Women’s Euro 2022: Ives Serneels wants to make history against Italy by ‘building on previous matches’

“We can achieve something that has never been done in Belgian women’s football,” national coach Ives Serneels said the day before the game in Manchester. “I’m going to be very honest: if it doesn’t work out, I’ll be very disappointed.” The Flames will have to “stay true to themselves and build on previous matches”, according to their coach. Despite a numerical balance of 1 point out of 6, Serneels is positive. “Against a very strong Iceland, we didn’t have it easy at times, but we still managed to take a point. Against the French, we were present in the difficult moments when the goals were scored and “, in the second half, we played very well up to their sixteen meters at times. These are things that give confidence.”

Ives Serneels has already drawn up his plan for Italy. “We know they will play in a well-organized way. But we are confident.” It will be necessary to earn points to fulfill the objective set by the team before the tournament. “We have expressed the ambition to reach the quarter-finals. The passion of the group is there, they have proven it in previous games, even when the football was less good. We absolutely have to bring that tomorrow, because the will to win can make the difference.”

To qualify, however, you will need a favorable result in the confrontation between France and Iceland. An Icelandic victory would indeed destroy all hope for the Belgians.