Tag: EURO 2017

Europe is Orange: The Netherlands Win The European Championship At Home

Posted on by RJ Allen

For the first time in over 20 years, there is a new reigning champion in Europe.

It was an exciting tournament from the very beginning. You could tell by the end of the Group Stage that there was a changing of the guard happening in Europe–powerhouse favorites like Germany, France, and Sweden stepped aside for countries like the Netherlands, Austria, and England. You kept asking yourself how far these countries could go, and more than anything, who was going to lift that trophy on August 6th?

The Finals matchup was set after the Netherlands shutdown the tournament’s highest scoring team, beating the English Lionesses 3-0. Earlier in the day, Denmark had continued their streak by defeating Austria in penalty kicks after a tightly contested match. It would be the first time that either of these teams made it to the European Finals, and the world waited anxiously to see how it would play out.

The excitement and importance of this match could be felt before the players even stepped foot onto the pitch. An estimated 10,000 people showed up to the “Orange Parade” before the match, dancing through the streets as they chanted their support for the home side. The Netherlands sold out their semi-final match against England, and they sold out their final as well, with over 28,000 fans filing into the stadium.

The action in the match started early. Denmark drew a penalty in the sixth minute, taken and scored by Nadia Nadim of the Portland Thorns. The Netherlands quickly countered when Vivianne Miedema scored in the 10th minute. Another goal from Lieke Martens in the 27th minute put the host nation ahead, but Denmark’s Pernille Harder slotted the equalizer just six minutes later. After much back and forth, the game calmed down, and the halftime whistle blew.

It didn’t take long for the scoring to start again, with Sherida Spitse scoring in the 51st minute for the Netherlands. Denmark tried to equalize, but their attempts failed. The Dutch attack kept pushing forward. When Miedema scored her second goal of the match in the 89th minute, victory had been secured.

Just two years ago, the Netherlands were playing in their first-ever Women’s World Cup. Now, they are the champions of Europe. The Dutch attack was fun to watch, scoring 13 goals in six matches. But the Dutch defense was equally important, earning four clean sheets in those six matches.

Where the Dutch or the Danish will go from here, no one can say for sure. But it appears that this tournament will be remembered as a turning point for European Women’s Soccer. Gone are the days of German dominance–and in their place sits something much more exciting: a brand new frontier in the European WoSo landscape.

Euro’s Final Set

Posted on by RJ Allen

On Thursday, the 2017 Women’s Euro played their two quarterfinal matches. It was Denmark vs. Austria in the first match and the Netherlands vs. England was the second match. Here is how your Euro’s 2017 Finalists were decided.

Denmark vs. Austria 

As was typical of the 2016 Men’s Euro’s, this match ended in a penalty kicks. Both sides had good opportunities, including a close shot for Austria in the first half that fired just over the goal and a good second half chance for Denmark’s Sanne Troelsgaard. In the end, they would play scoreless through extra time and it would come down to a penalty shootout. Austria claimed victory over Spain in a penalty shootout, but this went disasteriously wrong for them. Denmark advanced to the Euro’s final 3-0 after Austria missed their first three penalty kicks. It will be their first ever Euro’s final appearance, and will feature the only remaining NWSL player in the tournament, Nadia Nadim of the Portland Thorns.

The Netherlands vs. England 

This was a difficult match for both teams going in. England had scored the most goals of any team so far in the tournament, dominating their opponents in the first stages of the competition. But the Netherlands had the advantage of a home crowd behind them. The Netherlands opened scoring in the 22nd minute when Miedema scored off a header, and the halftime score was 1-0. No one had been able to hold England scoreless in this tournament, but the Netherlands tacked on two more goals in the second half to earn a solid 3-0 victory and a ticket to the finals. It will also be their first Euro’s finals appearance. And Europe will have a new champion for the first time in over twenty years.

The Euro’s final will take place on Sunday, August 6th. Kickoff is set for 11:00am ET.

Underdogs Stun In Euro Quarterfinals

Posted on by RJ Allen

It was an exciting weekend in the Netherlands, with all four quarterfinal matches of Euro tournament kicking off over the two days. When the action came to an end on Sunday night, some new names had staked a place in the semifinals, and some of the biggest names in world soccer had seen their tournament brought to an end. Here is a breakdown of all the action from the Women’s Euro Quarterfinals.

Netherlands vs. Sweden

After a strong showing at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Sweden was hoping to lock down their status as one of the top teams in Europe. But going through the Netherlands would prove to be a more difficult task than anyone had anticipated. The two teams are relatively close in FIFA Women’s World Rankings—with Sweden at No. 9 just a few spots ahead of the Netherlands in 12th. But in the end, the host nation was too much for the Swedes to handle. The Dutch earned their third clean sheet of the tournament, with goals from Martens and Miedema that sent them on to the next round. With the home crowd urging them on, they’ve looked very tough so far. And things won’t get any easier for their opponents going forward. They have already sold-out their semi-final game and will be ready to take another step closer to taking the trophy on home turf.

Denmark vs. Germany

This should have been the second match on Saturday, but ended up being postponed due to heavy rain in Rotterdam. When the match did kick off the next morning, it didn’t start well for Denmark. Isabel Kerschowski found the first goal of the match in the 3rd minute, a good start for the defending champions looking for their seventh consecutive title. But it all fell apart for Germany in the second half, when Nadia Nadim of the Portland Thorns headed the equalizer in the 49th minute and Theresa Nielsen gave her team the game-winning goal in the 83rd minute. Many in Denmark called the win the biggest in their career. In a tournament with more than a few upsets, this is certainly one of the most exciting results so far.

Austria vs. Spain

Few would have expected this quarterfinal pairing going into the tournament. Austria are debutants in this competition, but after topping their group received a matchup against Spain–who were thoroughly inconsistent in their group matches. The Spanish hadn’t scored since their opening match against Portugal, and that stayed true in this match, where they dominated possession but failed to find the net. Austria’s defense was relentless, and Spain simply couldn’t find a way through. Eventually, it ended in a penalty shootout after neither team scored in 120 minutes. It ended when Sarah Puntigam made her shot. Silvia Meseguer’s miss provided the necessary margin to seal Austria’s ticket to the semi-final. They will go on to face Denmark on Thursday. August 3rd.

England vs. France

On Sunday night, England did the impossible. For the first time in 43 years, the Lionesses defeated France, riding a narrow 1-0 margin into the semifinals. Les Bleues hadn’t had the best tournament, but it still wasn’t an easy task for England. The game was defensive, with the lone goal coming from none other than Jodie Taylor. It was her fifth goal of the tournament, putting her in good position to win the Golden Boot, and maybe even to break the scoring record for the tournament. After beating France, and thanks to Germany’s exit earlier that day, England are now the highest ranked team remaining in the tournament. That makes them the closest thing there is to a favorite, but this hasn’t been a good tournament for the traditional favorites, and England certainly won’t be sanguine about their difficult semi-finals match against the host nation in front of a sold-out crowd.

The semi-final matches will take place on Thursday, August 3rd. Denmark vs. Austria will kickoff at 12:00 EDT, while the Netherlands vs. England will kickoff at 2:45.

EURO’s Roar Hear All Around The World: A Group Stage Recap

Posted on by RJ Allen

The first round of the UEFA Women’s Euros is officially over. With the quarterfinals set, we’re taking a look back at the group stage, and breaking down the winners and losers.

Group A

 Standings:

  1. Netherlands
  2. Denmark
  3. Belgium
  4. Norway

Breakdown:

  1. The Netherlands

The host nation have come out with a surprisingly strong start to their competition. They finished their group with 9 points in three games, defeating Norway 1-0, Denmark 1-0, and Belgium 2-1. Each match featured different goal-scorers–showing the diversity of their attack–and the defense only allowed a single goal across the three matches. Ranked 12th in the world, the Netherlands are certainly giving people a reason to talk as they head into their quarterfinal match against Sweden.

  1. Denmark

Featuring Portland Thorns striker Nadia Nadim, Denmark made a strong showing in the group stage. Their only loss came at the hands of the Netherlands, which was also the only goal they allowed. That defensive showing was strong, but with only two goals scored in three matches, they’ll need to find more attacking power if they expect to win against Germany.

  1. Belgium

Belgium has been an up-and-down team leading up to the tournament, and the same remained true in the group stage. They beat Norway 2-0 and were competitive against the Netherlands, losing 1-2 after a 74th minute goal from Martens. This was a team that stayed tight in a pre-tournament friendly with France, but lost to Spain 0-7. The good performances are evidence of real quality, and there are definitely positives to take away from their tournament experience, but they’ll need to find more consistency moving forward.

  1. Norway

Widely considered to be title contenders, this was a disappointing showing for Norway. They lost all three matches, failing to score a single goal in the process. Considering their squad features Ada Hegerberg, the best scorer in Europe if not the world, Norway cannot help but be upset on their trip home. It could be a career defining moment for Martin Sjögren, who took over the team in December 2016.

Group B

 Standings:

  1. Germany
  2. Sweden
  3. Russia
  4. Italy

Breakdown:

  1. Germany

The defending champions won their group fairly comfortably, with two wins over Russia and Italy, and a scoreless draw against Sweden. But they’ll need to show something more if they hope to come home with their seventh-straight title. Of their four goals scored in the group stage, three came off of penalties. That’s concerning for a team historically known for great goal-scoring. Germany haven’t lost a knockout game in this competition since 1993. Could this be the year that changes?

  1. Sweden

Sweden will be going to the quarterfinals, but are probably disappointed to have finished in second. They started the tournament off strong, earning a tight draw with Germany, the team they lost to in the Olympic Final. Overall, they scored four goals in three matches, which will be pleasing for a team that have often struggled to find the net. But allowing Italy to score three goals in that final group stage match is bound to sting—they’ll have to keep their usual sharp defense against a Dutch team that has scored in each of their matches.

  1. Russia

Russia and Italy will both pleased to have kept up with two of the top teams in the world. In the end, they finished just one point behind Sweden. Russia’s win came in their match against Italy. In their other two games, they failed to score while allowing four goals. There weren’t a lot of bright spots in those games, but they should still be happy to have stayed competitive with the best in the world.

  1. Italy

After their first match against Russia, it looked like Italy might be one of the worst teams in the tournament. But it’s unfortunate that they started off their tournament on the wrong foot because after that defeat they looked a very different team–staying competitive with Germany and ultimately beating Sweden 3-2 in their final match. Had it not been for a red card against Germany and a weak match against Russia, we could be telling a different story. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Italy’s day.

Group C

 Standings:

  1. Austria
  2. France
  3. Switzerland
  4. Iceland

Breakdown:

  1. Austria

This is Austria’s first Euro tournament and I don’t think anyone expected them to finish at the top of their group. But they have put on an impressive performance, and the momentum that they have gained from winning this group is likely to give them a boost in the next stage of the competition. They finished with seven points, earning wins over Switzerland and Iceland and drawing against France. They are the first Austrian team, male or female, to win a game at the Euros. Now it’s just a question of how far they can go.

  1. France

France lives to see another day thanks to a late equalizer against Switzerland from Camile Abily. But they put themselves in significant danger and were a mere twenty minutes from missing out on the next stage. For a team who entered the tournament as a favorite, that will be massively disappointing.  In the end, thanks to that goal, they finished with five points, consisting of a victory over Iceland and draws against Switzerland and Austria. They scored only three goals and looked sloppy defensively, two things that could spell serious danger with England waiting on their horizon.  If they can right the ship, they still have a chance to take home the title, but it won’t be an easy road ahead.

  1. Switzerland

I think many—including the Swiss team—expected them to move out of the group stage. Ultimately, they finished just one point behind France thanks to a loss in their opening game against Austria. Ramona Bachmann was named Player of the Match in their game against France, but it wasn’t quite enough. After some solid performances, Switzerland will be sad to leave this tournament early.

  1. Iceland

Iceland looked like a bit of a dark horse going into the tournament–a team on the upswing, who may have been hoping to mirror their male counterparts. Unfortunately for them, it wasn’t to be. They failed to win or draw a single game in their group and only scored one goal in three matches. Their squad features many well-known players, including Dagny Brynjarsdottir of the Portland Thorns, who will be returning to the NWSL sooner than she had hoped.

Group D

Standings:

  1. England
  2. Spain
  3. Scotland
  4. Portugal

Breakdown:

  1. England

England are probably the team with the most momentum in the tournament right now. They’ve been on the upswing ever since their trip to the semi-finals in the 2015 Women’s World Cup.  They finished with three wins in three matches, winning Group D without much difficulty. Jodie Taylor currently leads the tournament in scoring with four goals—including a hat trick in the team’s opener against Scotland. But the whole team has contributed to their success, and to their lead in tournament scoring, with six other goals across the three games to give them an impressive goal differential within their group. Now, they go on to face France in the quarterfinals.

  1. Spain

Spain is one of the more inconsistent teams in the tournament, and the last day of matches proved that. The team just narrowly made it to the next round, tying Portugal and Scotland on points, and only advancing on tiebreakers. That’s a surprising result after their strong start to the tournament–with a win over Portugal and a tough loss against England.  Now, they will go on to face Austria in the Quarterfinals—a team that has a ton of motivation and momentum after out-playing France to win Group C.

  1. Scotland

Considering they opened their tournament with a 0-6 loss to England, Scotland had a pretty good group stage. They lost their second match against Portugal 2-1, but won their final match against Spain 1-0 and were only one goal away from qualifying for the next stage. And all that without their star player, Kim Little, who is out with a ruptured ligament. They will be sad to go home, but happy that they kept the competition tight.

  1. Portugal

Similar to Scotland, the situation didn’t look too good for Portugal after their 0-2 loss to Spain. They were completely dominated in that initial match, but came back to win their second game against Scotland and probably posed the largest threat to England in their group. Unfortunately for them, England held strong and denied Portugal the goal that would have lifted them to that second place slot. Like Scotland, they will be upset to go home, but they should be proud of their performance and the growth that their federation has shown.

Around the World of WoSo: Farewell to HAO

Posted on by RJ Allen

HAO Says Goodbye to the USWNT:

It was a bittersweet week for fans of the U.S. Women’s National team as midfielder Heather O’Reilly officially retired. While it is sad that she will be gone as a member of USWNT, the good news is that we get to remember all the amazing things she accomplished over her 15-year career at the National level. The other good news is that she is only retiring from International soccer but will continue to play for her NWSL club team, FC Kansas City. Simply known as HAO to her many fans, O’Reilly had a historic career–231 caps, 47 goals, 55 assists. These came along the way as she won the U-19 World Cup in 2002, three Olympic Gold medals (’04, ’08, and ’12), and most recently became a World Cup Champion in 2015. HAO also holds the record for most games played consecutively at 74. She was a crucial part of creating a new team image during the transition from the 99ers, even getting to wear the number nine that was passed down from Mia Hamm herself all those years ago. I’d be lying if I said seeing Mia on the field to honor HAO didn’t make me emotional, because it did.

In her last game in a U.S. jersey against Thailand last week, HAO scored one last goal and grabbed an assist to lead the gals to a 9-0 victory. It was certainly an emotional night for all; teammates, coaches, fans and any soccer fan who knew how special she was to the sport over the years. I think it’s safe to say she will be remembered for her iconic game face and record setting beep test numbers. She was the very definition of determination; every practice, every game, no matter if she was starting or on the bench, Heather O’Reilly gave it her all. Like many fans, I am forever grateful for her work and her dedication to make this team great for so long.

International Break for EURO 2017 Qualifying:

This past week, several NWSL players were off for their respective countries for European Qualifying. Countries that have made it and the NWSL players involved:

England- Rachel Daly (Houston Dash),

France- Amandine Henry (Portland Thorns FC)

Iceland- Dagny Brynjarsdottir (Portland Thorns FC),

Scotland- Kim Little & Rachel Corsie (Seattle Reign FC).

Other countries who have qualified are Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. 

Hoyas Continue to Impress:

Last week, Georgetown upset the number three team in the nation (Virginia); this week they managed one better. The Hoyas needed a double overtime goal (102nd minute) from Grace Damaska to best West Virginia, who are ranked number one. Another impressive outing, considering the Hoyas are ranked 16th, and will surely crack the top 10 when the latest rankings are released. With the win, they snapped a two-year streak of 30 games won at home by WVU. With huge wins like this on their resume, Georgetown is surely grabbing everyone’s attention. Up next, the Hoyas will host Providence on Sunday while WVU travel to Richmond on Friday.

FSU has a pair of Aces:

Florida State has two players who are playing very well and have grabbed my attention: Megan Connolly (M) and Deyna Castellanos (F). The two have combined for seven goals and two assist in eight games so far. Connolly had a breakout season last year and now as a sophomore, she is aiming to do even more damage. The 19 year-old Irish international is leading the Seminoles in shots with 24, one of which was a game winner against Middle Tennessee earlier this season. The other notable standout is 17 year-old Castellanos, who hails from Venezuela and is only a freshman. She already has three game winners in her catalog; against Texas A & M, UConn, and added another versus Miami on Sunday. Castellanos is second on the team in shots, with 23. The Seminoles have started the season strong with seven wins and one loss. Their next two opponents are Wake Forest and number three ranked Virginia after that. This team is worth keeping an eye on to see what they can do against other top ten teams. With Connolly and Castellanos engineering the offense for FSU, I think they could go very far into the College Cup.

USWNT Friendly with the Netherlands:

Sunday night proved to be a very competitive match between the United States and the Netherlands. Not that I wasn’t expecting one, but the Dutch really impressed me with how they executed their game plan. They started out fast and the Americans were exposed in the first two minutes when forward Shanice Van De Sanden pounced on a loose ball to give the Netherlands the lead. For most of the Dutch found ways to stretch our defense, which was interesting in itself considering we had three centerbacks on the backline.  Fielding Whitney Engen, Julie Johnston and Becky Sauerbrunn, the U.S. struggled to find a rhythm in the first half hour. Meghan Klingenberg was the only true outside back starting the game and she had a sub-par game to say the least. She got beat more than enough to count and for me was the worst player on the field in the first half. With ten minutes until halftime, the United States finally got on the board. Tobin Heath broke free on the right side and found Carli Lloyd alone, who tucked inside the eighteen to blast it top shelf for the equalizer.

 The second half was a little bit more organized than the first for the United States, but still the Dutch continued to win battles in the air and work through Van De Sanden and Danielle Van De Donk. In goal for the U.S. was Alyssa Naeher and in her 14th appearance, she was tested plenty. As the game went on, Naeher seemed to get settled in and that showed as the Dutch couldn’t get anything else past her. After an own goal in the 50th minute by the Netherlands, the United States tightened up on defense and brought on subs to push the match up a notch. Two of those included Crystal Dunn and Megan Rapinoe. On several occasions, Dunn blew past multiple defenders but couldn’t control in the final third to get any dangerous shot off. The third and final goal came by way of a Rapinoe cross that was headed back towards the Netherlands goal by Lloyd and Allie Long made sure it found the back of the net.

Overall, I really enjoyed this game by both teams. While the U.S. certainly have areas to improve, for a friendly it was solid effort. As for the Netherlands, I am excited to see what they can do next. They really impressed me with not only the style they perform with, but the physical nature they imposed. I was familiar with a few players before the match and now I am exposed to a handful of quality players. Nothing but respect and newfound love for the Netherlands, they have a solid foundation to build on.

Arkansas Shocks Florida:

The Razorbacks had yet another tremendous outing at home against a top five opponent; the first you may recall was beating number two Duke almost a month ago. This time they beat SEC rival Florida for the first time in program history. The Gators were ranked fourth and went into the game with a three game win streak in which they scored 13 goals over that span. Arkansas was more than up to the challenge, scoring twice in a three minute span in the first half. Junior Jessi Hartzler dominated Florida’s defense to give Arkansas the lead and never looked back. It was a brilliant individual effort and as the game went on, the rest of the Razorbacks started to believe they could once again pull off an upset. Florida managed to get a goal back early in the second half but that wasn’t enough to fully recover. Even with a two hour lightening delay, the crowd of 1,155 stayed until the end. Florida drop to six wins and two losses. They look to recover against Auburn on Thursday in Gainesville. Arkansas climbs to nine wins and one loss; the best start in program history. They face off against Alabama in Fayetteville on Thursday.