Things never go according to plan; that was clear after England thrash Scotland 6-0, but they still see their dreams of featuring at the Paris Olympics extinguished.
Great Britain had settled on the England Lionesses as the designated team that would attempt to qualify for the Olympics. In their clash with Scotland, the England women had to thrash Scotland with a goal margin of 3 or more goals than the goals the Dutch would have scored if they, in the other match of Group A1, were to also beat Belgium.
Knowing goals would be needed in plenty. England went into that game “hungry.” By halftime, they had already scored four past Scotland (Alex Greenwood, Lauren James (2), and Arsenal’s Beth Mead scored). It was almost certain that if they could add to these goals, they would easily qualify for the Nation’s League knockouts. After which, all they had to do was reach the finals and thus qualify for the Olympics. In the second half, Frank Kirby and Lucy Bronze added two goals for England to win 6-0. It was a fantastic might.
But, even with the six goals the England Lionesses scored, the Great Britain women’s football team won’t be going to the Olympics. They won’t because the Dutch also emphatically beat the Belgian women 4-0. Arsenal’s Pelova assisted Lineth Beerensteyn to break the deadlock in the 34th minute. The game went to halftime 1-0. By halftime, England were qualifying if the two games ended as they were at halftime (Scotland 0:4 England, Netherlands 1:0 Belgium). However, the Dutch were inspired in the second half; Beerensteyn got her second, and then late on, Egurolla Damaris scored a brace for the Dutch to win 4-0. The Dutch now head to the knockouts, where they can fight for a chance to go to the Olympics.
In these two clashes, Gunners Beth Mead and Alessia Russo featured for England, and Victoria Pelova and Vivianne Miedema featured for the Netherlands. It is great to see the Gunner women not only shine at the club level but also at the international level. It’s just a shame that we won’t see Mead and Russo at the Olympics….
Michelle Maxwell
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