Hosts And Favorites Advance, Netherlands Sent Home

A thoroughly entertaining group stage of the UEFA Women’s European Championship drew to a close on Sunday night with the high-profile Group D rounding off the action. After over 10 days of action, half of the contestants have been sent home, while the other eight now enter the knockouts. Here are all the big stories and results from the first phase of the Euros:

Group A: Hosts Advance in Dramatic Fashion

Group A was expected to be the toughest to call this year, and so it proved.

On paper, it might seem that Norway were by far and away the best team with three wins from three, but their performances hardly looked the part. In truth, Gemma Grainger’s side were arguably fortunate to come away with all three points in each of their matches.

Norway were second-best for the most part in the tournament opener against Switzerland, but managed to score twice in quick succession before the hour-mark to turn the scoreline around and come away with a 2-1 win. They did take an early lead against Finland, but were on the back foot for most of the match and needed some Caroline Graham Hansen magic late on to end up with the same scoreline. So, they were already through going into the final group game, which was a chaotic 4-3 win over Iceland.

Iceland must feel quite hard done by to come away without as much as a single point, but their losses to both Finland and Switzerland set up an epic decider for second place. Besides the home advantage, Pia Sundhage’s side had a minor edge on goal difference, which meant a draw would be enough for them. They still showed good intent for the most part, but grew nervy at the end and conceded from the penalty spot with just over 10 minutes on the clock. The visitors then fully sunk back in a bid to see out the win, but Riola Xhemaili scored a stoppage-time equaliser to take Switzerland through to the women’s Euros knockouts for the first time ever!

Group B: Spain Start Title Challenge In Style

World champions Spain lived up to their billing as favorites in Group B. An emphatic five-goal win to start the campaign off was a statement of intent, though some signs of weaknesses would creep up thereafter. They allowed Belgium to equalize twice before running away with a 6-2 win, and even conceded first against Italy before quickly levelling and eventually turning it around in the second half. La Roja’s attack is clearly irrestible when it clicks, but their defense has some weaknesses both against set-pieces and in a high line.

Italy were successful in an open battle for second place, as they ground out a one-goal win over Belgium on their first matchday and only conceded very late on for a 1-1 draw against Portugal. The other Iberian team in the group needed a win on the final day to have any chance of advancing, but they instead suffered a loss to a tough Belgian side.

Group C: Sweden and Germany Ease Through

While all other groups went down to the wire, Group C was the most straightforward of the lot as Sweden and Germany sealed progression to the knockouts with a game to spare. The record champions started strong with a two-goal victory over Poland and then powered past Denmark to turn a deficit into a 2-1 win, while Sweden kept clean sheets against both of those teams and eased through.

Still, there was something to play for on the final day. The top two battled over top spot in Zürich, with Germany scoring first but finding themselves trailing before the half-hour mark and a player short quickly thereafter. There was no coming back from that point, as Sweden came away with a resounding 4-1 win. There was only pride to play for in the other game, but Poland came away with a lot of it as they scored their first goals and got their first points at a major women’s international tournament with a 3-2 triumph over Denmark.

Group D: France Fly High, England Bounce Back

Group D was set to be the most exciting one as it had three teams with some serious ambitions of winning the title. Defending champions England went up against France to kick their campaign off, and put out a subpar performance by all metrics in a two-goal defeat. They had some shaky moments at the back and hardly got anything to click in the attack, so big questions were being asked ahead of their crunch clash against the Netherlands.

Some tactical tweaks and a slight attacking rejig saw the Lionesses bounce back in style with a resounding 4-0 win. Attacking star Lauren James, who had been rather anonymous in a central role in the opener, was the star of the show as she scored a brace after starting on the right wing. The Dutch were firmly outplayed and outclassed, as they could only muster four attempts including just one on target.

The margin of that defeat left the Netherlands under pressure to get a big win over France on the final day of the group stage. Although they bounced back well after conceding first and had a lead going into half-time, their defense totally collapsed in the second period en route to a 2-5 defeat.

Debutantes Wales lost to all three opponents, but they can still leave with their heads held high after scoring a couple of goals and making some unforgettable memories.

Looking Ahead: Knockouts

An exciting slate of quarterfinals will kick off with Norway taking on Italy in Geneva on Wednesday. The Azzurre will fancy their chances of reaching their first Euros semifinal since the turn of the century because Norway have often looked disjointed in their group games. The Group A toppers certainly have some star power, though, so that could be enough to see them through once again.

A real titanic battle will follow between Sweden and England. Peter Gerhardsson’s side scored eight goals and conceded just once as they took home all nine points in Group C, so they have really looked like a complete package. The Lionesses will need to be on their A-game and certainly avoid a repeat of their opening performance to keep their title defense going.

Hosts Switzerland will face the toughest of tasks against world champions Spain, who look like an almost-impossible matchup for them. The Nati were able to pose some problems to opponents with a bit of fluidity in possession, but they will face a very different challenge against a side that is sure to dominate the ball. Spain’s weaknesses seemed to be against strong physical forwards and in set-pieces, but Switzerland are not best set to exploit either of those issues.

France and Germany will face off in the last of the quarterfinals, in which the Bleues should fancy their chances to reach a Euro semifinal for just the second time in their history. Their solid group stage performances coupled with Germany’s heavy defeat against Sweden should give them the confidence they need to knock out the record champions.