England Women 1-2 France Women: Lionesses throw away lead to slip out of automatic qualification spots for Euro 2025

1 Jun 2024

The Lionesses of England lost their spot for automatic qualification in their Euro 2025 group as France managed to overcome a deficit and won the match with a score of 2-1 at St James' Park.

England Women - Figure 1 — Photo Sky Sports

Sarina Wiegman's team believed that they were going to take first place in Group A3 after Beth Mead scored the first goal for the home team at the 30-minute mark. Despite losing their goalkeeper Mary Earps to an injury in the first minute, the English team bounced back nicely.

France utilized their proficiency in corners to change the outcome of the game. Elisa De Almeida made an exceptional volley just before the half-time break, and Marie-Antoinette Katoto scored another goal as the Lionesses struggled to clear another set piece.

England's current standing is now trailing five points behind France, who holds the first position. They are set to play another game against the group leaders in Saint-Etienne on Tuesday. The Lionesses are now ranked third in the group, with Sweden taking the second position on goal difference. This followed their recent victory over the Republic of Ireland, with a score of 3-0.

Should England fail to secure one of the top two spots in their group, they can still make it to the next stage through the play-offs scheduled for the months of October and November.

France's Surprising Turnaround

The start for England was challenging due to the goalkeeper Earp's initial involvement in the game. In fact, Earp only had a single touch within the initial 30 seconds of the game, which resulted in her passing out the back and then crying out in pain while holding her hip. This unfortunate injury led to Earp being substituted out of the game after just seven minutes, and Hannah Hampton took her place on the field.

It negatively affected the lively ambience at St James' Park and although France had good possession, England improved their performance just before scoring their first goal.

Ella Toone failed to take advantage of an excellent opportunity to score when she kicked Lauren Hemp's cross away from the goal, while Alessia Russo hit the area very close to the goal when she received the ball from the left.

In due time, England's determination became evident when Toone passed the ball to Hemp on the left side, and the winger's kick landed favorably for Georgia Stanway. Despite being halted by France, Mead rallied to score from the rebound.

England Women - Figure 2 — Photo Sky Sports

Rather than striving for a second goal, England became careless with the ball. France offered some alerts as Maelle Lakrar was discovered unguarded in the area from a corner kick, but Hampton prevented her acrobatically. After being discovered in a dangerous cross in the England penalty box, Katoto missed her shot from inside the box.

In just a few moments, France managed to even the score, thanks to a corner that found De Almeida on the edge of the box. She made an incredible, spontaneous volley that sailed over Hampton into the back of the net.

At the half-time break, England were regretting their missed opportunities, despite Mead and Russo nearly scoring in the last few minutes of the first half.

The Lionesses showed even more carelessness as Delphine Cascarino and Sandie Toletti were able to get clear shots from the edge of the box, but unfortunately, they missed both of their attempts.

There was a comparable lack of coordination displayed in the winning moment of France's team, as Russo was unsuccessful in clearing the ball from a corner kick, providing France with an opportunity. Katoto managed to capture a pass and skillfully placed the ball into the far corner of the goal, which left the 42,000 supporters present at St James' Park awestruck.

In an effort to even out the score, Wiegman made some tactical changes by substituting in Fran Kirby and Chloe Kelly. The latter player had a prime opportunity to level the score but unfortunately missed the mark soon after coming on the field. Despite these efforts, England simply didn't have any other strategies left to turn the game around.

Wiegman Frustrated By Loss

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In an interview with ITV Sport, Sarina Wiegman, the manager of the England national football team, spoke about her team's performance and upcoming matches.

Completely annoying. I believe we performed rather decently, but we allowed two goals from set pieces, an area we must improve on. These types of games don't offer many opportunities. During the initial half, we had numerous chances and managed to score one.

England Women - Figure 3 — Photo Sky Sports

"After they successfully scored a goal, we became more active during the second half. However, we had difficulty producing opportunities, as the accuracy of our final passes needed improvement. There was one potential point-scoring opportunity that we almost achieved, but ultimately we were unsuccessful due to a poor execution."

We are aware that France has a proficiency in handling set pieces. Despite our readiness, they were able to score. It was unfortunate that they got the first goal in the first half. Lauren Hemp was subjected to relentless pressure.

The beginning of the game was unusual, as Mary sustained an injury which halted play for a five minute period. Unexpectedly, this incident disrupted our planned approach and we needed to quickly re-organize. I don't have any information regarding the specifics of Mary's injury as I haven't had a conversation with anyone about it yet.

"Undoubtedly, we shall bounce back from this setback, analyze our performance and prepare well for Tuesday's match. We still have plenty of opportunities to emerge victorious, and while it's disheartening, we must move forward. By tomorrow, it will be a thing of the past, presenting us with another favorable chance to compete and emerge triumphant once again."

"Must-Win Game Against France Next Week, Says Williamson"

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Leah Williamson, the captain of England, stated in an interview with ITV Sport:

I am very let down as we had the opportunity to win the game. The atmosphere was amazing and our supporters always stand by us, so it's unfortunate that we couldn't secure a victory for them too.

We did well during the game, but unfortunately, it wasn't enough to secure a victory. There were opportunities for us to win, but we were defeated by two set pieces. Although luck may have played a role, we need to improve our performance on the first and second contacts. However, we remain confident and look forward to the next game on Tuesday where we will strive to do better.

It is essential that we score a goal and do it fiercely. We cannot afford to lose this game and therefore, we must bring in our enthusiasm, maintain our defense, and exert pressure on our opponents.

The female football team of England will go on a trip to play against the female team of France in the Euro 2025 Qualifier for the League A, Group 3. This will take place at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard on Tuesday, June 4th, with the game starting at 8pm.