Hosts England started the European Women’s Football Championship with a well-deserved victory. The team of Dutch coach Sarina Wiegman defeated Austria 1-0 (1-0) in the first game of Group A.
Hosts England started the European Women’s Football Championship with a well-deserved victory. The team of Dutch coach Sarina Wiegman defeated Austria 1-0 (1-0) in the first game of Group A.
Over 68,800 spectators in the sold-out Old Trafford stadium in Manchester celebrated the “lionesses” (lionesses) at the end, but otherwise remained surprisingly quiet.
The goal of the day was scored by Arsenal’s Beth Mead in the 17th minute. England confirmed their position as tournament favorites and are now unbeaten in 15 games. When the two European Championship semi-finalists from 2017 met, the Austrians quickly faced the onslaught of the English. At the opening goal, Carina Wenninger initially saved on the goal line. But VAR technology showed the ball was in.
England’s left winger Lauren Hemp from Manchester City in particular put a lot of pressure on, but there were few clear chances to score. The Austria team with seven Bundesliga professionals in the starting eleven had to compete without Lisa Kolb from SC Freiburg (corona disease) and Maria Plattner from Turbine Potsdam (broken collarbone). Jerseys with the names of the two showed their teammates at the national anthem.
Nicole Billa, Germany and Austria’s “Soccer Player of the Year” from 2021, could do little for her team: The striker from TSG 1899 Hoffenheim did a lot of running work, but her team lacked the last precision up front. In the second game of Group A, Norway and Northern Ireland will meet in Southampton on July 7 (9:00 p.m. CEST/DAZN).
