England are doing their best to make it business as usual as they prepare to face Spain in the Women’s World Cup final in Sydney on Sunday.

Defender Jess Carter insists there will be no additional nerves ahead of a game she never envisaged being a part of, while head coach Sarina Wiegman is preoccupied by a selection dilemma.

Here, the PA news agency looks at all the latest news heading into Sunday’s big one:

More the merrier for Carter

England defender Jess Carter admits every extra minute is a bonus as she prepares to feature in Sunday’s World Cup final.

The 25-year-old has been one of the lynchpins of her side’s run to within 90 minutes of a first women’s World Cup win but says she did not expect to get this far.

“When I didn’t play against Denmark, I wasn’t not bothered, but it was just like, ‘I’ve just played in a World Cup, I had more minutes than I thought I was ever going to get coming into this tournament’.

“I didn’t come into the tournament expecting to play at all.”

And the laidback Lioness is adamant there will be no stage-fright on the biggest occasion of all, just “positive energy” at the prospect of making history.

“I’m not really a nervous person,” she added. “I understand and know from the outside, it’s the World Cup final, your biggest moment.

“I play my best when I’m super calm. Maybe some people have nerves but I think that will be challenged into positive energy come the night.”

Wiegman’s selection dilemma

Sarina Wiegman faces a selection dilemma ahead of Sunday’s World Cup final as she decides whether to start striker Lauren James.

James scored three times and picked up the same number of assists before she was sent off in the last 16 win over Nigeria, sitting out the quarter-final and semi-final as a result.

Replacement Ella Toone scored in the 3-1 win over Australia in the last four but Wiegman has indicated she holds nothing against James, who apologised for her rash stamp on Nigeria’s Michele Alozie.

“Of course she really regretted that moment straight away,” said Wiegman. “She apologised, she was punished for that and we all know this should not happen in football.

“She started training again and we supported her, because sometimes when you’re not that experienced at this level some fatigue comes in the game and you have just a split second where you lose your emotions.

“That’s a mistake, that’s a hard learning lesson, but now she’s ready to play in the game.”

Vilda’s revenge bid

Spain coach Jorge Vilda is determined his side learn the lessons of their extra-time loss to England in last summer’s European Championship quarter-finals.

Vilda has guided his nation to their first final despite a backdrop of controversy after over a dozen top stars quit the squad last year in a row over their treatment.

Referencing their narrow defeat in Brighton, Vilda said: “It was a game that we know we were on top, but the result is what counts.

“Games against England really require our best. She (Wiegman) is a trainer that with her results has shown the fruits of her work, it’s not easy what she has achieved.”

Shutting down questions over the ongoing issues in his squad, Vilda added: “What we want to do tomorrow is be the best in the world and we’ll do this by winning the final.”

Opened up!

Cornwall Council were the first to heed a plea from cabinet minister Michael Gove to allow licensed premises to open one hour early for the World Cup final on Sunday.

Current regulations mean the sale of alcohol is widely prohibited before 10am on Sunday, but venues such as pubs also have specific hours they can stay open and serve alcohol depending on individual licences.

Gove urged councils to do everything they can to help premises extend their licenses, saying: “the whole nation is ready to get behind the Lionesses this Sunday in what is England’s biggest game since 1966.”

Cornwall Council, in association with Devon and Cornwall Police, were quick to heed Gove’s call, announcing that they will be no “enforcement action” if the alcohol starts to flow slightly earlier.

Swede dreams

Australia’s home World Cup came to a disappointing end as they were beaten 2-0 by Sweden in the third place play-off.

Kosovare Asllani sealed victory with a brilliant second half strike after Fridolina Rolfo had opened the scoring with a penalty on the half-hour mark.

The result rounded off a remarkable campaign from the Matildas, who captured the public’s imagination having only reached the quarter-finals once previously.

Australia coach Tony Gustavsson, whose side suffered a 3-1 semi-final defeat against England, said the journey was far from over, insisting: “We have a massive amount of work to do to capitalise on this.”

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Final: Spain v England (Sydney, Sunday 1100BST)

Shaun Maloney saluted two-goal marksman Charlie Wyke as Wigan wiped out their eight-point deduction inside four League One games after thrashing Bolton 4-0.

Wyke started and finished the scoring at Toughsheet Community Stadium with a Stephen Humphreys’ double sandwiched in between as Latics ended Wanderers’ 100 per cent start to the campaign in emphatic fashion.

The visitors’ third win of the season lifted them on to two points while Ian Evatt’s Trotters suffered a harsh reality check after four wins in all competitions.

“Every bit of credit goes to Charlie,” said Wigan manager Maloney of his frontman who had a defibrillator fitted after suffering a cardiac arrest in 2021.

“He came back on day one of pre-season in incredible condition. It was like signing a new player.

“What he has been through is well documented but he has put a lot of hard work in and continues to put hard work in.

“So, every bit of praise he gets is well deserved.”

Wigan’s eight-point deficit over wages payments had some fans fearing a second successive relegation, but the club’s flying start to the season has indicated a much brighter future.

“We came to terms with it (the deficit) in the summer,” added Maloney. “I understand why we got it, the situation the club was in.

“What was hard was how to broach it over the summer. We gave ourselves six games and we are obviously ahead of schedule.

“We could not have thought we would have this good a start. But I knew with the players we brought in and during pre-season, something was happening.”

Wanderers bossed possession and created 20 shots but rarely looked capable of getting back into the contest after Wigan’s Wyke-inspired start.

Wyke opened the scoring in the 12th minute before Humphrys’ brace in the 24th and 45th minutes made it 3-0 at the break.

Bolton boss Ian Evatt said: “There is an awful lot to take in. We can all be honest and say we didn’t see it coming.

“We have got to make sure this result doesn’t define our season which is crazy to say after just four games.

“For the first time though someone has punched us on the jaw and we didn’t recover. The game was gone before we knew it.

“It was one of those games where we lost every moment, lost every duel and just lost the basics of football.

“The ball seemed to fall to them every time but I am a firm believer you make your own luck

“On the day though Wigan played it was like a derby. We played like we were going to come and have everything our own way as we have done so far this season.

“The general performance wasn’t a 4-0 game. But they punished us on every moment and the first 10 minutes rocked us and we didn’t recover.

“Every time we looked like we were going to gain momentum we got punched on the jaw again.”

Henry Longfellow enhanced his already tall reputation with a straightforward success in the Coolmore Stud Wootton Bassett Irish EBF Futurity Stakes at the Curragh.

Even by Coolmore standards his breeding stands out, being by Dubawi out of the brilliant mare Minding.

He was an easy winner on his debut 28 days previously and Aidan O’Brien wasted no time in stepping him up in grade to Group Two level.

Only four went to post and briefly Ryan Moore had to shake the market leader up, as Ger Lyons’ Spanish Flame appeared to be going marginally the better.

But once Henry Longfellow got himself sorted out and hit top gear, he soon breezed by and it looked as if he was going to go away and win by a large margin.

To the credit of Isandsinthestream, trained by Joseph O’Brien, he kept the 2-9 favourite honest, but there was still a comfortable two lengths between them at the line.

Not surprisingly updated Classic quotes were quickly available, with Henry Longfellow 5-1 from 9-1 for the 2000 Guineas with Betfair while Coral were less impressed and left him untouched at 16-1 for Newmarket and 12-1 for the Derby.

Southampton striker Che Adams scored a stoppage-time winner as Saints claimed a dramatic 2-1 victory at Plymouth.

Adams controlled the ball and volleyed in from close range at the far post after Argyle keeper Conor Hazard had palmed out Adam Armstrong’s goal-bound header from a corner four minutes into added time.

That winner came after Nathan Tella had put the relegated visitors ahead in the 49th minute, only for Ryan Hardie to pull League One champions Argyle level moments later.

Argyle started well against a Saints side making their first visit along the south coast to Plymouth since 2011.

Finn Azaz, on another season-long loan at Home Park from Aston Villa, was quick to win the ball off Saints defender Jan Bednarek but his shot failed to trouble Gavin Bazunu.

Southampton responded with a free-kick from Stuart Armstrong in the 11th minute which was easily gathered by Hazard at the other end.

The best chance of the opening half was created by Saints on the counter after Azaz’s pass went astray in attack.

Southampton broke quickly through Samuel Edozie down the left and his cross along the edge of the penalty area was helped on by Adams and into the path of Tella, whose shot was turned around the post by Hazard.

Following a goalless first half of limited opportunities, Southampton made a much brighter start to the second period and were rewarded with the opening goal barely four minutes after the restart.

Tella had already gone close with an audacious shot which almost beat Hazard at his near post, the Argyle keeper reacting quickly to turn the stinging effort around his post, but there was no denying the Saints forward moments later.

He fired in a superb first-time shot which curled past Northern Ireland keeper Hazard, who could not reach the effort despite being at full stretch.

However, Southampton celebrations were short-lived as Argyle’s response was almost immediate, replying in the next meaningful attack.

Morgan Whittaker sped down the right and his teasing ball into the box was brilliantly converted at the near post by Hardie with a deft touch to lift the ball past Bazunu.

The goals sparked the game into life and, on the hour mark, Saints came within the width of the bar from retaking the lead as Stuart Armstrong’s dipping strike from the edge of the box beat Hazard but thumped off the top of the woodwork.

Edozie also sent a soaring shot just wide of the diving Hazard and the far post while, in the 86th minute, the Argyle keeper made a top drawer save to acrobatically palm Adam Armstrong’s 22-yard free-kick over the bar.

Plymouth also went close themselves late on when Whittaker’s angled shot came back off the foot of the post as he jinked into the Saints box, but it was Southampton who would claim the points thanks to Adams.

Brendan Rodgers is not surprised by Kilmarnock’s flying start to the season as he prepares to renew rivalries with the manager who posed him the biggest challenge during his first spell as Celtic manager.

Former Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes has had the chance to reshape his squad ahead of his second full season in charge at Rugby Park.

McInnes’ Aberdeen side finished as runners-up to Celtic in both of their title-winning campaigns under Rodgers during his first spell in charge, and in three of the five cup finals he won.

Rodgers was therefore not fazed as Killie started their cinch Premiership term with a win over Rangers and a draw at Hearts.

“It doesn’t surprise me,” he said. “Obviously he did a fantastic job at Aberdeen and when I was up here first time they were always very competitive, always very tough games.

“He got promoted with Kilmarnock and now he is looking to establish them in the top division, and after that first season he is putting his own stamp on it. He has been able to refresh the squad, get the profile of players that he wants in.

“I watched the game against Rangers and they did very well. Derek’s teams are always very well organised, some of the most competitive in the country, and he is a very experienced and excellent manager. So I anticipate a tough game for sure.

“They are very difficult to play against, that mixture of man-to-man and zonal and they defended deep.

“The surface always plays a part but we can’t have any excuse going into the game.

“We are in the competition to try and win it and if you are going to do that, you have to beat good teams and overcome difficult opponents.”

A 3-0 Hampden win over the Dons in the League Cup final in November 2016 marked Rodgers’ first major trophy of his managerial career and he hopes to follow that success to kick-start his second spell in Glasgow.

“I enjoyed that side of it when I was here last time, there is something to play for early on which is great,” he said.

“So having that opportunity to get to a final early on in the season is very good.

“We have to work hard to get there, you have to earn the right.”

Charlie Wyke and Stephen Humphrys scored twice as Wigan moved out of the Sky Bet League One relegation zone with a 4-0 derby rout of leaders Bolton.

Latics started the campaign with an eight-point deduction but have won three and drawn one of their opening four fixtures to wipe out that deficit.

And this impressive success over previously unbeaten Wanderers could not have been sweeter for Latics’ 4,000 travelling fans.

Striker Wyke started and finished the scoring, heading the visitors in front after 12 minutes and firing in his fifth goal of the season 15 minutes from time.

Humphrys had been the star of Wigan’s first-half show, netting in the 24th minute when Nathan Baxter could only parry skipper Callum Lang’s shot.

In first-half stoppage time, Lang broke the offside trap and as Bolton failed to clear their box, Humphrys fired into the unguarded net.

For all their possession and goal attempts Bolton were well beaten and Josh Dacres-Cogley’s 47th-minute miss from close range summed up their afternoon.

Rangers survived a potential Viaplay Cup embarrassment as they came from behind against Championship side Morton at Ibrox to win 2-1 and book their place in the quarter-finals.

Michael Beale’s side – missing half a dozen regulars – found themselves a goal behind and under pressure in the 53rd minute when Ton skipper Grant Gillespie scored with a penalty following a VAR check.

The Greenock side were looking for their first win at Ibrox since 1980 but Gers striker Cyriel Dessers levelled from the spot on the hour mark, also following VAR intervention.

Substitute Danilo fired the home side ahead in the 68th minute and the afternoon became more comfortable for the Light Blues.

While going into Sunday’s last-eight draw, Rangers have to get ready for Tuesday night’s Champions League play-off first leg tie against PSV Eindhoven at Ibrox where the standard of opposition will be tougher, albeit the Light Blues can take succour from the fact they beat the Dutch side at the same stage of the tournament last season and will have their star players back.

For the first Viaplay Cup tie of the season, and with Tuesday in mind, Beale rested skipper James Tavernier, John Souttar, Todd Cantwell, Nicolas Raskin, Ryan Jack and Borna Barisic, which allowed defender Dujon Sterling to make his first start while 20-year-old Johnly Yfeko made his competitive debut.

On the European theme, the visitors had veteran defender Kirk Broadfoot, who played in the 2008 UEFA Cup final for Rangers, in their rearguard  – he would have a mixed afternoon – as well as other experienced figures such as goalkeeper Jamie MacDonald and midfielder Alan Power, although boss Dougie Imrie named only four substitutes.

Amid early pressure from the home side MacDonald made saves from Gers winger Rabbi Matondo and Dessers.

In the 18th minute at the other end, Morton’s Robbie Muirhead forced Ibrox keeper Jack Butland into a fine save down at his right-hand post from a 25-yard free-kick which sparked a surge of Morton enthusiasm.

Dessers then had the ball in the Morton net but referee David Dickinson had already blown for an infringement on defender Darragh O’Connor, who minutes later cleared a shot from Matondo off the line after the pacy attacker had rounded MacDonald, who finished off the first-half with another fine save, this time from Kieran Dowell’s curling free-kick from 25 yards.

The second-half brought early drama when Dessers clashed with Broadfoot inside the Gers box to bring penalty claims from the Morton players and fans.

Play waited for the VAR check then referee Dickinson checked his pitch-side monitor and pointed to the spot, with Gillespie sending Butland the wrong way.

The mood inside Ibrox changed and as Rangers responded Leon Balogun struck the post with a drive from close range.

There was a VAR check for a possible penalty for a Broadfoot tug on Balogun as Rangers waited to bring on Ianis Hagi, Danilo and Abdallah Sima and when Dickinson pointed to the spot, Dessers levelled with a well-taken penalty.

Danilo soon made his mark by slotting in from 14 yards after turning inside O’Connor and the pressure disappeared as the home side piled forward for more goals.

MacDonald tipped a Hagi drive over the bar before Sima headed a John Lundstram cross on to the bar with MacDonald making yet another fine save from Sima’s deflected shot as Rangers controlled the final stages which included eight minutes of added time, albeit a Yfeko challenge on George Oakley inside the Gers box was timely.

Arrest – sent off favourite for the Derby – saw his odds cut for the St Leger after getting back to winning ways under a masterful ride from Frankie Dettori in the BetVictor Geoffrey Freer Stakes at Newbury.

Given it was Dettori’s final ride in the Epsom Classic it was perhaps no surprise he was the market leader on that day in June, but he failed to handle the undulating track on ground quicker than ideal.

He had also been well beaten on his most recent outing behind King Of Steel at Royal Ascot, again with conditions against him.

Trained by John and Thady Gosden, the Frankel colt looked much more at home back on softer ground, on which he had looked so impressive at Chester earlier in the season.

On his only ride of the day, Dettori used all his experience to keep away from the rail going down the back straight and for the first three furlongs he was allowed to do his own thing before Neil Callan moved Jack Darcy over to join him.

As the entered the home straight Dettori wound up the pace and the 5-6 favourite soon had everything else of the bridle and when Jack Darcy wilted, the race was won. Ching Shih made late gains into second, but she was still beaten by a length and a half.

The winner was cut to 6-1 from 12s by Coral for the Betfred-sponsored Leger at Doncaster next month, although the Gosdens and Dettori also have the favourite for the world’s oldest Classic in the shape of Queen’s Vase winner Gregory.

Dettori said: “Everyone expected the ground to be a bog, but it’s good to soft. He was the Derby favourite so he had to do that.

“He’s one card for the St Leger, but let’s see how Gregory gets on next Wednesday (Great Voltigeur Stakes).

“He’s one of a bunch of top horses John is sending to York, it’s a very strong team and I can’t wait.

“Soft ground is not an issue with him, if it’s soft at Doncaster it would be fine.”

Arrest – sent off favourite for the Derby – saw his odds cut for the St Leger after getting back to winning ways under a masterful ride from Frankie Dettori in the BetVictor Geoffrey Freer Stakes at Newbury.

Given it was Dettori’s final ride in the Epsom Classic it was perhaps no surprise he was the market leader on that day in June, but he failed to handle the undulating track on ground quicker than ideal.

He had also been well beaten on his most recent outing behind King Of Steel at Royal Ascot, again with conditions against him.

Trained by John and Thady Gosden, the Frankel colt looked much more at home back on softer ground, on which he had looked so impressive at Chester earlier in the season.

On his only ride of the day, Dettori used all his experience to keep away from the rail going down the back straight and for the first three furlongs he was allowed to do his own thing before Neil Callan moved Jack Darcy over to join him.

As the entered the home straight Dettori wound up the pace and the 5-6 favourite soon had everything else of the bridle and when Jack Darcy wilted, the race was won. Ching Shih made late gains into second, but she was still beaten by a length and a half.

The winner was cut to 6-1 from 12s by Coral for the Betfred-sponsored Leger at Doncaster next month.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson recovered from a nervous heptathlon opening on the first morning of the World Championships.

The 2019 world champion sits fourth after a delayed start at the National Athletics Centre in Budapest.

A storm postponed the action by an hour and forced Johnson-Thompson to wait but she struggled in the first event.

The 30-year-old ran 13.50 seconds in her 100m hurdles heat, well behind the American trio of Taliyah Brooks, Anna Hall and Chari Hawkins.

Before her Achilles rupture in 2020, Johnson-Thompson had run a personal best of 13.09 seconds – en route to winning the world title in 2019 – and clocked a season’s best of 13.34 seconds at the British Championships last month.

She entered the high jump at 1.77m, clearing at the first attempt, before eventually leaping 1.80m on her third jump to settle the nerves.

A clearance of 1.86m left her second in the high jump and fourth overall with 2104 points – 41 adrift of leader Hall – with the shot put and 200m to come in the evening session in Hungary.

Great Britain captain Laura Muir, who has endured a disrupted year after splitting from long-term coach Andy Young in March, was second in her 1500m heat.

She clocked four minutes 03.50 seconds behind the Netherlands’ Sifan Hassan.

Kenya’s defending champion Faith Kipyegon remains the overwhelming favourite and won her heat in four minutes 02.62 seconds.

Great Britain’s Katie Snowden and Melissa Courtney-Bryant also progressed to Sunday’s semi final.

Muir said: “Job done, I wanted to qualify with as little drama as possible.

“I was a little disappointed we weren’t in the rain. I would have been happy to crack on but I know there’s a lot of electrical equipment and technical equipment and the rain doesn’t suit everybody.

“It’s a fast track, I think it’ll be an exciting champs. As soon as I did a couple of strides it felt nice. There’s always a bit of scrapping and spiking but I felt comfortable.

“I saw Sifan go past and I was expecting that but I was scared she would go and everyone would come. I kept looking up and saw there was a gap.”

Jazmin Sawyers, the European indoor champion, finished 22nd in qualifying to miss out on the long jump final with a best of just 6.41m.

The 4x400m mixed relay quartet of Joe Brier, Laviai Nielsen, Rio Mitcham and Yemi Mary John reached Saturday night’s final in three minutes 11.19 seconds.

Nielsen said: “It was fast and loud, so I think that gave us an extra lift. We have all been itching to go so we are pleased with how we have performed as a team.”

Zharnel Hughes, the fastest man in the world this year, runs in the 100m heats in the evening with Reece Prescod and Eugene Amo-Dadzie.