[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Zizu

Mmmm .. .. a token guy ?

I don’t recognise him to be honest




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Don't these things always start off as tokenism?

And in terms of the Sport, I think it's gonna be hard for England Women to be more disappointing than the Blues Women.

Or just Blues in general tbh.

[Zizu]

Originally Posted by Mystic Mock

Don't these things always start off as tokenism?

And in terms of the Sport, I think it's gonna be hard for England Women to be more disappointing than the Blues Women.

Or just Blues in general tbh.

They must play more attractive/attacking football than Gareth’s lot


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[Mystic Mock]

Originally Posted by Zizu

They must play more attractive/attacking football than Gareth’s lot


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This is still England we're talking about here.

You're more likely to see more attractive Football from Republic Of Ireland than you would England.

[Zizu]

Originally Posted by Mystic Mock

This is still England we're talking about here.

You're more likely to see more attractive Football from Republic Of Ireland than you would England.

At least their manager has actually won something .. she can’t be as cautious as Southgate who is too scared of losing


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[Zizu]

Dreadful defending there .. woeful pass to their striker


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[AnnieK]

Our ladies are one of the favourites
Their manager won the last tournament with the Dutch
Come on England.....it's coming home!!!

[Zizu]

Originally Posted by AnnieK

Our ladies are one of the favourites
Their manager won the last tournament with the Dutch
Come on England.....it's coming home!!!

Well they have home advantage as well but that’s countered by Southgate popping round to give them some advice and share some ideas .


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[Nicky91]

doesn't matter with how much you win it, as long you win it

3 points are 3 points


now for today

Norway and Northern Ireland, Norway are the favourites here but never underestimate a debuting country in competitions like this (for example New Zealand didn't do badly in their first world cup at men's, same goes for Iceland in their debut euro cup at men's)

N.Ireland just have to play their own game, and don't focus too much on the opponents power play, just try to defend as good as you can, and rely on possible counter attacks and don't waste any chances you might get at scoring

[Nicky91]

possible starting line ups

Norway: Pettersen; Sønstevold, Mjelde, Thorisdottir, Blakstad; Eikeland, Maanum, Engen, Reiten; Graham Hansen, Hegerberg

Northern Ireland: Burns; Magee, Nelson, McFadden, Burrows, Vance; Magill, Furness, Caldwell, K McGuinness; Wade

media views

Philip O'Connor, Norway reporter
All eyes will be on Ada Hegerberg, the all-time record scorer in the UEFA Women's Champions League who stepped away from the national team after Women's EURO 2017 but returns to provide added bite to an already impressive attack. She will be flanked by Barcelona's Caroline Graham Hansen and Chelsea winger Guro Reiten as Norway try to hit the ground running against Northern Ireland. Captain Maren Mjelde is set to return to the heart of defence after a long-term injury.

Samantha Miller, Northern Ireland reporter
Northern Ireland go into this competition as big underdogs and their qualifying results against Norway don't exactly undermine that status. Yet the finals debutants are a different proposition now, with several more players going full time to gear up for EURO 2022. Rachel Furness will be key to their attacking aspirations, but they may have to do without captain Marissa Callaghan, at least initially, as she returns to fitness following injury.

view from northern irish coach

Kenny Shiels, Northern Ireland coach: "We are not going to make up the numbers. Our first priority is to try and win a game – we have three games, and if we win two of them then more or likely we will reach the quarter-finals. But when you look at the opposition, winning one game will be very tough. It is not beyond the realms of possibility, but we are massive underdogs. We will try and win the first game [against Norway], and if we don't win that then we will try and win the next one."

.

[Nicky91]

unsurprisingly Norway win with 4-1 over Northern Ireland

but still something nice for Nelson, being the first northern irish goalscorer at womens euros

[Nicky91]

two games today


Spain - Finland at 18:00 CET (17:00 UK Time)


Germany - Denmark at 21:00 CET (20:00 UK Time)

[Nicky91]

spain - finland, possible starting 11s


-------------------------------
possible starting 11s Germany - Denmark, Where: Brentford Community Stadium, London

Germany: Frohms; Gwinn, Hegering, Hendrich, Rauch; Oberdorf, Magull, Däbritz; Huth, Schüller, Bühl.

Denmark: Christensen; Veje, Ballisager, Sevecke; Thomsen, Jung Pedersen, Troelsgaard, Svava; Madsen, Harder, Bruun.

Anna-Sophia Vollmerhausen, Germany reporter
Martina Voss-Tecklenburg has made no secret of the fact that their full focus has been on preparing for this game. After strolling through the qualifying rounds, they now have a chance to avenge their 2017 quarter-final defeat against Denmark. With a wealth of attacking options at their disposal, including Frauen Bundesliga top scorer Lea Schüller, all eyes will be on seeing how the defence – bolstered by the return of Marina Hegering – holds up. Getting off to a good start will be crucial for Germany.

Sture Sandø, Denmark reporter
This opening match for Denmark could very well turn out to be decisive. The Danes have great respect for their German counterparts, but they still see opportunities to punish them if they leave too much space in behind. We will see a Danish team that will try to play through and past the German pressure and attempt to take advantage of speedy wingers. Look out for forward Pernille Harder, wing-back Sofie Svava and defender Katrine Veje.


Form guide
Hendrich: 'We know what Denmark's strengths are'
Hendrich: 'We know what Denmark's strengths are'
Germany
Last six games: WLWLLD (most recent first)
Last match: Germany 7-0 Switzerland, 24/06
Women's EURO 2017: quarter-finals (L 2-1 vs Denmark)

Denmark
Last six games: LWWWWL (most recent first)
Last match: Denmark 1-2 Norway, 29/06
Women's EURO 2017: runners-up (L 4-2 vs Netherlands)

.

[Nicky91]

am curious today about Spain, lacking stars like Putellas, Hermoso, i'd say Finland has some chances for a possible upset, as we don't know how good they are without their biggest stars



Germany and Denmark, i'd say germans will edge this one, but the danish are also kinda good so this could also end up in a draw

[Nicky91]

1st minute

0-1 Finland

Sallstrom

[Nicky91]

1-1 Spain

Paredes

[Nicky91]

Spain won with 4-1


Germany won with 4-0






todays games

Portugal - Switzerland 18:00 CET (17:00 UK Time) in Leigh

Netherlands - Sweden 21:00 CET (20:00 UK Time) in Sheffield

[Nicky91]

Netherlands - Sweden preview

dutch preview

Mark Parsons, Netherlands coach: “We’re ready to play. We have a good training session in mind to keep the energy high for tomorrow. But after you see a few games on TV you’re just itching to get out there and play.”

Parsons on whether he will adapt to Sweden: "We are very focussed on how we can bring the best qualities of our players. Tomorrow or any other day that we play won’t be any different. It’s always a question of how we impose ourselves."

More from Parsons: “We have one or two players that we’ll find out about [their fitness] today, but things look positive. We’ll just have to get through training. We’re in a position that we could have hoped for three and a half weeks ago.”

Sari van Veenendaal, Netherlands goalkeeper: "I’m very happy and excited that we can start tomorrow. We’re ready for it. After the Finland game last week, we’ve just been preparing the details of facing Sweden, on and off the pitch. We know about the players, the team… now it’s just important that we show what we can do."

Van Veenendaal on how the team approaches a tournament like this: "We just try to look from game to game. For us there is only one game, and that’s tomorrow. We can't look further than that."


The Dutch players out training on a fine summer's evening in Sheffield.

swedes preview

Stina Blackstenius will not start tomorrow, Sweden coach Gerhardsson confirmed during today's press conference: "One of our strengths in previous tournaments has been the medical team, they give me the exact amount of minutes a player can play, and we will see after today's training. But if I said she would start no one would believe me so it's just as well that I say how it is and I believe it's also a bit alarming for the Netherlands to know she is there but not know how much she will play or what damage she can do."


Gerhardsson says he has decided on a starting XI and formation for tomorrow, but "I don't trust myself, as I am an expert at being able to change my mind". Whether Sweden will start with four or three at the back we will have to wait until tomorrow to see; either way, we are likely to see both formations during the game, the Sweden coach indicated.

This will be Caroline Seger's 13th major tournament for Sweden but she told us that the feeling ahead of the first match never changes.

"I’m older now and I’ve experienced it many times but you still get those butterflies in your stomach and that excitement, the feelings are the same but I think I can cope better with it these days."

The Swedish media officer confirms that 2,600 tickets have been sold to Swedish fans, and we can expect more to show up on Saturday. "It’s probably one of the first tournaments I've been to where we have this many Swedish fans here," says Seger. "It will be very special to have all the blue and yellow here with us, like an extra player."


Caroline Seger, Sweden captain: "There have been a lot of talk and I understand that people have big expectations; we have them too. We're not here to advance from the group; we're dreaming big. But it’s also very important not to get ahead of yourselves, that we play good football and grow into this tournament."


The sun is shining here in Sheffield as Sweden go through their last training session ahead of tomorrow's big match. There are huge expectations on this side; can they handle the pressure?

[Nicky91]

Portugal - Switzerland preview

possible starting line ups

Portugal: Inês Pereira; Catarina Amado, Diana Gomes, Carole Costa, Joana Marchão; Dolores Silva, Tatiana Pinto, Andreia Norton; Kika Nazareth, Jéssica Silva, Diana Silva

Switzerland: Thalmann; Maritz, Bühler, Calligaris, Aigbogun; Xhemaili, Wälti; Reuteler, Sow, Crnogorčević; Bachmann

Portugal were late arrivals at the finals, coming in after Russia were excluded, but they fared respectably on debut at Women's EURO 2017 and have had encouraging results in pre-tournament games. Switzerland have had some punishing friendly encounters –notably a 7-0 loss to Germany – but coach Nils Nielsen led Denmark to the final last time out, and his side should not be underestimated.

reporters views

Carlos Machado, Portugal reporter
The watchword in the Portugal side is 'enjoy'. Reaching England was a bonus and the side will try to continue their best spell for the women's game in the country. In a hard group, Switzerland could be the ideal opponents for a good start as the Portuguese look to fulfil the minimum goal set for this tournament – to at least emulate the three points they mustered in 2017. The atmosphere is excellent and the mix of veterans from that Netherlands tournament plus new blood should make Portugal a better side.


Judith Tuffentsammer, Switzerland reporter
It may be the opening match but the objective is clear: Switzerland need a win. In a group with 2021 Olympic silver medallists Sweden and defending European champions Netherlands, a strong start against Portugal is a must. While the pre-tournament results did not quite go their way, the team is relaxed and ready to get their Women's EURO campaign under way. It's also a special occasion for captain Lia Wälti as she will be playing her 100th match for her country, which will certainly provide some additional motivation for her team.

Form guide
Portugal
Last six games: DWWWLL (most recent first)
Last match: Portugal 1-1 Australia, 28/06
Women's EURO 2017: fourth in Group D (W1 D0 L2)

Switzerland
Last six games: LLLDLD (most recent first)
Last match: Switzerland 0-4 England, 30/06
Women's EURO 2017: third in Group C (W1 D1 L1)

views from the camps

Francisco Neto, Portugal coach: "Our aim is to perform better than we did in 2017. It was always going to be a tough start for us in this group, no matter who we were up against in the opening game. We know that Switzerland are the closest team to us in the rankings. They have players that ply their trade at top clubs across Europe and are a team that we fully respect but we know that we have our own strengths that will allow us to head into the game full of confidence, and we can compete with them. A victory would give us a massive boost and settle our nerves heading into the other group games."

Nils Nielsen, Switzerland coach: "It's incredibly important, especially in a group like ours, that the first game provides us with at least one point so we are still in the tournament. If we lose the first game, it's going to be a very difficult task to go through the group. They're going to attack us, I'm pretty sure. It's part of their game that they can stay low and attack with fewer players than many of the other teams. That's a quality, but it can also be a problem when they have to change their strategy during the game."

.

[Nicky91]

viewing figures here for womens euros so far in my nation, non-dutch matches


Germany - Denmark average of 454.000 and a total of 1.4 million viewers tuning in


Spain - Finland average of 412.000 and a total of 1.3 million viewers tuning in


not bad, also considering we're amid tour de france season too, which of course does better in day top 25 ratings

the live stage broadcast 485.000 average and total of 1.5 million viewers

whereas evening talk show De Avondetappe 2nd place with 1 million average, total of 1.6 million viewers

[Nicky91]

possible starting 11s NL - SWE

Netherlands: v.Veenendaal, Wilms, Nouwen, v.d.Gragt, Janssen, Groenen, v.d.Donk, Spitse, Roord, Miedema, Martens

Sweden: Lindahl, Andersson, Eriksson, Ilestedt, Glas, Seger, Asllani, Angeldahl, Rolfo, Hurtig, Rytting

[Nicky91]

Youtube video

Youtube video

ahead of todays match, UEFA uploaded these ''meet the team'' videos on their youtube channel

[Nicky91]

am pleased about our 1-1 draw


Sweden are contenders so, defending the best we can against those giants is amazing



wonderful goal from Roord as well good stand in goalkeeper Van Domselaar in her first euro's match and one of her first appearances in national team, very good saves from her



Portugal - Switzerland also a draw (2-2) so all teams still level, on 1 point

[Nicky91]

preview for today

Belgium - Iceland 18:00 (17:00 UK Time) Manchester

Tessa Wullaert, Belgium forward: "Tomorrow will be a game that will be decided by details. We know that Iceland are very strong in one-on-ones and that we will have to be aware of them from set pieces, but the most important thing is that we stay calm and focused from the first minute."

Ives Serneels, Belgium coach: "This match is not decisive for me. Remember our first game against Denmark in 2017: we lost that and ended up staying in the race until the end. Iceland are a tough team and a team that are always a united unit on the field. There are players with special qualities, but they are also the players that we have to be able to handle. I'm afraid we'll have to be patient."


------------
Sara Björk Gunnarsdóttir, Iceland midfielder, on their preparations: "The squad is calm. We have a lot of experienced players and the balance in the team is good. We have been able to control the excitement level really well."

Thorsteinn Halldórsson, Iceland coach, on what they need to do tomorrow: "We need to be aggressive and play a tight game. This will be an even match, Belgium has similar qualities to us but we believe we are better and we need to show that."

More from Halldórsson, on the other games ahead in the group: "You can only play one game at a time, that‘s a fact even though it is a boring phrase. We don't think about anything else than the game tomorrow. Hopefully that will result in a good, solid performance."

More from Gunnarsdóttir, who played her first 90 minutes in a friendly against Poland last week since giving birth in November: "I felt pretty good. The first 75 minutes were solid, and then you got a bit tired which is understandable. But the most important things is that I had a good and quick recovery, which says a lot for the future."


Hallbera Gísladóttir and Berglind Thorvaldsdóttir are the stars in iceland tabloid Fréttablaðið this morning, describing their excitement for the first game: "We know it will be tough, but we also know that we have a team that can get some points."

------------
France - Italy 21:00 (20:00 UK Time) Rotherham

Sara Gama, Italy captain, speaking to UEFA.com: "The anthem is special for us, and it's the climax right before the start of the game."
"We're excited, we've worked hard. We have the right amount of pressure."

''We want to have fun, which means also to be focused, but to enjoy ourselves. If we enjoy these special moments we can do even better."

"Since the 2019 World Cup we have improved; now this is a different competition, we need to do even better, and give our all."

"We want to get started, and show on the pitch what we have prepared so far. We have a smile on our faces."
----

Milena Bertolini, Italy coach, speaking to UEFA.com: "We can't wait to get started, we have trained a lot and cannot wait to start this competition, which is magnificent."

"We are taking it game after game, so for now we are focused on France. But we know that to progress we'll need to beat the others too. Our aim is to progress from the group."

"To face a strong team like France, we need to go beyond our physical and technical qualities, and to do so we need to be united, and be tactically on point, in Italian fashion."

Valentina Cernoia is out of the squad to face France, the Italian FA have announced.

"We will be without Cernoia, but we have other players who can replace her, and we need every single player."

------------------------------------------------
Wendie Renard, France captain, speaking about the base camp in Ashby de la Zouch: "The French Football Federation has made efforts to put us in the best condition. We don't have a network, it's a shame (laughs) but we have wifi. But the most important thing is the game tomorrow."

"I'm very happy to be in a new competition.It's a pride to represent your country and you have to earn it, with or without the armband."

"The first match launches you into the competition. Tomorrow we have to let go and show our qualities. We know what to expect, it is a European championship. We will do everything tomorrow to put ourselves in the best position for the rest of the competition."

"Tomorrow's game is important. It will give us confidence for the rest. The first three games are like a mini championship. We will first concentrate on Italy, then on Belgium and then on Iceland."

Corinne Diacre, France coach: "Everyone is doing well in their mental and physical aspects."

"Now we start another competition. We must reset the counters to zero. We take the three teams at the same level. It's up to us to stay focused, to listen to our bodies and not take any risks in the last training session.I hope for an open game. I think it's going to be a close game."


Plenty of these posters – Women's EURO is on!

.

[Nicky91]

viewing figures in my nation

NL - Sweden game 1st place in daily top 25 ratings

average of 1.9 million and a total of a whopping 3.8 million



Portugal - Switzerland also had decent ratings, 500.000 average and 1.5 million total

[Nicky91]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...berg-form.html

and tomorrow we got England - Norway, another potentially top match

England meet Norway in their second group game of Euro 2022 on Monday
The Lionesses beat Austria 1-0 in front of over 68,000 fans at Old Trafford
While Norway cruised to an impressive 4-1 victory over Northern Ireland
Former Ballon d'Or Feminin winner Ada Hegerberg will lead Norway's attack

There is an intensity about Ada Hegerberg and the Norway team who will present England's biggest group stage challenge of the European Championship when the teams clash in Brighton on Monday.

While England have had a card school going — with forward Nikita Parris the one to beat — the Norwegians like to do crossword puzzles. And then there is their approach to the football.

Norway could have scored seven as they beat Northern Ireland 4-1 on Thursday but Hegerberg, whose standards have made her one of the world's top players, was making no bones about the goal the team conceded.


Norway's Ada Hegerberg returned to the national team and will lead the line against England

'We were asleep at the beginning of the second half,' she said.



'We can't let this happen because it will be a completely different level against England.'

As uncompromising players go, the 26-year-old is right up there with Megan Rapinoe, who has just led the American team in their successful $24million legal suit against the US Soccer Federation over 'inequality in pay and treatment'.

After Norway's disastrous 2017 Euros, in which they failed to register a point, or a goal, Hegerberg cut off all ties with the national team, insisting that the country's FA always prioritised the men.

She was vindicated when a subsequent inquiry set up by the country's FA, led by former international Karen Espelund, eviscerated Norwegian football's men in suits.

Yet she maintained her exile while becoming arguably Europe's supreme player, pivotal to Lyon's crushing of Barcelona in last season's Champions League and first winner of the Ballon d'Or Feminin.

Now she is back following a 20-month lay-off with an anterior cruciate ligament injury, with Norway waiting to discover if she can finally flourish in the national team.

Her struggle to make an impact in the 2017 Euros have drawn comparisons in Norway with her compatriot Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who lacked the strong players around him that helped him to score so freely for Manchester United.

Both players' international tallies are good — Hegerberg has 42 goals in 71 games, Solskjaer hit 23 in 67.

The evidence of the nine months since her return to the fray is that Norway are more capable of supplying her than they were five years ago.

They have a greater number of elite players operating on her level now. Not just Barcelona's Caroline Graham-Hansen but Arsenal's Frida Maanum and Chelsea's Guro Reiten.

This is a Norway side with quality in depth.

'Hegerberg seems like a much more mature player than last time on the national team,' says Solveig Gulbrandsen, who commentates for Norwegian broadcaster TV2.

The former national men's team's manager, Egil Olsen, feels they could be less concerned with possession and more focused on attacking passes between the lines for Hegerberg and Hansen.

Privately, the England team may reflect that Hegerberg's self-imposed exile have enhanced the demands for greater equality.

New Zealand Cricket announced last week that their women's national team and domestic women's players will receive the same match fees as men, from next month.

England's Jill Scott said that she was not looking for this kind of parity. 'In any job, if someone was to offer you more money, you wouldn't decline it, would you?' she said.

'I always think women's football is on a journey. Where we've come from to where we are now is massive.'

Lucy Bronze, who played with Hegerberg at Lyon, says the striker's competitive instinct is what makes the difference.

'She's just obsessed with scoring,' she said.

Hegerberg said of Norway's opening match: 'If we can make it a little easier, then we can score a lot more goals.'

.