The UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 Matchday 1 has now concluded and we can have a look at how the favourites have done, who is up and who has disappointed.

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - JULY 06: Lucy Bronze of England looks on as England pose for a team photo during the UEFA Women's Euro England 2022 group A match between England and Austria at Old Trafford on July 06, 2022 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – JULY 06: Lucy Bronze of England looks on as England pose for a team photo during the UEFA Women’s Euro England 2022 group A match between England and Austria at Old Trafford on July 06, 2022 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images)

Group A

  • England 1 Austria 0
  • Norway 4 Northern Ireland 1

Norway go top with England level on points. They will play each other next to see who will probably top the group.

Northern Ireland scored their first ever finals goal. In that group, two Arsenal players are currently out with Covid:

Group B

  • Spain 4 Finland 1
  • Germany 4 Denmark 0

Spain are looking good despite playing the tournament without their main forwards, Putellas and Hermoso.

Germany destroyed Denmark 4-0 and reminded everyone how strong they are and that they should not be underestimated, despite their recent World Cup qualifiers results.

Germany v Spain on Tuesday 12 July will be fireworks.

Group C

  • Portugal 2 Switzerland 2
  • Netherlands 1 Sweden 1

All the games ended up in a draw, with the two group favourites cancelling each other out. They will now try to defeat the underdogs to make sure they top the group to potentially avoid France.

Group D

  • Belgium 1 Iceland 1
  • France 5 Italy 1

France are the clear group favourites and did the job in the first half going 5-0 up against Italy. They will look at Group C as they are likely to play the runners-up in the quarter-finals.

A lot of things might change before the knock-out stage as we have seen two players going home with tournament ending injuries: Sari Van Veenendaal, the former Arsenal goalie and Northern Ireland’s Simone Magill.

There are also many Covid cases, with Wubben-Moy, Wienroither, Groenen, and Cernoia the victims in the first week.

We should see a few teams go through after Matchday 2 and a clearer picture develop.

The football coming home dream is very much alive for the England fans. What is certain is it won’t be like the men’s Euro last year with Football coming Rome as Italy are not as strong as their men counterparts.