Opening Defeat to France in Euro 2025
England’s 2-1 defeat by France in their opening game of the Euro 2025 tournament, a grey beginning to a glittering title defence, is the subject of this briefing. The analysis uses extracts from an interview with former England forward Sue Smith to explain the dynamics of the game and the possible consequences.
Key Themes and Insights:
- France’s Dominance and England’s Struggles:
Overall performance: England looked more like the intense side in the first 5-10 minutes, but after that, France took over and “bossed it for large periods” – which Smith feels justifies France’s win in the end.
Midfield: Midfield control it was. France just bossed the midfield and I don’t just mean Kosawi’s ‘cabarets’ into the box either!
Wide Play and Fullback Overlaps: England found it difficult to track France’s wide players (Cascarino/Baltimore) and the offensive security provided by the French Fullbacks moving up to join the attacks.
Strength in Defence & Attacking Threat: France showed that they can defend well and though they conceded the first shot in targets England had throughout much of the match, they did not let anything in for a long period (until Kira Walsh netted). They were also “good going forward.”
One-on-one: Writing in the Guardian Smith observed that “France probably won them overall” when analysing one-on-one battles everywhere on the field.
- England’s Fitness Worries and Players Analysis:
Fitness Levels: “She says, “A few too many players. …weren’t at their peak fitness levels,” with some players “entering the tournament not having played a lot of football.
Lauren James’s Performance and Management: Lauren James started but “started to tire as the game wore on.” Smith insisted though: “If Lauren James is fit and available you start her.”I think what we’re talking about here is her quality and ability to glide past players and get herself into really good positions.” But her 60 minutes will be a good thing and The Netherlands manager Sarina Wiegman would have been “looking after her and making sure that she is going to be fit and available for the rest of the tournament.”
Small Impact: Some “decent performances” notwithstanding, England lacked the impact as a whole, and went for a long spell without a shot on target.
- The Defending Champions Are Feeling the Pressure:
From a First-Timer’s Delight to Historic Defeat: England’s defeat labels them as “the first major defending champion rather than lose their opening match.”
Pressure, Amplified: This loss “really increases the pressure” for their remaining group stage games.
Pressure is Nothing New: “They are used to that pressure now,” said Smith, with Wiegman having previously claimed there was “huge pressure on them,” from the high expectations of the nation.
Squad experience: New faces have joined post-Euro 2022, but the squad still “boasts a lot of experience” and some of those players are expected to help out new ones. - Looking Ahead: The Netherlands Challenge:
Next Crucial Match: The focus now is entirely on the game against Netherlands which is expected to be ‘hard’.”
Tough Opponent: The Netherlands are “another top side” according to Smith, who points to their display against Wales as evidence.
What Wiegman Says: Sarina Wiegman’s intimate understanding of the Dutch squad (she won the Euros with them before) “makes it “a really interesting sort of matchup between those two sides.”
So in a nutshell, the first loss for England shows them where they need to get better: in the challenge for midfield control and fitness. It will rank as one of the team’s most disappointing moments, but they are a team that is used to playing under pressure – and they will need every drop of experience in the ranks to help them get up for what is now a must-win game against the Netherlands.