The quarter-finals of the European Women’s Football Championship are approaching in England, and France and the Netherlands will decide on Saturday evening the last match in the semi-finals. Waiting for the Wembley Final, the most anticipated match of the tournament will be at the level of the two opponents. The Netherlands holds the title of champions and vice-champions of the world, France has been one of the most talented national teams in the world for years but has not won any international title yet.
Among others, France and the Netherlands have been the two opponents against whom Italy has been resized in recent years. A 5-1 defeat against France in the first game of these European Championships did indeed cost disqualification, while in the World Cup quarter-final four years ago, a 2-0 victory over the Netherlands was out of the question, and was a sign of the end. Exciting tournament so far.
The two national teams play tonight in Rotherham (live on Rai Sport and Sky starting 21) and the winner will play the semi-final against Germany. England and Sweden will play the other semi-final match.
Although they were considered for several years at a similar level, France has never made it past the European quarter-finals. Introduced in this edition, excluding the call-ups, are some of the past World Cup holders such as Amandine Henry, Eugenie Le Sommer and Sarah Bouhaddi, champions of the successes of Lyon, the first major European women’s football team.
(Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
The excluded paid the price for poor relations with coach Corinne Diacree, famous for her decisive personality and one of the few to coach among male professionals: Clermont in the second division, for four seasons. Diacre has formed a young team with great potential, reinforced by the presence of some experienced players such as captain Wendy Renard and other central defender Gridge Mbok Pathy.
However, he had to let go of the central attacker, Marie Antoinette Catuto, who was already the top scorer in PSG history despite being 23 years old. Katuto was supposed to lead France in the tournament but had to leave the team due to a knee injury.
Unlike their opponents, the Netherlands have so far managed to achieve victories and placements at the height of their quality, and in this edition of the European Championship, the Netherlands are trying to add something else. For years, his players have been looking for the best teams in Europe, such as Lyon, Wolfsburg, Barcelona, Arsenal and Chelsea. Among these, Arsenal striker Vivian Miedema, Daniel van de Donk from Lyon and Lieke Martens, who has just moved from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain, are the most emblematic. However, Martens had to leave the tournament at the end of the groups with a foot injury.
– Read also: What went wrong in Italy
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