England produced their most dominant Wembley performance in history as they swept China aside in an 8–0 victory, a result that also marked Sarina Wiegman’s 50th win in charge. Georgia Stanway became the first Lionesses midfielder ever to score a hat-trick at Wembley. At the same time, Beth Mead struck twice during a sensational opening spell that ended the match as a contest within minutes. The crowd of 74,611 may not have filled every upper-tier seat, but selling out Wembley for a friendly against the world’s 16th-ranked side remained an impressive achievement, and the atmosphere reflected it.
Wiegman praised her players afterwards, saying, “I think that went really well. They played together in the last camp, too. They can show where they are at as individuals and how they connect. I think it worked well.”
Stanway told ITV, “I am thrilled. The most important thing was that we started fast today. We got a few goals in the opening minutes, and that is game-changing. Everyone is turning out, and we appreciate it. We hope for more moments like that.”
Beth Mead added, “Nice to see lots of different goal scorers and different people getting minutes. I like being in front of the goal and getting goals, but we put together a lot of good goals tonight.”
Match Action: First Half
China showed early intent, winning a corner inside the opening minutes before England settled and took control. Lauren Hemp, Beth Mead, and Alessia Russo each had early chances, with Mead and Russo frequently combining on the right. In the 11th minute, Russo met a Mead cross with a diving header but could not direct it on target.
England opened the scoring in the 12th minute. Lucy Bronze overlapped on the right and clipped the ball towards Beth Mead, who took a perfect touch and placed her finish into the far corner. Two minutes later, Ella Toone danced past her defender and delivered a cross that Mead met at the back post for her second. Only one minute and forty-nine seconds separated Mead’s goals.
England added their third in the 16th minute when Alessia Russo dropped deep and slid a pass through for Georgia Stanway, who squared the ball across the face of the goal for Lauren Hemp to tap in. The opening three goals arrived within three minutes and fifty-three seconds and completely dismantled China’s defensive shape.
In the 23rd minute England struck again. Hemp recovered possession out wide and curled a dangerous cross into the box. The goalkeeper could only punch it into the path of Stanway, who struck a powerful low finish into the far corner.
Russo came close moments later, hitting the post before being flagged offside. England then earned a penalty after a VAR review of a handball by Li Mengwen. Stanway calmly rolled the ball into the opposite corner to claim her second goal in the 38th minute. By this stage, England were enjoying themselves, and China looked increasingly deflated.
Second Half
The crowd erupted when Chloe Kelly, Lotte Wubben-Moy, and Jess Park appeared as half-time substitutes. England continued to dominate, and Stanway completed her historic Wembley hat-trick in the 52nd minute after exchanging passes with Park and Bronze before receiving the final ball from Toone and finishing into the corner. Stanway became only the third Lioness to score a Wembley hat-trick, joining Beth Mead and Aggie Beever-Jones.
China created a rare chance in the 58th minute, but Linyan Zhang fired over the bar. At the other end, England nearly capitalised on a defensive mix-up, with Pan Hongyan allowing the ball to run past her before Haiyan Wu cleared desperately.
England’s seventh goal arrived in the 71st minute through Ella Toone. Russo pressed aggressively and forced an error from the goalkeeper, who passed straight to Toone. She finished into an empty net as the crowd roared her name.
The eighth followed in the 78th minute when Ella Toone slid a pass to Russo, who finished neatly into the far corner. A VAR check confirmed she was onside. It was a deserved reward for Russo, who had worked relentlessly throughout.
Anna Moorhouse had a quiet debut in goal and preserved her clean sheet despite a late effort from Zhang that she initially fumbled before gathering safely. Late in the match, the captain’s armband moved from Keira Walsh to Lucy Bronze, then to Russo, and finally to Stanway.
Post-Match
Wiegman said afterwards, “Really nice. We want to be more ruthless in the final third, and I think that is what we did today. She was enjoying herself; she was really sharp. I think she was very calm and played well.”
The win set a new record for the Lionesses’ most significant Wembley victory, surpassing their 6–0 triumph over Portugal before the Euros. Fran Kirby was honoured post-match with a signed shirt marking her 77 caps, with Wiegman and Lucy Bronze embracing her warmly.
England now look ahead to their final match of the year, a friendly against Ghana at St Mary’s, as they continue preparations for next year’s World Cup qualifiers.
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