She Kicks Magazine
·6 April 2024
She Kicks Magazine
·6 April 2024
Valentina Giacinti of Italy celebrates with a teammate after scoring the first goal. (Photo by Maurizio Lagana/Getty Images)
Match day 1 in UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 Qualifying saw the Netherlands beaten by Italy, Germany overturn a two-goal deficit in Austria and Spain sink Belgium 7-0.
League A
Group 1 – Italy 2-0 Netherlands, Norway 4-0 Finland, Switzerland 3-1 Türkiye Group 2 – Czechia 1-3 Denmark, Belgium 0-7 Spain Group 3 – England 1-1 Sweden, France 1-0 Republic of Ireland Group 4 – Iceland 3-0 Poland, Austria 2-3 Germany
Goals from Valentina Giacinti and Agnese Bonfantini gave Italy a great start to the campaign, with a 2-0 defeat of the Netherlands.
Norway put four past Finland with one apiece for Celin Bizet Ildhusøy, Sophie Roma Haug, Thea Bjelde and Elisabeth Terland.
Viola Calligaris scored twice as Switzerland saw off Türkiye 3-1.
Ingrid Engan (7 Norway) celebrates with opening scorer Celin Bizet Ildhusoy. (Ane Frosaker / SPP)
Spain were three up in half an hour away to Belgium, Salma Paralluelo netting either side of Jenni Hermoso goal. Two minutes into the second half, Paralluelo completed her hat-trick, Esther Gonzalez then scoring twice and Sheila Garcia once.
Denmark were pegged back by hosts Czechia but struck twice in the last quarter of the game for a 3-1 win.
Spain’s forward #07 Salma Paralluelo scores her team’s second goal. (Photo by JOHN THYS/AFP via Getty Images)
Fridolina Rolfo scored to earn Sweden a draw with England at Wembley, the Lionesses having scored first through Alessia Russo.
Marie-Antoinette Katoto scored just six minutes in for France in a narrow victory over Republic of Ireland.
Austria shocked Germany with an early Eileen Campbell brace, Klara Buhl replying with a goal either side of the interval. Giulia Gwinn’s penalty just after the hour mark proved to be a winner for Germany.
Iceland scored twice in two minutes close to half time on the way to a 3-0 victory over Poland,
Austrian players celebrate a goal against Germany, before letting slip a 2-0 lead. (Tom Seiss / SPP)
League B
Group 1 – Hungary 1-1 Azerbaijan Group 2 – Slovakia 2-0 Israel, Serbia 0-0 Scotland Group 3 – Northern Ireland 0-0 Malta, Portugal 3-0 Bosnia & Herzegovina Group 4 – Wales 4-0 Croatia, Ukraine 2-0 Kosovo
Azerbaijan took a point from a 1-1 tie in Hungary, Slovakia saw off Israel with a quick first-half double.
Malta pressure Northern Ireland during 0-0 draw. (Photo: Ephy McConnell)
It ended goalless for Scotland in Serbia and Northern Ireland at home to Malta, while Portugal beat Bosnia & Herzegovina 3-0 with goals from Carole Costa, Diana Silva and an own-goal.
Jess Fishlock set up a 4-0 win for Wales over Croatia with early goals in either half, Ukraine were 2-0 winners over Kosovo when scoring twice in a six-minute spell during the first half.
Jessica Fishlock of Wales gets one past the Croatia goalkeeper. (Jayde Chamberlain/SPP)
League C
Group 1 – Cyprus 0-3 Belarus, Georgia 2-2 Lithuania Group 2 – Latvia 3-4 North Macedonia, Slovenia 2-0 Moldova Group 3 – Montenegro 6-1 Andorra, Greece 1-0 Faroe Islands Group 4 – Armenia 0-5 Romania, Kazakhstan 0-1 Bulgaria Group 5 – Luxembourg 2-1 Albania
Nadejda Colesnicenco of Moldova (CL) in action against Mirjam Kastelec of Slovenia (CR). (Natasa Kupljenik / SPP)
Luxembourg fought back to beat Albania 2-1 with a late Amy Thompson decider, Lithuania came from two down to draw 2-2 in Georgia, two own-goals helped North Macedonia win a seven-goal thriller in Latvia.
Greece edged Faroe Islands with Veatriki Sarri’s 55th-minute penalty, Ivana Naydenova missed a penalty for Bulgaria in Kazakhstan but Simona Petkova netted for them from a free kick minutes later.