France made history on Sunday night as they became the first side to score five first-half goals as they thrashed Italy 5-1 in their Group D opener at the New York Stadium in Rotherham.
Striker Grace Geyoro grabbed a hat-trick as Les Bleues made a bold statement in their quest for European glory, with Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Delphine Cascarino scoring the other goals. France were heading into the tournament as many peoples’ favourites this summer and after a demolishing opening game to get the ball rolling, the other favourites, including hosts England, the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Denmark, will all be wary of the attacking threat they possess.
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Elsewhere, Belgium and Iceland contested a 1-1 draw at the Manchester City Academy Stadium. Iceland’s Berglind Bjorg Thordvaldsdottir opened the scoring minutes into the second half with a neat header, having failed to convert from the penalty spot earlier in the match. It seemed as though she had set her side up for their second ever victory in the European Championships but it was later cancelled out as Reading’s Justine Vanhaevermaet scored from the spot after Elena Dhont was brought down.
As we look ahead to day six of Euro 2022, the Lionesses are back in action for their second Group A clash of the tournament and they will be looking to build on the momentum gained from their 1-0 victory over Austria at Old Trafford. They face a Norway side who blew away Northern Ireland in their opener and they will pose a serious attacking threat to England’s defence. The Amex Stadium in Brighton plays host to this contest and England boss Sarina Wiegman may consider a few personnel changes to the side from Wednesday night’s game.
The other game taking place on Monday is the other Group A clash that sees Austria face Northern Ireland at St Mary’s Stadium in Southampton. Northern Ireland were bested by Norway last time out, but after Julie Nelson scored the nation’s first ever goal in European competition, this could spur them on to be a much tougher opponent in matchday two as their tournament hopes could very much depend on a positive result on the south coast.
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