There was late drama in the April international break as Frida Maanum bagged a brace to earn a 3-3 draw for Norway against Sweden, deep into stoppage time.
Sweden were on course for the win after second-half substitute Stina Blackstenius unleashed an exquisite trivela pass to find Olivia Schough on the wing, who then fired home in the 90th minute. Maanum's close-range goal in the dying moments of injury time gave Norway a much-needed equaliser, following their 4-2 defeat to Spain a few days previously. With the points shared, our Gunners swapped shirts after the match.
๐ธ๐ช ๐ฆ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฎ ๐๐น๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ๐๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ถ๐๐ ๐ค ๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฎ ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ป๐๐บ ๐ณ๐ด
โ Svensk Fotboll (@svenskfotboll) April 12, 2023
Duon frรฅn @ArsenalWFC ๐ pic.twitter.com/IPkRmC26uD
In another dramatic finish, Laura Wienroither scored the winner for Austria against Belgium on Friday night. The Red Flames took a 2-0 lead after a goalless first half but Austria came back with a vengeance through goals from Sarah Puntigam and Celina Degen.
It was then down to Wienroither to bag the winner, picking the ball up in the penalty area and firing past new Chelsea signing Nicky Evrard. Manuela Zinsberger was also between the posts for the Austrians but left the camp for personal reasons before their 2-0 win over Czechia.
After overcoming the adversity of a penalty shootout to win the Finalissima against Brazil last week, England's impressive 30-game unbeaten run finally came to an end on a wet and miserable evening in Brentford. Australia, missing our own Caitlin Foord and Steph Catley through injury, were the team to inflict the first defeat of the Sarina Wiegman era, beating a tired and uninspired Lionesses side 2-0.
Captain Leah Williamson had this to say after the match: "The whole team feels really rubbish about losing. It hurts. Sometimes in football, you have those games. We weren't as efficient as we usually are, we need to figure out why."
Brazil, meanwhile, bounced back from their Finalissima defeat to emerge victorious over Germany, with Rafaelle Souza captaining the Seleรงรฃo to a 2-1 win.
tough test against the USA - positives to take into Tuesday โ๏ธ pic.twitter.com/KlnQF1v0Ba
โ Katie McCabe (@Katie_McCabe11) April 8, 2023
Stateside, Katie McCabe led a determined Ireland side in a two-parter against the US Women's National Team. Despite falling to narrow losses on both occasions, Ireland held their own against the reigning World Cup champions on the Americans' home turf.
Kathrine Kuhl played 90 minutes for both of Denmark's 1-0 wins over Japan and Sweden respectively and elsewhere in Europe, Lia Walti and Noelle Maritz were both involved in Switzerland's goalless draw against China. With Walti heading home for personal reasons, Maritz also featured for the next tie - a 2-1 win over Iceland.
Victoria Pelova was in action for both of the Netherlands' fixtures, playing 90 minutes in their narrow defeat to Germany and 81 minutes in their 4-1 win over Poland. Vivianne Miedema paid a visit to her Dutch teammates during the international window as she continues her rehab for an ACL injury.
๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ ๐ฎ๐๐ฌ๐ญ bij de training vandaag! ๐๐#NEDPOL #NothingLikeOranje pic.twitter.com/PQbIqwDIbk
โ OranjeLeeuwinnen (@oranjevrouwen) April 10, 2023
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