Spain’s team has been convincing in terms of play so far. But not enough came of it. Against Denmark there is even a threat of being eliminated in the group finals today. The Danes need a win, while Spain would need a draw to progress.
It was Mariona Caldentey who took on most of the responsibility in Spain’s disappointing group game against Germany (0-2). The 26-year-old attacker from FC Barcelona tried against Germany keeper Merle Frohms with a flick, a header and once with a long-range shot. Success had none of it. Still, she tried. And showed himself.
Spain – a lot of ball possession, little return
It was similar after the game: while her colleagues slipped away, Caldentey answered the reporters’ questions. Brave. Because the key question was of course obvious: How can Spain finally convert its playful possibilities into something countable? The Spaniards had 71 percent possession of the ball against Germany, but it was still a deserved defeat. Overall, the team has only managed one goal from open play in the first two games.
“We shot too little,” says Caldentey, she believes: “If you shoot more, a ball can sometimes be deflected and somehow go in. We have to improve that.” Of course, there is no getting around the two prominent failures in the Spanish team when it comes to this topic: With Alexia Putellas and Jennifer Hermoso, the two players who have scored the team’s goals in recent months and years are missing.
Out of Putellas and Hermoso – “Heavy blow for us”
Caldentey is well aware of this: “It’s obvious that the loss of Jenni and Ale was a big blow to us in terms of scoring chances given their stats and the team’s confidence. They are two of the captains and two key players. We However, we must take a step forward and take on new responsibilities.”
A point in the final group game against Denmark would be enough for the Spaniards to reach the quarter-finals tonight (21:00 CEST). After the 0:4 against the DFB team at the start, the Danes have the worse goal difference compared to the Spaniards. However, the Scandinavians took heart after the narrow 1-0 win against Finland – especially since their best player – Pernille Harder – got fit again in time.
Harder fit again – Denmark is confident
After colliding with Emma Koivisto in a header, she was substituted shortly before the end of the game with a “headache”. “I’m fine, really fine,” said the former Wolfsburg woman on the sidelines of training on Wednesday (07/13/2022). She had a bit of a headache but “I absolutely believe” that she can play against Spain in Brentford in the group final: “I can assure you that I’m okay.”
Pernille Harder (center) is fit again.
Lars Søndergaard, Denmark coach, sees only positive things in the situation: “It’s good for us to know that we just need a win somehow. We don’t need to win by four or five goals. That makes us very confident.” Meanwhile, his opposite number, Jorge Vilda, is trying to keep his demeanor calm: “We played well against Germany. If we continue like this, the necessary goals will soon come.”