ST. GALLEN, Switzerland: France produced a dominant display to thrash Wales 4-1 and go top of Group D at Euro 2025 on Wednesday, outclassing their opponents who scored their first goal at a major championship.
After England beat the Netherlands 4-0 earlier in the day, France went top of the group on six points, followed by the English and the Dutch on three points each.
Wales, who face England in their final group game on Sunday, have yet to register a point but still have a mathematical chance of going through to the knockouts. France face the Netherlands in their last group game.
Clara Mateo was at the center of much of France’s attacking play and lashed them into an early lead, controlling a flick-on from a corner on her chest and firing a volley into the net in the eighth minute.
The moment thousands of Wales fans had been waiting for came five minutes later when Ceri Holland broke down the left and though her first attempt to find Jess Fishlock was blocked, she managed to steer the ball to the 38-year-old, who poked home Wales’ maiden goal at the women’s European Championship finals.
That was as good as it got for Wales, who looked set to go into the break level only for Holland to chop down Mateo in the box and Kadidiatou Diani’s spot kick crept over the line after striking the foot of keeper Safia Middleton-Patel.
Middleton-Patel was at fault just after the break as she lost control of the ball in the box, allowing Mateo to tee up Amel Majri, who thumped it into the net.
After that the Welsh wilted as the French dominated, with Grace Geyoro scoring their fourth in the 63rd minute, steering home a ball from the right following an extended period of possession to crown a convincing win.
“We’ve got six points after two matches and that’s what we need to remember. It won’t be an easy (next) game because the Netherlands will have no choice but to attack and score goals,” France coach Laurent Bonadei said.
Mateo was impressed with how her side bounced back from Fishlock’s equalising goal and how they went on to dominate.
“We had a bit of a scare at the start of the game but we had confidence in ourselves. It was a great evening, there are different strikers and that’s important for everyone’s confidence,” she said.
Dominant France thrash Wales 4-1 at Euro 2025 to go top of group
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Dominant France thrash Wales 4-1 at Euro 2025 to go top of group
- After that the Welsh wilted as the French dominated, with Grace Geyoro scoring their fourth in the 63rd minute, steering home a ball from the right following an extended period of possession to crown a convincing win
Shakib Al-Hasan shines as MI Emirates down table-toppers Desert Vipers by 4 wickets
- All-round performance helped move the team back to second in the points table
DUBAI: MI Emirates registered a composed four-wicket victory over the table toppers Desert Vipers to seal their third straight win in the DP World ILT20 Season 4 at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. After a disciplined bowling performance in the first innings, MI Emirates overcame early pressure before Kieron Pollard and Shakib Al-Hasan guided the team to victory.
The Desert Vipers managed to score 124 courtesy of Dan Lawrence’s gritty 35 off 34 balls, but MI Emirates navigated a tricky chase with relative ease. With the ball, spinner Al-Hasan’s two wickets for 14 runs led the charge and kept the Vipers in check, before Zahoor Khan’s death bowling ensured the total remained below par.
In reply, MI Emirates stumbled in the powerplay and lost momentum in the middle overs, but Pollard’s 26 off 15 balls flipped the contest decisively. Even after his dismissal, Al-Hasan held firm to see the chase through, striking the winning boundary to complete a controlled four-wicket win with 15 balls to spare.
MI Emirates endured a slow powerplay as the Vipers applied sustained pressure. David Payne set the tone early, removing Jonny Bairstow (5 off 5), while Lockie Ferguson struck to dismiss Muhammad Waseem (18 off 13). They finished the powerplay with 35/2 on the board.
The batting side lost momentum through the middle overs as the Vipers bowlers tightened the screws. Nicholas Pooran (17 off 17) mounted a brief counterattack with two sixes but was trapped LBW by Lawrence. Wickets fell at regular intervals, including Tom Banton (10 off 10) being bowled by a sharp Qais Ahmad delivery.
Then, skipper Pollard swung the momentum decisively, taking Ahmad apart with a pair of sixes in the 15th over that turned the chase in MI Emirates’ favor. He was eventually dismissed by Matiullah Khan, but Al-Hasan (17* off 25) held his nerve, anchoring the finish before striking the winning boundary off Matiullah to close the chase at 124/6 in 17.3 overs.
In the first innings, the Vipers made a subdued start in the powerplay, as Chris Woakes was excellent up front, conceding just 15 runs from his three overs. Allah Ghazanfar struck the key blow by removing Max Holden (20 off 18). Fakhar Zaman (13 off 13) tried to build momentum, but the lack of boundaries and regular dots ensured the Vipers were restricted to 35/1 after six overs.
MI Emirates tightened their grip through the middle overs as Al-Hasan struck twice in a miserly spell to remove Zaman and Sam Curran (4 off 4), conceding just eight runs in two overs. Arab Gul added to the pressure by dismissing Hasan Nawaz (13 off 19), leaving the Vipers reeling after losing three wickets in as many overs and the score at 54/4 at the halfway mark of their innings.
Lawrence and Jason Roy (14 off 18) showed intent in patches, adding a cautious stand of 42 runs in 40 balls, but boundaries were scarce. Al-Hasan capped an outstanding spell, leaving the Vipers with little impetus. Khan delivered a decisive final over, finishing with two for 17, as regular wickets in the death overs ensured the Vipers were kept in check, leaving MI Emirates a manageable target of 125 to seal the chase.
Al-Hasan said: “It was a surface that suited the spinners, and the focus was on hitting the right areas consistently. I was able to do that today, which was pleasing. I’m glad it helped the team. Batting wasn’t easy on this pitch either. With so many powerful hitters in our lineup, someone needed to play the anchoring role, and I was happy to take on that responsibility to make sure we finished the chase.”
Desert Vipers stand-in skipper Curran commented: “It was another low-scoring game on a tricky surface. The pitch was slow, and facing a side like MI Emirates, who have high-quality spinners with a lot of variation, made it even tougher. Despite that, I thought our bowlers put in a strong effort. With qualification already secured, we chose to rotate the squad, and what happened to Lockie reinforces the importance of managing workloads.”
