England midfielder Keira Walsh has offered a unique perspective on Sunday's Euro 2025 final against reigning World Champions Spain.
Having spent three years winning two Champions League titles at Barcelona alongside many of her upcoming rivals, Walsh’s insights blend fierce competitive spirit with deep personal respect for La Roja.
Walsh, who joined Chelsea from Barcelona earlier this year, spoke to the BBC ahead of the highly anticipated rematch of the 2023 World Cup final.
"The Spanish team are incredible and they've got some really good players," she acknowledged, "But I think we also know what we are capable of and where we can hurt them. So it's going to be an interesting game."
The shadow of the 2023 World Cup final, where Spain emerged victorious 1-0 in Sydney, naturally looms large.
Walsh admitted it was "obviously a massive disappointment, and as a collective, we probably feel like we didn't have our best performance that day."
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"I think as a football player you can become too emotional... For us, it's a new game, a new team and we know what we've been bringing to this tournament so we're going to keep doing that and just focus on the positives."
Walsh's connection to the Spanish squad runs deep. She revealed her continued friendship with several players, particularly Jana Fernandez and Irene Paredes.
"I speak to Jana Fernandez quite a lot, we are good friends and I've got a few friends from Barcelona.
"Irene Paredes always invited me around for dinner with her family when I wasn't feeling great, and all those girls really spent time to take care of me and look after me."
Walsh also touched upon the controversy that overshadowed Spain's World Cup triumph.
She expressed disappointment that the Spanish players "probably deserved a little bit more than what they got" in terms of spotlight on their incredible performance, rather than "all about the other stuff that had gone on."
As a "friend and a fellow footballer," she simply wants them "to just go and enjoy this final."
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