Motivated Alexia Putellas and on-song Spain offer hosts stiffest of Women’s Euro 2025 tests
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Spain's Alexia Putellas in action during a training session in Lausanne on July 15.
PHOTO: EPA
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BERN – Having matched a host of tournament records in the group stage, world champions Spain head into the Women’s Euro 2025 quarter-finals against hosts Switzerland at the Wankdorf Stadium in Bern on July 18 as heavy favourites.
La Roja were involved in the joint-highest scoring game in Euro history in the 6-2 win over Belgium and registered the joint-most goals in the group stage (14), while tournament top scorer Esther Gonzalez became just the third player to score in all three group matches.
Gonzalez has four goals while teammate Alexia Putellas leads the assists charts with four, ahead of the second quarter-final between England and Spain that took place after press time.
Putellas, a two-time former Ballon d’Or Feminin winner, has also netted three times.
Defender Jana Fernandez said her Barcelona teammate is especially motivated, having missed the last European Championship in 2022 with an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
She said of the 31-year-old midfielder: “If anyone is motivated, it’s her. We all came here with a lot of motivation, but Alexia even more so because of what happened at the last Euro.
“She gives us a lot both on and off the pitch. She’s surrounded by the best people to show 100 per cent of her game. Hopefully it continues this way – what’s good for her is good for Spain.”
Attacker Claudia Pina, meanwhile, brushed off Spain’s favourites tag, saying: “I’d be lying if I said we’re not one of the strong contenders in the tournament, but when people call us favourites, we don’t really think about it.
“Just look at France or England. We’re focused on Switzerland – and playing at home gives them a big boost.
“There are still some very strong teams left who operate at a high level, and in the end, one goal can send you home. Football is football – fair or not – but at any moment, you can be out.”
The Swiss women’s preparations for their maiden major tournament quarter-final have not gone entirely smoothly.
The team had to cancel a training session on July 15 due to sickness within the squad.
But Pia Sundhage’s side are riding a wave of optimism into the last eight, with widespread support across the country and a record group-stage attendance of 461,582.
Goalkeeper Livia Peng said with “the whole country behind us” they are adopting a positive mentality of “if not now, then when?”.
On Spain’s attacking prowess, she added: “It will be very important that we at the back, especially myself, are well-prepared for shots, crosses, through balls, tiki-taka – ultimately everything, because we know what the Spanish are capable of.”
In the club game, European champions Arsenal shattered the women’s transfer record by signing Canadian forward Olivia Smith from Liverpool on July 17 for a fee of £1 million (S$1.7 million), according to media reports, making the 20-year-old the first female player to break the seven-figure barrier in England.
Arsenal’s blockbuster move eclipses the previous record set by American defender Naomi Girma’s £900,000 transfer from San Diego Wave to Chelsea in January, although the 25-year-old had already broken the US$1 million (S$1.3 million) mark.
The first player in men’s football to command a £1 million price tag was former England forward Trevor Francis, when he moved from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest in 1979.
“It’s my dream to compete for the biggest titles here in England and in Europe and I’m excited to get started and contribute to doing that here with Arsenal,” Smith said in a statement.
The versatile Smith, who can operate as a striker or play on the wing, enjoyed a stellar debut season at Liverpool, despite the club’s struggles.
Smith finished as Liverpool’s leading scorer across all competitions with nine goals to claim their Player of the Season award, even as Liverpool slumped to seventh in the Women’s Super League after a fourth-placed finish the previous campaign.
Arsenal are building on their Champions League triumph with ambitious recruitment, having already bolstered their squad by re-signing Chloe Kelly from Manchester City as a free agent.
They also snapped up left-back Taylor Hinds from Liverpool after her contract expired. But securing Smith represents a statement of intent from Renee Slegers’ side, who finished as runners-up to Chelsea in the league. REUTERS
