With attacking prowess, midfield mettle and an outstanding goalkeeper the Netherlands are an ascendant force after reaching final in only their second World CupWhen Vera Pauw returned to the Netherlands after the 2009 Women’s European Championship, she entered her office at the Royal Dutch Football Association expecting plaudits. The pioneering coach, a key force behind the establishment of the women’s Eredivisie, had just guided the national side to the semi-finals of their first major international tournament.Instead, in a nation long agnostic to the female game, she was met with silence. “Nobody in the association ever congratulated me,” Pauw recalled on Friday. Within six months the manager who laid the foundations for women’s football in the Netherlands had resigned, just as...
Netherlands got their tactics right and Americans struggled to impose themselves, yet once star of tournament scored there was only going to be one winnerIt became clear after 13 minutes that this was going to be a different kind of game for the USA. The Netherlands, it turned out, were different from any team they had faced at this World Cup. But the US had something no other side in tournament had: Megan Rapinoe, the biggest star of the World Cup, and the confidence she embodies.After steamrolling their way through the rest of the tournament and scoring within 12 minutes in every game, the mighty Americans had to wait an agonizing 61 minutes to score against a team that very...
The England coach should not have changed a winning formation that put key players out of positionI have incredible admiration for USA and the determination they possess as a unit of 23 players and staff to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Winning means everything to them. England came up against a better and more experienced team, and now need to think about how they can make a difference to get to the same level.The tournament has been hugely positive in terms of how we see the women’s game and there is no disgrace in losing to the holders and favourites in the semi-finals, but England were, in the end, tactically deficient and fell short. Related: England...
Steph Houghton’s missed spot kick ensured Phil Neville’s side were beaten 2-1 by USA in the Women’s World Cup semi-final on a night when they came agonisingly close to making historyEngland’s dizzying progress at this Women’s World Cup came to a painful – if familiar – end in the semi-finals last night as their captain Steph Houghton missed a late penalty as they were beaten 2-1 by the United States.It was an instant classic, although that will come as cold comfort to England’s players, who went out despite throwing everything at their opponents in a desperately exciting final 30 minutes. Related: Alex Morgan fires USA past England into Women’s World Cup final Related: England 1-2 USA: Women's World Cup 2019...
England dismantled Norway with a high-calibre display but it is too early to be getting carried away given the quality of semi-final opposition that awaitsWhat an exceptional performance England produced in their quarter-final victory over Norway. It might have come as a surprise to anyone who saw the last-16 games, in which the English beat Cameroon despite quite a sloppy defensive display while Norway were superb as a unit against Australia, with a string of outstanding individuals such as Caroline Graham Hansen, Guro Reiten and Isabell Herlovsen. England were incredible on Thursday, producing the best display I have seen from them in a long time to make Norway appear feeble.There has been incremental growth under Phil Neville. England won the...