So, England held on to their trophy, even if they weren’t the most careful of owners, blithely resting the silverware on the roof of cars that they then drove off in, knocking into it when placed perilously on an open shelf, leaving it unguarded so that other Europeans could have it away with them. Some might say carelessness, they might say they needed to generate a spark.
The curious feeling at conceding the goals to Sweden particularly, suggested that going out before the final went against everything that seemed pre-destined. If England had ultimately paid for their defensive incoherence, the pre-destined thing would have been kept in its box, and assumptions made about team and manager reaching the end of the line. Still, Sarina Wiegman’s side appeared too mighty, despite the mighty flaws, to be cut so soon. Lauren Hemp hit the bar at one down to the Swedes to suggest there was more to be added to the ten goals in the previous two group games against Netherlands and Wales and, at half-time, Jill Scott mentioned that thing you learn in the first ten years of your footballing life about 2-0 up being a dangerous scoreline. Chloe Kelly, with her redemption arc and wedding day shinpads, channelled her inner John Barnes at Mexico ‘86 to torment the Swedes down the left, and provide the start of the rescue act with a cross headed in by Lucy Bronze at the far post. And on that fitting note, let’s get some other headers up.
Lucy Bronze
I referenced her ‘ragged’ tournament when writing after the Italy game, and though she is generally prone to a rush of blood, such as the surge into a Spanish trapdoor at the World Cup Final two years ago that led to the only goal of the game, she is better known for her elegant raids down the flank. Here in Sweden there was a distinct air of dishevelment to her, perhaps best exhibited by the reems of self-strapping she administered against the Swedes.
“Obviously she doesn’t need blood supply to that thigh!” Rachel Brown-Finnis wryly observed.
We now know that Bronze played through the pain of a broken tibia during the tournament. I take back my words. Perhaps the excess bandage was fitting against the Swedes, a nod to the blood-stained Terry Butcher, playing (foolishly) on with a head wound to inspire England’s 0-0 draw them that secured their place at Italia ‘90. Lioness goalkeeper Hannah Hampton paid her own tribute, playing on after a clash with a Swedish player that required tampon-insertion up the nostril.
Bronze followed up her deficit-halving header by smashing in a rare successful penalty in this tournament during the shootout, leading England to the brink of the semi-Final. Brown-Finnis compared her old-school persona to that of Stuart Pearce, another Three Lion from the eighties. Ironically, Butcher’s rallying call to his team mates before games was “caged tigers!” according to Gary Lineker.
Bronze kicking out at an advertising hoarding, like Faustino Asprilla (or was that a corner flag? Or Keith Curle?) in defiance following that goal against Sweden could have been an even more iconic moment had the sponsors displayed round the pitch not been so pleasingly inoffensive in Switzerland. While giving a credit card compny a good bashing might have been unwittingly cathartic, it was for once a shame that Visit Qatar or Bet360 were not in place for Lucy to put her foot through. Lucy is just the woman for these stick-it-to-the-establishment moments, such as the World Cup Final ceremony when she didn’t profer her hand for that snake, Gianni Infantino, to shake before putting the medal round her neck at the one game of the tournament he bothered to turn up for. Would he have appeared up for any more games had this been a FIFA women’s tournament in his own country? He did once appeal for the women players to kick down FIFA’s doors, perhaps Lucy could give that a go, mate.
Talking of advertising hoardings
Yes really, that’s a sub-heading. The first time I brought a friend to Highbury for a match (well, Dad took us) he spent a fair whack of the time obsessing over the identity of the unfamiliar companies boxed around the pitch instead of, as I’d banked on, fawning all over the on-pitch beauty around him instead, which was quite frustrating when I was trying to concentrate on the anxiety of watching Arsenal try and beat Middlesbrough on a November afternoon of their eventual 88-89 title-winning season. So, call me a hypocrite for noticing the lack of corporate or nation-state morally bankrupt entities on view at this Euros. The innocence of the blossoming game was emblematic in the absence of Visit Qatar/Saudi/Gilead or BetYourLifeSavings.com (Take time to Think). In their place, there was Playstation5, Wisenhof (adventure park/hotel/poultry brand) Hublot (luxury Swiss watches), GRIFOLS, COMMITTED TO SCIENCE, Just Eat and ClicktopayVisa. It wasn’t all perfect though, and while it is just in this family that we have beef with Just Eat as they neither delivered or refunded us a takeaway a few years ago (not used them since), the adverts for Euronics, Amazon (online shopping) and Miele (washing machines and dryers) were perhaps not ideal in a female empowerment arena.
One of the things I got wrong
I said that Spain wouldn’t let England off the hook like Sweden and Italy had, but the missed chances by Paralleulo and Bonmarti kicked that theory into touch. Two years ago, I wondered if Spain’s intricate, technical football would falter under the weight of England’s superior finishing, but this time (more than any other time) Spain’s profligacy became a problem. England do seem to have the greater mix of potential goalscorers, not just Russo (only two this tournament, albeit one of them vital and another bizarrely disallowed) or Hemp (1), but James (2), Toone (2), Stanway (2) and other contributions from Beth Mead and Aggie Beever-Jones from the bench and of course Bronze.
That said…
The last three Women’s World Cups, the past three men’s World Cups, the past four men’s European Championships, this summer’s Greed is Good Cup and now the current winners of this year’s women’s Euros have all been won by the team who played the first semi-final, 24 hours before their opponents. It’s a big enough sample size to warrant consideration when analysing the integrity of competition, although not as compelling as the tv rights money.
Arsenal v Barcelona in May
I didn’t think Arsenal had any chance of beating Barcelona in the Champions League Final a few months ago, not when Arsenal can never find a way past perennial WSL champs Chelsea who lost 8-2 to the Spanish team on aggregate in the semi-final. But one of the great things about football that hasn’t been stamped on yet is the lack of logic. You learn this as a kid in junior football, when losing to a team who’d been thrashed the week before by a team you’d yourself thumped. Despite all the data and killjoy video tech, players still have off days, luck turns up in unexpected places, the fixture scheduling goes your way (see above) and shocks happen. Arsenal of England beating Barcelona of Espana provided the template - or example - that England could beat Spain, evidently together with fixture scheduling, which didn’t go for England at the World Cup but did here. Bonmarti, Spain’s best player, playing after only being cleared of meningitis a few days before the Euros, might have helped too.
So many variables keeps the game on top of it’s imprisoners!
Chloe Kelly
Perhaps the iconic player from the uber-resurgence of the women’s game in this country. The shirt twirling in the air after her winning goal in Euro 22; the World Cup quarter-final penalty shoot-out winner against Nigeria that was faster than any shot in the Premier League or WSL recorded that season; the game-changing appearance against Sweden in this quarter-final; the botched-but-recovered pen against Italy in the semi; the curling cross for Russo’s wonderful headed equaliser in the Final; the penalty-shoot-out winner to crown England champions again. Last winter, Kelly was out of favour at Manchester City and told she couldn’t leave (definitely not like an Abu Dhabi-owned enterprise to suppress a woman’s freedom), now a few months on she is a Champions League winner with Arsenal and European champion again with England.
Ann-Katrin Berger
Oh, the life of a goalie! The incredible, gravity-defying save from Berger, in helping 10-woman (always wanted to say that) Germany stave off France in the quarter Final and then making the winning save in the shootout was followed by an extra-time defeat by Spain when Bonmarti exposed her at the near post. The Germany-France fixture is poignant here. In the semi-Final at Mexico ‘86 between those two nations (albeit with ‘West’ added to Germany) French keeper Joel Bats let a first half Andreas Brehme free kick squirm under his body, which proved to be the only goal until right at the end when Rudi Voeller broke through to chip the ball over him and slot in. This had been preceded by Bats’ hero hour in the quarter final against Brazil, when he’d saved Zico’s penalty in normal time and then one from Socrates in a shoot-out.
Berger’s save against France may be the women’s game’s Gordon Banks moment against Pele and Brazil in 1970 - also in Mexico - but even Banks didn’t get much fortune after that game, going down with food poisoning before the West Germany quarter-final, where stand-in Peter Bonetti was blamed for all three goals as England saw their two-goal lead dismantled.
Then there’s Berger’s compatriot and fellow keeper, Oliver Khan, a rare shining light among his team mates at the 2002 World Cup in Japan and Korea, captaining them all the way to the Final (“they should all be put in a bag and hit with a stick apart from Khan” said former World Cup winning captain and manager Frank Beckenbaur, who’d started the comeback against England in ‘70) and then spilling the ball at the feet of Brazil’s Ronaldo for the first of his two goals to lift the trophy.
I could also talk about David Seaman’s three penalty saves in the 1994 European Cup Winners Cup at Sampdoria and then what happened in the Final, but that wasn’t an international match so I won’t go into it.
Sweet Caroline
People think they want it, need it, expect it, but that’s how they want you to think. Neil Diamond’s betting firm anthem is Prince Ludwig dressed as Nursie dressed as a cow. Your noise or their noise? You must shoos between them.
Swiss hosts
From afar, Switzerland seemed like good hosts, their second major tournament, this time without the help of Austria as in 2008 for the men’s Euros, where Spain beat Germany 1-0 in the Final (the score in the semi final here). The fan walks looked amazing, a memorable feature of the last few weeks. The most famous Swiss person is probably that egomaniac from the world federation, but the unblemished competition made a heartening comparison to his reign of terror.
A Good VAR These Days is Hard To Find
I couldn’t possibly sign off without a mention for the dishonourable VAR, the system they said that would end all moaning about injustice, so let’s discuss it. The decision to award Alessia Russo offside against France despite her not standing beyond the nearest defender wiped out the 1-0 lead and resulted (in theory, as there was a long way to go) in England finishing behind the French and getting the ‘easier side of the draw’, including that all-important first scheduled semi-final. VAR continues to have this kind of crackpot, slapstick impact, but like with the television rights and Sweet Caroline, the pleas to be gentle with this game of mine go unheard.
And finally…
Well done England, well done Switzerland, well done to everyone who watched. It’s Brazil in 2027 for the World Cup, for anyone who can still stomach FIFA. It’s worth forgetting about them for the women’s game, especially as Infantino doesn’t respect it. Late night watching is always fun, but for now let the warm glow of Switzerland ‘25 keep you going in this dark world we live in. Well, let it if you want it to, I’m not forcing it on you like a stadium DJ.
No comments:
Post a Comment