Switzerland 1-4 Holland: Romee Leuchter scores a late 10-minute hat-trick to fire the Dutch into Euro 2022 quarter-finals amid second-half goal fest as Swiss head home
- Romee Leuchter scored three in 10 minutes to help Holland beat Switzerland
- The Swiss put in a confident performance but fell away at the end to lose 4-1
- After a scoreless first-half, the match exploded into a second-half goal fest
- Holland will now face France after finishing second in Group C behind Sweden
Substitutes Romee Leuchter and Victoria Pelova saved the day with late goals for Holland as they progressed to the knockout stages of Euro 2022 after a thrilling 4-1 win at Bramall Lane.
With the scores level at 1-1 entering the final stages of the game, the Dutch duo scored three goals between them in a destructive final 10 minutes for Mark Parsons’ side.
The result means that Switzerland are out of the competition, while Holland finish Group C as runners-up, meaning they will face France in the quarter-finals.
Romee Leuchter netted a late hat-trick in 10 minutes to help Holland beat Switzerland 4-1
Her three late goals ended Dutch nerves as Switzerland fought hard for a spot in the last eight
Switzerland were in control for the opening 10 minutes, moving forward well and Sandy Maendly had their first chance with a curling effort from outside the area that was destined for the top corner but Daphne Van Domselaar made a brilliant save to tip the ball over the crossbar.
Holland had a chance 20 minutes in when Lineth Beerensteyn broke forward quickly and her shot deflected off goalkeeper Gaelle Thalmann but, despite the forward being brought down, a VAR check by the referee ruled no penalty would be awarded.
The Dutch came close again after a smart free-kick threaded through a crowd of players in the box, but Jackie Groenen’s powerful effort was well-held by Thalmann, while Switzerland continued to pose a threat with Geraldine Reuteler and Ramona Bachmann both coming close.
A lack of judgement from Swiss goalkeeper Gaelle Thalmann in the 84th minute proved costly
Leuchter was able to win the header and direct the ball into an empty net to put Holland 2-0 up
Holland took the lead through an unfortunate own goal three minutes after the break when Ana-Maria Crnogorcevic was unable to clear a corner and instead nodded the ball into her own net.
Switzerland quickly responded with an equaliser four minutes later after Bachmann played Reuteler through and she made no mistake tucking the ball into the bottom corner.
They continued to attack and nearly had a second when Coumba Sow had two excellent chances from close range, but Van Domselaar came to the rescue again to clear the danger.
But Switzerland had no answer for the late charge from Holland and thus went home
But Switzerland had no answer for the late charge from Holland and thus went home in third
Both teams continued to press hard for a decisive winner and substitutes Leuchter and Pelova caused havoc, scoring three goals in the final stages of the game.
Leuchter scored in the 84th minute with a looping header that caught Thalmann off guard, before Pelova poked home from close-range two minutes later, with the goal eventually being awarded after a lengthy VAR check.
Leuchter capped off a destructive 10-minute spell for Holland in added time, scoring her second after slotting home Pelova’s initial scuffed shot for the Dutch to progress to the knockout stages.
Scroll down to catch all the action from the match, as well as updates from Sweden against Portugal.
Follow Sportsmail’s live blog for updates on Sweden vs Portugal and Switzerland vs Netherlands in this evening’s Women’s Euro 2022 clashes.
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