Women’s Soccer, July 2022: A Series
This is the seventh post in a series devoted to the 117 games of international women’s football played in July 2022, covering the second round of the Euros. If you’d like to start from the beginning (or to pick and choose your competitions), you can do so from my opening post. Next up is quarterfinals of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.
Women’s Euros – Group Stage, Round 2 (11th-14th)
Monday the 11th, the second 8-game day of the month, kicked off with Group A’s Austria and Northern Ireland, both seeking a critical first win of the tournament. Playing without the injured Simone Magill, Northern Ireland were decidedly the underdogs, and though Austria’s opener came from a 19’ set piece, they were well worth the lead. But Kenny Shiels’s women stayed organized and kept a result in reach until the final minutes of regulation, when 75’ substitute Katharina Naschenweng received a long ball to break into the box on the left and put the game away.
The day’s second game, between England and Norway, was the main event—and it was stunning. England pressed higher than they had against Austria, and targeted the left side of Norway’s defense. Ellen White, whom most pundits expected to be replaced by Alessia Russo in the starting line-up, won a penalty 10’ in with a dive that was clear, but because of a hand on her stomach not, perhaps, clear and obvious. In any case, Georgia Stanway dispatched the penalty to give England an early lead.
From there, it was the Lauren Hemp and Beth Mead show. 3’ after the penalty, Hemp backheeled a tap-in assist from Mead, and following a 30’ goal by White off a turnover from pressing Maria Thorisdóttir, Hemp put a cross in for Mead to head home at 34’. Just 4’ later, Mead scored the goal of the game, dribbling past Julie Blakstad and Thorisdóttir to lash in a record-tying 5th first-half goal. White would poke in a 6th at 41’ to ensure that France’s record 5-goal first half would stand for less than 24 hours. That White looked third fiddle despite a first half brace and creating a penalty is a measure of Hemp and Mead’s performances.
Six unanswered first half goals not only broke France’s record, but set England up for a record margin of victory in the tournament. Russo scored a header not long after her customary introduction around the hour mark; while Mead scored a late poacher’s goal to complete a hat trick, pushing her one goal ahead of France’s Grace Geyoro in the race for the Golden Boot, and completing a record-setting 8-0 win. That meant England were through with a game to spare, while Ada Hegerberg’s Norway would face Austria to determine the group’s second qualifier.
On Tuesday the 12th, Group B offered a Nordic appetizer of Denmark against Finland before the main course of Spain taking on Germany. Denmark looked the better side in a tight game, but couldn’t get a break through until just over midway through the second half. Janni Thomsen, who had switched from left to right wingback early in the second half when Sofie Svava came on, put in a cross to the far post for the recently-introduced Karen Holmgaard. Her header came off the crossbar to an aptly-positioned Pernille Harder, who headed in a winner.
Though keeper Tinja-Riikka Korpela had kept Finland in the match throughout, the best save of the night came in injury time, as Lene Christensen kept a brilliant effort by late substitute Jenny Danielsson from nestling in the top left corner to preserve Denmark’s win. This kept Danish hopes of advancing alive going into the final round of the group stage.
The key game in Group B opened with a goal gifted by a keeper’s error, as Sandra Paños passed a ball out directly to Klara Bühl, who had a fine narrow-angle finish after rounding the keeper to put Germany up from the outset. Spain responded well, and nearly equalized just 10’ in, as Aitana Bonmatí passed up the middle to Patri Guijarro, who played Lucía García in with a touch; but after rounding Merle Frohms, García put her shot into the side netting.
The game couldn’t have been played more to national stereotypes, as Spanish tiki-taka dominated possession against a German gegenpress. In fact, Spain seemed well equipped to pass through Germany’s press, but their passes weren’t moving quickly enough to take advantage. But just under 10’ before halftime, Alexandra Popp, who was starting place of a COVID-positive Lea Schüller, headed in a corner kick to give the Germans an insurance goal.
Though the game finished 2-0, Spain had probably been as good as Germany in the first half, and were clearly the better side in the second—though Germany, of course, didn’t need to be better by that point. Even so, the win meant that Germany qualified with a game to spare, while Spain would play Denmark for the other birth to the quarterfinals.
With two ties in the first round keeping everything effectively level, Group C kicked off on Wednesday the 13th with Switzerland hoping to hold off Sweden despite a stomach bug that had hit 9 players and 11 staff members, shutting down in-person training the previous day. Only two starters were affected, though, one of whom started and played a full hour; and another recovering player on the bench came on for the final 20’.
Sweden dominated from the outset, but Switzerland defended resiliently and posed some threat on the counter. They even had a penalty shout early on, but VAR rightly overruled the onfield call. Sweden’s breakthrough didn’t come until Fridolina Rolfö finished off a lovely attack early in the second half. But just 2’ later, Ramona Bachmann collected a cross, punched off the head of Géraldine Reutler by Hedvig Lindahl, and curled it in at the right post to draw things back level.
Sweden made a series of changes chasing a win, while Switzerland faced new setbacks. Goalkeeper Gaëlle Thalmann took a hard fall, though she continued playing, and not long afterward Bachmann was forced to leave with an apparent injury. Even so, Switzerland held on until 79’, when substitute Hanna Bennison received a pass back from Rolfö and released a stunning strike from the top of the box to put Sweden ahead. From there, Sweden had two potential insurance goals denied for offsides, but the outcome seemed settled.
Netherlands came into their second match against Portugal missing four starters. In addition to the injuries from the opening game to keeper Sari van Veenendaal and defender Aniek Nouwen, star striker Vivianne Miedema and midfielder Jackie Groenen had tested positive for COVID. Eager to follow up on their point against Switzerland, Portugal had an electric opening, forcing a save from back-up keeper Daphne van Domselaar and then putting one past her, though both efforts were eventually ruled offsides.
But then Damaris Egurrola headed in off a corner to put the Dutch ahead just 7’ in. The Netherlands started to take control of the game from there, and just after the quarter-hour mark another corner kick led to a second headed goal, this one by Stefanie van der Gragt from a half-clearance that Lieke Martens served back into the box. Van der Gragt nearly headed in another corner at 32’ that Carole Costa cleared off the line.
By that point, however, Portugal had already made a tactical shift that was bringing them back into the game, changing from a 4-3-1-2 to a 4-3-3, allowing their wide strikers to play as real wingers (and to contribute more defensively). Almost immediately after the Netherlands’ second goal, Portugal broke forward on a counter-attack, and Diana Silva won a penalty off a soft but clear foul (awarded by VAR) that Costa scored.
Early in the second half, Diana Silva would head in a goal of her own, off a Costa cross, to pull Portugal level from a two-goal deficit for the second game in a row. That lead lasted until just after the hour mark, when a quick throw-in found Martens in space on the left, setting up Danielle van de Donk to curl in a go-ahead goal for the Dutch.
That would prove the game-winner, a game which ended with Croatian referee Ivana Martinčić blowing her whistle before Portugal could take a corner they had just won. It was a fitting conclusion given the frustrations that refereeing decisions (including cumbersome VAR from Italian Paolo Valeri) had produced for both sides. All of Group C remained in contention, though favorites Sweden and the Netherlands needed only a tie from their final game to advance.
With the OFC Women’s Cup opening on the 13th, Thursday the 14th became the only day featuring games from each of July’s five competitions, ten games altogether. Group D provided the third and fifth games of the day, the first of them featuring Italy and Iceland. Italy were hoping to rebound from their opening 5-1 loss to France, but an uncleared long throw-in by Sveindís Jónsdóttir set up a late-arriving Karólína Lea Vilhjálmsdóttir for a wicked top right finish that put Iceland ahead just 3’ in.
After a strong opening 10’ from Iceland, Italy dominated the game without quite being able to get the break-through. At halftime, Milena Bertolini brought on Barbara Bonansea, and not long after that Cristiana Girelli, to spark the attack. Just after the hour mark, Italy very nearly conceded off a free kick, only to score at the other end, Bonansea breaking into the box on the left and setting up Valentina Bergamaschi for an equalizer. From there it was all Italy (saving a missed chance against the run of play that left Vilhjálmsdóttir in tears), but the game ended 1-1.
In the second game, France looked for a Bastille Day win against Belgium to secure their quarterfinal spot. Within 6’ Kadidatou Diani had headed in a cross to put France ahead, and they dominated the game despite the early departure of Marie-Antoinette Katoto with what would prove to be a tournament-ending ACL injury. But at 36’, Tessa Wullaert received a long ball out on the left flank and, turning her defender, slipped a perfectly placed ball into the box for Janice Cayman to jab in a near post equalizer with Belgium’s first shot of the game.
France would regain their lead before halftime, Griedge Mbock Bathy heading in from a second chance off a corner kick, and they remained the better side in a somewhat closer second half. Near the end of regulation, Nicky Evrard saved a Wendy Renard penalty awarded for an extremely marginal handball to keep the game at 2-1. That meant that a winner between Italy and Belgium would advance unless Iceland could beat an already qualified France.
Next up: Women’s Africa Cup of Nations – Quarterfinals | Skip to: Women’s Euros – Group Stage, Final Round
Stoopid American 
Pingback: Euros 2022 Group Stage Round 1 | Stoopid American·
Pingback: W Championship 2022 Group Final Round | Stoopid American·