In a stunning start to the Women's European Championship, reigning champions England fell 2-1 to France, marking the first time a titleholder has lost their opener in tournament history.
France wasted no time taking control, with Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Sandy Baltimore scoring two quickfire goals just before halftime. The victory extended France's winning streak to nine games and ended England manager Sarina Wiegman's flawless 12-0 record in the competition.
England fought back late, with midfielder Keira Walsh narrowing the deficit three minutes from time. Captain Leah Williamson reflected on the performance: 'The positive is that I've not seen us like that … for a while. We hold ourselves to higher standards in individual battles and we improved on that throughout the game, which is good.'
Despite the loss, Wiegman emphasized the fine margins in elite tournaments: 'We're frustrated because we had such three very good weeks and we trained really well, but that's never a guarantee that of course you win the game. You have to do things really well and we just didn't get it right at those moments.'
Looking ahead, England will face the Netherlands on Wednesday and wrap up their Group D schedule against Wales four days later. France, still without injured captain Griedge Mbock, remain challengers according to coach Laurent Bonadei, who warned: 'At the moment we haven't won anything, we are still challengers with a lot of ambition.'
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England become first reigning champion to lose a Women's Euro opener
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