): Chose to start Toone in midfield, despite Kendall playing well in the reverse fixture, but she couldn't make an impact. Waited too long to make subs, given the deficit England were facing, and should have regrets about leaving Aggie Beever-Jones out of the matchday squad altogether, as her team ended up needing all the attacking options possible in the end.