The weight of the absentees and a first goal of Finland did not disband Jorge Vilda’s team, able to recover and add their first victory
Spain’s first bout at the Women’s European Championship was a test of maturity. There were a few blows in the days leading up to the tournament: first the injury of Jennifer Hermoso, the starting striker, then that of the young and promising Salma Paralluelo and to conclude, the farewell to the tournament and much of the next season of the best player in the world, Alexia Putellas. It’s natural that so many setbacks have dented the minds of a team that, to make matters worse, conceded a goal as soon as the game started against their group’s a priori most affordable foe, Finland.
They looked rough, but that’s where the spirit of victory emerged from a group of footballers who traveled to England to aspire to everything and take Spanish women’s football to another level. The strength of the group was reflected in Mapi León’s left-footed attack – a boon for Spain – and the headers from Irene Paredes, Aitana Bonmatí and Lucía García. Their goals gave them peace of mind and confidence to start the European Championship in the right way and to dream of great performances in the tournament.
The beginning of Spain was a symptom of his intentions. Aitana, all quality, filtered a good ball for Esther’s run-up, who arrived a second later than the Finnish goalkeeper. However, this promising start was soon cut short, a long pass from Westerlund was interpreted perfectly by Sällstrom, the Spanish defense didn’t close well and the attacker rose up against Sandra Paños, who put in the gauntlet but not enough to prevent the goal.
Paños, Ona Batlle, Paredes, Mapi León, Leila (Sheila García, min. 61), Patri Guijarro, Aitana (Athenea, min. 79), Irene Guerrero (Aleixandri, min. 61), Lucía García (Claudia Pina, min. 86), Esther (Cardona, min. 79) and Mariona.
Korpela, Hyyrynen (Kuikka, min. 67), Westerlund, Pikkujämsä, Koivisto, Engman (Sainio, min. 46), Alanen, Summanen (Ahtinen, min. 85), Öling (Rantanen, min. 87), Sällström and Franssi ( Danielsson, minute 85).
The setback didn’t change the pace of Jorge Vilda’s team in their attempt to take the rival out of possession. Faced with the Nordic power in space, Spain touched the edge of the Finnish territory. He was close to tying the score after a cross from Mapi León’s far post, impeccable in hitting. Lucía combed her head, but found no partner to put the icing on the cake. Success was lacking in the final pass against the opponent’s orderly and crowded retreat.
Esther, always feisty, was the first to test Korpela’s reflexes, who breathed a sigh of relief again after a long shot from Leila, who licked the bar. La Roja picked up the pace and earned more than enough earnings for the draw. The script was already that of Finland’s doorstep bullying and knockout, so much so that Mariona eventually found her way to the net, although the action was preceded by a ball that Esther saved from past the baseline. A draw was sung which arrived shortly afterwards. From a fixed game moment, in the umpteenth Spanish corner, Irene Paredes headed in unstoppably. Korpela stayed in the middle of the start and the captain tempered the nerves of a bad luck team until that moment.
The balm of the match hit the domain of Spain. Only the Finnish team encountered in another, stopped forcefully by Mapi León, already firmly established as leader of the Spanish defense. Vilda’s team never broke down despite the setback and found the reward for his patience with a beautiful cross from Mapi León, another left-handed shot from the school that did Aitana right by putting her on the head in the same squad and to catch up to La Roja before the break.
Ona Batlle was able to put the victory on track after the break; Korpela denied it. Esther too, but she shot high after a good play on the board. Vilda tugged at the couch to refresh her legs and Laia Aleixandri, one of the chosen ones, had her head too. Too much forgiveness they put an end to between Mapi León and his blessed left leg, another national nightmare in Finland, and Lucía García’s header. The icing on the cake came with a penalty converted by Mariona and the devotion to duty achieved. Morale injection for a team on the green recovering from so many injuries that left the injured Alexia smiling in the stands. They are waiting for Germany and Denmark to keep dreaming.
Source: La Verdad
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