UEFA Women’s Euro Semifinal Preview

We’ve reached the semifinals of the UEFA Women’s Euro, and the four best teams remain. Two of them are former champions, and two are still chasing their first title.

The first semifinal will feature the defending champions, England, facing an Italian side looking to reach the final for the first time since 1997.

Meanwhile, tournament favorites Spain will take on the most successful team in history, Germany, in a bid to reach their first-ever final.

At Gambyl Exchange, you can explore all the predictions for the UEFA Women’s Euro, the final bets for this Matchday, and the odds for each match.

UEFA Women’s Euro Semifinals: England vs. Italy

England showed why they’re reigning champions and proved they’re serious about defending their title. In the quarterfinals, they were down 2-0 to Sweden, who scored in the 2nd and 25th minutes, but managed to come back and draw 2-2 thanks to goals from Lucy Bronze in the 79th minute and Michelle Agyemang in the 81st. The match went to penalties, where England won 3-2, with goalkeeper Hannah Hampton saving two shots and Sweden missing three.

The English side must improve its defensive play and ball possession, since both of Sweden’s goals resulted from turnovers. The first was a significant error, and the second occurred due to poor recovery and positioning. Several mistakes were made at the back, and if it hadn’t been for Hampton’s performance, they wouldn’t have even reached extra time.

England’s goals came through aerial plays. The first was a header by Bronze, and the second was after a cross that Bethany Mead headed down for Agyemang to finish. It’s worth noting that Sweden had only conceded one goal in the entire tournament before this match.

On the other side, Italy was superior to Norway, but managed to secure a dramatic 2-1 win with a goal from Cristiana Girelli in the 90th minute.

The Italians created plenty of chances but struggled to convert until the 50th minute, when their captain, Girelli, lightly redirected a shot from Sofia Cantore to make it 1-0. Ten minutes later, the Scandinavians had a chance to level the score, but Ada Hegerberg missed a penalty. The Norwegian striker redeemed herself minutes later by scoring the 1-1 equalizer.

Just when it looked like the match was headed to extra time, the Juventus forward and Serie A top scorer appeared once again, this time with a header to make it 2-1 and send Italy to the UEFA Women’s Euro semifinals for the first time in nearly 30 years.

England vs. Italy Betting Pick: England

UEFA Women’s Euro Semifinals: Germany vs. Spain

We have to applaud the Germans. They weren’t the favorites, and everything seemed to go against them, yet they reached the semifinals after drawing 1-1 with France and beating them on penalties.

Everything started badly for the German side: just 13 minutes in, defender Kathrin Hendrich, in a senseless play, pulled Griedge Mbock Bathy’s hair in the box, gifting France a penalty and getting sent off.

Goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger got a hand to the spot kick but couldn’t keep it out, though she would later earn her redemption. To make matters worse, five minutes later, defender Sarai Linder went off injured, leaving Germany battling uphill.

They weren’t behind for long. In the 25th minute, Sjoeke Nüsken headed in a cross from Klara Bühl to level it 1-1.

‘Les Bleues’ created several chances, but between two disallowed goals, the woodwork, and sharp saves from Berger, they couldn’t score again. Germany had the clearest chance to win in regulation, but Nüsken’s penalty was saved on the line by Pauline Peyraud-Magnin.

In the shootout, Christian Wück’s team missed just one attempt, while Laurent Bonadéi’s France missed two, both saved by Berger.

On Spain’s side, the tournament favorites are living up to expectations, defeating hosts Switzerland 2-0.

Despite dominating and creating all the chances, Spain took their time to break through: Athenea del Castillo scored in the 66th minute and Claudia Pina added a stunner in the 71st. It’s also true, though, that Mariona Caldentey missed a 9th-minute penalty that could have changed the match, and Alexia Putellas failed to convert another in the 88th, something Montse Tomé’s squad will want to tidy up.

Spain has won all four of their matches in the UEFA Women’s Euro and scored 16 goals. They’re on a nine-match winning streak overall, including a friendly against Japan. Esther González leads the Euro scoring chart with four goals.

Sweden vs. England Betting Pick: Sweden