Spain misses two penalties and still reaches the semi-finals

Spain in the semifinals: Athenea celebrates her goal in the quarterfinal against Switzerland. IMAGO/Agencia EFE

In the third quarterfinal of this Women's European Championship, Spain faced hosts Switzerland. While the Southern Europeans, as reigning world champions, were clear favorites to win the title, Switzerland's first appearance in the knockout rounds could be considered a minor sensation. Nevertheless, the national team was determined to build on the momentum in front of their own fans and upset the Spanish star cast.

To prevent that from happening, Spain coach Montserrat Tomé made six changes after the 3-1 win against Italy – with the team already through to the quarterfinals. In addition to goalkeeper Cata Coll, who replaced Nanclares, Ona Batlle, Aleixandri, Olga, Esther, and Pina also started in the starting lineup. Jana, Maria Mendez, Leila, Athenea, and Paralluelo remained on the bench.

Switzerland coach Pia Sundhage , on the other hand, saw less need for action after the draw against Finland and made only two changes to her starting eleven. Stierli and Fölmli were replaced by Ivelj and Crnogorcevic.

From the start, the game was played primarily in the Swiss half. Spain's attack clearly undermined the Swiss defense and forced errors. Riesen was clearly too late to tackle Mariona in the penalty area in the 8th minute, causing Spain to be awarded an early penalty. However, the fouled player squandered this opportunity, carelessly firing the resulting penalty wide of the goal.

But even after that, the favorites continued to pin Sundhage's team back, and the national team barely had any chance of launching any relieving attacks. Only Beney was everywhere on the pitch, initiating one of the hosts' few good attacks in the 15th minute. As time wore on, however, Spain seemed to grow a little nervous, lacking determination, and the passionately fighting Swiss only conceded a good free kick from Pina for a long time (19th minute). Tomé's team was already showing some frustration, as just before halftime, Paredes once again hit the post with a header, posing a threat (43rd minute).

And the Swiss came out of the locker room much more courageous than in the first half. Early ball wins and increased pressing, however, didn't really lead to any real goal threat, and so the Spanish dominated again. Nevertheless, it took until the 61st minute before the post saved Switzerland twice. But just five minutes later, Athenea, who had just been substituted on, redeemed her team, scoring the 1-0 for Spain (66th).

This shock proved to be a bitter blow for the bravely defending Swiss, who conceded another goal shortly afterward. The eye-catching Pina unstoppably buried a stunning shot into the hosts' net, briefly silencing the Bern stadium (71').

After that, Switzerland's courage and fighting spirit deserted them, while the Spanish continued to attack. And so things got wild again at the end. Beney conceded another penalty for Spain in the 87th minute when she came on far too late to beat Athenea in the penalty area. But Tomé's team also missed the second penalty. This time, it was Alexia who shot far too centrally, leaving Peng with no problems. In three minutes of added time, the Swiss Maritz pulled the emergency brake and was sent off with a red card shortly before the final whistle.

1-0 Athenea (66')

2-0 Pina (71')