'Crazy mentality' - England coach Sarina Wiegman hails Lucy Bronze after defender plays through Euro 2025 tournament with fractured tibia
Published 27/07/2025 at 23:43 GMT+1
After playing 105 minutes of the 2025 European Championship final for England against Spain, Lucy Bronze had to leave the pitch in tears with a knee problem. However, speaking after Chloe Kelly converted the winning shoot-out penalty, the Chelsea full-back revealed that she had played the entire tournament with a much more serious problem - a fractured tibia.
Wiegman ‘incredibly proud’ of England after ‘most chaotic and ridiculous tournament’
Video credit: SNTV
Sarina Wiegman praised Lucy Bronze’s "crazy mentality" after the defender revealed she played with a fractured tibia throughout the victorious Euro 2025 campaign.
Bronze was part of the side who won 3-1 on penalties against Spain in Switzerland on Sunday, having drawn 1-1 after extra time.
The 33-year-old played almost 600 minutes at the tournament, with just goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, Keira Walsh and Alex Greenwood on the pitch for longer during the competition.
The Chelsea defender strapped up her own right leg during the quarter-final against Sweden, and was the player to score the winning penalty after England came back from 2-0 down.
Against Spain, she lasted 105 minutes, and came off in tears after limping through the final stages of the match.
Speaking to the BBC after the game, she revealed the extent of her injury was far more serious than was known during the Euros.
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"I actually played the whole tournament with a fractured tibia, but no-one knew," she said.
"I just hurt my knee today on the other leg. That is why I got a lot of praise from the girls after the Sweden game, because I have been in a lot of pain.
"But if that's what it takes to play for England, that's what I'll do - they know that. We inspire each other by playing through things like that, and it got us to the end, in the end."
She added: "It's very painful. I am going to party. I am going to enjoy it and that's it."
Wiegman now has a hat-trick of successful European Championships, first with Netherlands - and in 2022 and 2025 with England, with a string of other successes over the course of her stellar career so far.
Regarding the injury to Bronze, Wiegman said it was tough to nurse the problem given the length of the matches The Lionesses had been through.
"She had some issues with her tibia so, of course, we tried to manage that," she told the BBC. "When you play 120 minutes you're not managing it are you?"
England showed great determination and mental strength after a difficult group stage, and a knockout stage that saw them come back from a losing position more than once.
Hampton pulled off two saves as Spain missed three of their penalties in the final game’s denouement, and Chloe Kelly was the player to strike the winning penalty under huge pressure, but the Dutch coach picked out Bronze for particular praise.
She concluded: "The whole team has a great mentality, but she has a crazy mentality. It's unbelievable."
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