England's Euro 2025 campaign got off to a rocky start with a 2-1 defeat against France in Zurich. The Lionesses, the defending champions, found themselves trailing after Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Sandy Baltimore scored two quick goals for France in the first half. Keira Walsh's late goal provided a glimmer of hope, but it ultimately wasn't enough to salvage a draw.
Following the match, England's head coach Sarina Wiegman didn't hold back in her assessment, stating that her team "caused our own problems". She expressed disappointment with the result and pointed to specific areas where England fell short. Wiegman felt that after a good start, England began playing short passes too often, which played into France's pressing strategy. She noted that England needed to get in behind the French defense and skip players, but instead, they were too sloppy in possession.
Captain Leah Williamson echoed Wiegman's sentiments, saying the team struggled to deal with France on the counter-attack. Williamson highlighted the high cost of losing possession cheaply, leading to repeated emergency defending situations against a quality opponent. Wiegman emphasized the need for improvement and urged her team to avoid similar mistakes in their upcoming matches if they want to get their Euros campaign back on track.
Alessia Russo's early goal being disallowed due to a marginal offside call against Beth Mead further complicated matters for England. This setback forced the Lionesses to regroup, but they struggled to find their rhythm against a strong French side. Despite late substitutions injecting some life into the team, England only managed two shots on target throughout the entire match.
Wiegman acknowledged France's strength but emphasized that England contributed to their own downfall. She pointed out that when England opted for short passes during build-up play, it played directly into France's game plan. She felt England needed to be more decisive in skipping players and maintaining tighter control of the ball. Wiegman believes that failing to execute these aspects correctly against a top team like France can be detrimental.
The defeat marks Wiegman's first major tournament group-stage loss, a notable setback considering her previous success in winning the Euros with the Netherlands in 2017 and leading England to victory three years ago.
Looking ahead, England faces a must-win game against the Netherlands, adding further pressure to their Euro 2025 campaign. Wiegman has called on her players to "step up" and rectify their mistakes from the France match when they return to Stadion Letzigrund. The Lionesses need to address their tactical indiscipline and sloppiness in possession to secure a positive result and keep their hopes of defending their European crown alive.
