With a 2-0 victory over Iceland on Sunday, host country Switzerland restarted their Women’s European Championship campaign, eliminating their opponents and avoiding a penalty shootout in their last group encounter.
The Stadion Wankdorf erupted in a sea of red as Graldine Reuteler scored with 14 minutes left, and Alayah Pilgrim clinched the victory just before the end.
A spot in the quarterfinals will now be up for grabs when Switzerland plays Finland in their last group match on Thursday. Both sides are tied for third place, three points behind Norway, who defeated Finland 2-1 earlier and is currently the Group A champion and on to the knockout stage.
Switzerland’s goal in the 90th minute also ensures that, thanks to a higher goal differential, the hosts can advance to the round of eight with just a draw versus Finland.
Switzerland would have been tied with Finland on all other tiebreakers if their match ended in a draw on Thursday, requiring a penalty shootout, if it had defeated Iceland 1-0.
Regardless of the outcome of their final match against Norway, Iceland has zero points and is eliminated from the competition.
After the final whistle, the players did the Icelandic thunderclap with their fans, many of them in tears.
It was raining for the majority of the match in Bern, unlike when the teams played their opening matches last Wednesday, when Switzerland was hit by a heat wave.
In the first minute, Iceland came very close to scoring as Ingibj rg Sigurdard ttir’s effort struck the crossbar.
At the half-hour mark, Switzerland believed it had the lead. Gl d s Perla Vigg sd ttir unintentionally nodded Svenja F lmli’s header into the net after a corner was whipped in.
After a review on the pitchside monitor for a foul by F lmli in the buildup, Swiss supporters rejoiced, but it was disqualified.
While the equally passionate home audience screamed Hopp Schwiiz, the 2,000 Icelandic supporters made their voices heard inside a stadium that could hold up to 30,000 people.
And when Iman Beney’s long-range shot rippled the side netting in first-half stoppage time, nearly all of them believed Switzerland had taken the lead in spectacular way.
Iceland struck the crossbar to begin the second half, nearly exactly as it had done in the first.
The top of the woodwork was skimmed by Karol na Lea Vilhjalmsdottir’s free kick this time.
Until it broke the tie in the 76th minute, Switzerland had hardly had a shot on goal. Reuteler ran onto an amazing ball that Sydney Schertenleib threaded through and slotted into the far bottom corner.
And when Pilgrim caught a precise ball from another substitute, Leila Wandeler, and cut inside before curling into the back of the net, Switzerland completed their first victory in their home tournament.
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