5 things we learned as England boost Euro 2025 qualification hopes with crucial win over Ireland

England boosted their chances of qualifying for next summer's Euros in Switzerland with a vital 2-1 win over the Republic of Ireland on Friday night.

Alessia Russo opened the scoring early following a well-worked move involving Keira Walsh, Georgia Stanway and Beth Mead. Stanway then gave the Lions some breathing room in the second half as he calmly converted a penalty after Lauren Hemp was brought down in the box.

Although the Republic of Ireland scored a late goal, it was only consolation for the visitors as the game was already won with seconds left on the clock. Results elsewhere mean England are close to reaching next summer's finals and retaining their European title.

Here are five things we learned from England's crucial win over the Republic of Ireland.

Group 3 in League A is starting to take shape as France booked their place at Euro 2025 with a narrow victory over Sweden on Friday night. England, on the other hand, are in a good position to enter second place.

A point against Sweden in the last group game on Tuesday night will be enough for the Lionesses and they can still top the group if France loses to the Republic of Ireland and beats Sweden.

However, if England lose in Gothenburg next week, Sweden will move into second place due to the head-to-head between the two teams. Sarina Wiegman's team need some kind of positive result next week to put their qualification beyond doubt.

With Mary Earps returning to the team following injury, there were many questions about who Wiegman would pick against Ireland. Hannah Hampton did an impressive job in two games against France last week and is one of a growing number of goalkeepers ready to push for the starting spot.

His excellent distribution served England well throughout the game and his composure on the ball showed. Hampton had a few minutes left to get a clean sheet otherwise the last goal from the visitors would have been 2-1.

Whether he has done enough to keep his place next time against Sweden remains to be seen. Wiegman may choose to give Hampton and Earps equal playing time since the latter is coming off an injury.

Aside from the goalkeeper, Wiegman has a lot on his mind ahead of Friday night's game at Carrow Road. A number of players, including Leah Williamson, Ella Toone and Lucy Bronze had yellow cards and risked suspension, while others were playing their way back from injury.

As a result, the manager opted for big changes to the backline as Alex Greenwood partnered Williamson in the first half, Maya Le Tissier came in at right back and Jess Carter started on the left. Other changes were made at half-time as Williamson made way for Millie Bright.

In midfield, Manchester City star Jess Park slotted in alongside Walsh and Stanway and was a bright spark for the Lions in the middle of the park.

The large number of changes could have resulted in an unstable back line, but it was a risk that paid off for the manager. Although Ireland scored at the death, England were firmly in control throughout the match and did not suffer any unnecessary stoppages.

It was a night to remember two of England's stars as Tottenham's Jess Naz and Chelsea's Aggie Beever-Jones were handed their Lionesses debuts. Naz was first selected from the waiting list when the squad for the summer internationals was re-named in May.

However, an injury to Lauren James led to her being promoted to the full squad shortly after the players reported for training a few months ago. Now, he has a first cap to go with his Lionesses call-up as he replaced Russo late on and it was almost his dream debut for the striker as he came agonizingly close to getting on the scoresheet.

Beever-Jones was also awarded his England debut on the night. She replaced Lauren Hemp in the latter stages of the match and almost stopped Stanway for a second if not for the reverse finish.

Despite a much-needed victory, the scoreline was much tighter than England had hoped. Wiegman's side dominated the game for long periods and had 16 attempts on goal compared to Ireland's four.

However, only six of those were targeted by the Lions. England cannot afford to waste so many chances against Sweden next time as Peter Gerhardsson's men will punish them if they do.

England need to find their clinical edge as they may struggle to create the same number of chances against stronger opposition. They learned the hard way at Wembley in April when Russo's goal was canceled out by Sweden's second-half equaliser.

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