Sarina Wiegman will have to pick between two of England's strongest players for the final against Spain on Sunday
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James’ performance against China was exceptional: three goals and two assists. Looking at James’ role within England’s passing network below, her green circle, which shows possession value, or how much certain pass links or passers increased the team’s likelihood of scoring by moving the ball closer to the opponents’ goal, indicates she had a significant impact. The caveat is that China made that very easy for James by staying narrow in their formation.
If James were to start, Ella Toone could be just as effective as a super-sub, a role she performed brilliantly at last year’s Euros.Wiegman kept the same starting XI for the semi-final as the quarter-final— Toone started both — because she was happy with the performance against Colombia. She does not like to change a winning team, let alone one that is high-performing.
And when the moment came to her, Toone took it with both hands and hit a thunderbolt to put England 1-0 up in the 36th minute. She is the first England player, man or woman, to have scored in a major tournament quarter-final, semi-final and final. Toone knows what it’s like to perform in big moments, under pressure. James has less experience in that department.
“James is potentially one of the world’s best players in a World Cup final. It just makes sense. Why would you not?”There will be many who argue that Toone’s brilliant goal should grant her a starting place in the final. But Wiegman does not work that way. If Wiegman dropped Toone it would seem a harsh decision, but the England manager adopts a rational, analytical and objective approach. James’ red card will have been dealt with behind closed doors and the team will have moved on.
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