Latest news with #KenzaDali
New York Times
19-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
France 1 Germany 1 ( 5-6 on pens) – Gravity-defying saves, glass ceilings, another penalty shootout
It is best to ignore what's on paper during tournaments. A week ago, Germany suffered their worst defeat, falling 4-1 to Sweden (a team now out of the tournament after losing to England in penalties). Thirteen minutes into Saturday's quarter-final against France in Basel, Switzerland, Germany were down a defender due to a puzzling hair pull, depleting an already dismissed backline. On paper, they were at a disadvantage. But also on paper, goalkeepers can't fly. Advertisement Germany ripped up the script and defeated France in penalties to advance to the European Championship semifinals. While they overcame their prophecy, France once again succumbed to theirs, unable to crack the quarter-final glass ceiling once again. Germany defeated France in the last European Championship in the semi-final stage, the only time Les Bleus have made it that far. Since that 2022 matchup, France have gone out in the quarter-finals at the last two major tournaments (2023 World Cup and 2024 Olympics), adding to their nine failures prior. 'Albert Einstein said that madness was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result,' said Laurent Bonadei in a press conference before France's Nations League fixtures in late May. Bonadei, who took charge of the team from Hervé Renard last year, was referencing leaving out captain Wendie Renard, Eugenie Le Sommer and San Diego Wave's Kenza Dali from his Euros squad. But what happens when the result is what keeps repeating despite the changes? France's path to vanquish their demons seemed much clearer when centre-back Kathrin Hendrich pulled the hair of France captain Griedge Mbock inside the penalty area. By the end of the match, the moment felt like a different match. In the 25th minute, five minutes after another defender, Sarai Linder, lef the match injured, Germany found their equaliser. Midfiedler Sjoeke Nusken powerfully headed a corner kick service past France's Pauline Peyraud-Magnin. France winger Delphine Cascarino thought she had found the go-ahead goal before half-time when she finished an impressive team effort with a backheel-flick goal, but instead was ruled offside. It was the first of two ruled-off goals for France. In the second half and into extra time, Germany continued to find their moments, but it was the effort of goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger that kept the score level. Advertisement In the 105th minute, the Gotham FC goalkeeper made one of the most acrobatic saves in the history of the game. With France attacking and Katrin-Berger away from her goal, Janina Minge aimed, looping a shot beyond the keeper. And yet with a physics-defying leap backward and an outstretched paw, the 34-year-old kept the ball out of the net with a scoop of her hand. She went down momentarily, nursing her shoulder but return to finish the match, including a converted penalty in the shootout. Germany will play Spain in Wednesday's semi-final in Zurich. Megan Feringa, Michael Cox and Charlotte Harpur analyse the main talking points from the quarter-final. Another quarter-final decided in penalties puts goalkeepers in the spotlight. However, the goalkeepers took the spotlight long before the players lined up at and this time it was the goalkeepers who took the spotlight. Maybe the real treasure of Euro 2025 is all the penalties saved and missed along the way. So far, 14 of 27 penalties have failed to be converted. Perhaps it was asking too much for two to be converted in one match after Geyoro found the back of the net for France in the first-half. France goalkeeper Pauline Peyraud-Magnin saved Sjoeke Nusken's penalty, injecting an already haywire match with more chaos. Payraud-Magnin could do little about Nusken's earlier bullet header to draw the game level. But we must really talk about Ann-Katrin Berger. One, did you see the save? In the 105th-minute, arm extended as she's falling backwards. Gravity, physics, all of that should say, 'No'. But the 33-year-old Gotham FC goalkeeper said, 'Yes'. And she did all match. Berger was quick off her line, sharp in her saves, comfortable on the ball and regularly came out of her area to deal with balls over the top of her defence. She made nine saves, five from inside the box and five being what the BBC qualified as 'diving' (a word that doesn't feel appropriate enough to describe what happened on 105 minutes). She then denied France's first penalty shooter, Amel Majri. The 32-year-old went left just as Berger had written on her Gatorade bottle, before scoring from the spot herself as Germany's fifth taker. Feringa What on earth was going through Kathrin Hendrich's head as the 33-year-old defender reached out to grab a chunk of Griedge Mbock's hair is beyond anyone's comprehension. The Chicago Stars player has 86 caps for her country and has played over 300 matches at club level. Anyone is capable of suffering a moment of madness in such pressurised hot boxes such as this, but less than 15 minutes into a Euros quarter-final against an opponent like France? Germany's backline was already red-card ravaged going into this match, after right-back Carlotta Wamser was issued marching orders for saving the ball on the line against Sweden in their final group stage match. Advertisement Hendrich's decision forced Germany's defence into more tactical surgery: third-string right back Sarai Linder was replaced by Sophia Kleinherne while midfielder Janina Minge moved into a back four as Germany switched to a 4-4-1. Germany's defence remained ferociously resilient and organised throughout, all while managing to rip forward on the counter with numbers, much to France's enormous trouble at times. It made you wonder just how good Germany might have been with an additional body on the pitch… Megan Feringa Going into this game, the last thing you would have said about Germany was that they were solid. They offered attacking power in the group stage, but they left their backline exposed, and the defence was dragged across the pitch easily. Sweden took full advantage in their 4-1 win in Zurich. Tonight, Germany got off to the worst possible start. They conceded a penalty and went down to ten players in the same incident. Their right-back Linder, only playing as Gwinn and Wamser were injured and suspended respectively, limped off shortly afterwards. The game seemed dead. And yet somehow, the situation suited Germany. That was true both mentally and tactically. Germany are, even when not a great side, famously hard to beat. They huddled together and agreed on a game plan. And, tactically, suddenly Germany looked quite suited to a counter-attacking task. Elisa Senss is a no-nonsense midfield general. Nusken is a tireless box-to-box midfielder. Jule Brand and Klara Buhl have been the best wing pairing in the competition and offered speed on the break. Up top, Giovanna Hoffman ran, battled, flicked the ball on, held it up, and won free-kicks to get Germany up the pitch. And this actually made Germany look — for the first time in the competition — solid. The defenders haven't become world-class overnight. But they were screened well, they communicated well, they shepherded Germany out wide, and they defended their box well. France barely created anything, and but for Nusken's missed penalty midway through the second half, this German display would have gone down as one of the great performances when down to ten players. Michael Cox There seems to be a quarter-final curse looming over France. Barring Euro 2022, France have now not progressed beyond the last nine major tournaments and Olympics quarter-finals. Reach this stage of the competition and they are unable to smash the glass ceiling. Nobody quite knows why. Some people say it is about mentality. If there was a game to test their mental resilience, this was it. France went from the highs of scoring a penalty and an extra player advantage to the lows of two disallowed goals and conceding an equaliser before being galvanised by Peyraud-Magnin's penalty save. Advertisement As the minutes dragged on and they failed to take advantage of having an extra player, it felt like it was just not meant to be. The cruel reality of penalties sealed their fate and in the end, they were simply not good enough on the night. Charlotte Harpur
Reuters
14-06-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
NWSL roundup: Surging Wave build withstand Dash's rally
June 14 - Kenza Dali, Adriana Leon and Maria Sanchez scored goals as the San Diego Wave held on for a 3-2 victory over the host Houston Dash on Friday night. The Wave (7-3-2, 23 points) led 3-0 early in the second half before the Dash got back into the game on tallies from Barbara Olivieri and Yazmeen Ryan. San Diego is 6-1-1 over its last eight matches. Olivieri ignited the comeback bid by Houston (3-7-2, 11 points) with a long goal in the 61st minute. The right-footed blast from well outside the box hit the left goalpost and the ball caromed into the net. Seven minutes later, the Dash struck again as Ryan sent a left-footer into the upper left portion of the net. Dali got San Diego started in the 17th minute as she sent a right-footed shot into the left corner. In the 36th minute, a Houston misplay gave Hanna Lundkvist the ball and she sent a pass over to Leon, who knocked in a right-footer. Sanchez scored on a header off a cross from Delphine Cascarino in the 51st minute. The Wave dominated play with a 12-0 edge in corner kicks. Goalie Abby Smith recorded seven saves but the Houston winless streak (0-3-1) stretched to four. San Diego's Kailen Sheridan made one stop. Gotham FC 3, Utah Royals 0 Esther Gonzalez recorded her fourth brace of the season and Gotham FC snapped a three-game losing streak with the easy win over the Royals at Sandy, Utah. Jaclin Howell also scored for Gotham (4-5-3, 15 points), who halted a four-game winless stretch (0-3-1). Ann-Katrin Berger had three saves while notching the shutout. Gonzalez scored on a glancing header in the ninth minute to give Gotham the early lead. She added a penalty kick in the 58th minute to make it 3-0. She leads the NWSL with nine goals. Howell scored after a long run in the first minute of first-half stoppage time. She booted a right-footed shot into the left corner of the net. Gotham closed out the match with just nine players after Jess Carter (76th minute) and Howell (sixth minute of second-half stoppage time) received red cards. Mandy McGlynn had one save for Utah (1-9-2, 5 points), which is 0-6-1 over its past seven matches. Orlando Pride 1, Bay FC 0 Barbra Banda scored in the 58th minute as Orlando picked up its third straight win by holding off the hosts at San Jose, Calif. Anna Moorhouse made five saves and defender Kylie Nadaner saved the shutout with a stop of her own for the Pride (8-3-1, 25 points). Bay FC (4-5-3, 15 points) had a three-game unbeaten stretch (2-0-1) halted. Banda was loose in the left side of the box and took a right-footed shot that hit a Bay FC defender en route to finding the back of the net. Banda is second in the NWSL with eight goals. Bay FC came up empty on its best three chances. Moorhouse used her hand to deflect Taylor Huff's shot over the net in the 10th minute. Then in the 57th minute, Bay FC's Caprice Dydasco hit the crossbar with a fierce long shot. Later, Moorhouse dropped a corner kick at the feet of Penelope Hocking, but the latter's point-blank shot in the 78th minute was stymied by Nadaner, who was stationed in front of the open net. Bay FC had a 20-7 edge in shots. Goalie Emmie Allen made three stops. --Field Level Media
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Kenza Dali: ‘I will tell my story after the Euros. A lot of lies have been told'
'I had hard times and this team really gave me back my love and motivation for football,' Kenza Dali says of San Diego Wave as she prepares to open up on a turbulent year. Over the course of a refreshingly honest conversation, the midfielder reveals why she left Aston Villa to move to the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) in January, details why she is enjoying working under Jonas Eidevall and discusses, for the first time, the grief that affected her participation in the Olympics. There is, however, one topic on which she is not quite ready to go into details yet. Advertisement Related: France drop Renard, Le Sommer and Dali in shock cull before Women's Euros The 33-year-old, who has 76 caps for France, was one of three experienced stars – alongside the former captain Wendie Renard and Eugénie Le Sommer – left out when head coach Laurent Bonadei named his squad for the European Championship. Dali is clearly saddened by the situation but does not want a war of words to distract her compatriots as they prepare for the tournament. 'I will tell my side of the story after the Euros, for only one reason – it's because I have too much respect for my teammates to put the spotlight on a decision that is difficult to accept because I think there are a lot of lies,' she says. 'I really hope they do well. I have too much respect for the jersey to put out my side of the story now. I know it's going to be everywhere and they are preparing for the Euros and I don't want to disturb that. But it's difficult for me because I've been playing maybe some of my best football. It's really difficult to digest because there are a lot of lies in the story that's been told but I will tell my side after the Euros.' Dali has good reason to feel proud of her form since moving to California. She has been a key player for San Diego this season, helping them to a flying start. The Wave are second in the table, a vast improvement on their 10th-place finish last term, under the guidance of the former Arsenal manager Eidevall, who was appointed head coach in January. Advertisement 'When I signed for San Diego a lot of people thought I was crazy,' she says. 'They were like: 'They had a terrible season last season, the environment isn't great' … I heard a lot of things. But I'm someone that wants to see with my own eyes and the work of the people behind the scenes has been incredible. The recruitment has been really, really good, and the appointment of Jonas was a massive difference too. 'The funny part is, I heard a lot about Jonas in England and not always nice things. When I joined San Diego, people were like: 'What is she doing? She's going with Jonas!' But I really enjoy the way he is working. He's really tactical. He really works a lot and San Diego's performances are credit to him. He built an identity in a short space of time. My relationship with him is great. I'm really enjoying every single minute.' Dali goes on to express how much she is enjoying coffee by the beach along the Pacific coast after her spells in England with West Ham, Everton and Villa. Her mood is good, which is a contrast to last summer as she competed at a home Olympics feeling upset following a family bereavement. 'I lost someone that I was really, really close to, a member of my family,' reveals Dali, who scored in France's group-stage victory over Colombia in Lyon to help them reach the quarter-finals. Advertisement 'I don't want to say who but that really affected me personally. The Olympics were really, really difficult for me because this person used to be at all my national team games. 'I didn't want to play the Olympics because I was grieving and it happened two weeks before. My teammates convinced me to stay, Hervé Renard [France's coach at the time] was amazing to me. I ate with the team and participated with training and meetings and then I was going to see my family. So the Olympics were really tough.' And then she returned to her club. 'After the Olympics I got time off, because of my circumstances, and then I arrived at Villa. I was really happy to come back but the new manager [Robert de Pauw] didn't want me there,' she says. 'I still don't know the reason, but he made it clear that he didn't want me there. So I was like: 'Wow, this is a shock,' because I had been really looking forward to [returning to] Villa. Advertisement 'I waited until the winter. Then they changed manager again [to Natalia Arroyo after Shaun Goater had briefly been in charge on an interim basis] and my contract was until the end of June, so I went straight to the club and said that I'm staying even if the offer from San Diego was massive [because], for me, Villa was home. But I didn't feel the club wanted me to stay. They didn't make me feel that I was a priority any more.' 'San Diego really put everything in for me to come and, after all that had happened for me, I really wanted to be in an environment that I was valued,' Dali adds. 'This is a completely honest answer that I've never shared, this is what happened. Jonas really wanted me. He explained to me his gameplan and where he sees me in his system, and he convinced me. I had other offers but I picked San Diego. I'm glad I did it because I'm enjoying my football again.' Dali, who helped France reach the Euro 2022 semi-finals, is not only enjoying playing for San Diego but, more broadly, playing in the NWSL: 'The massive difference is the fact that every team is playing for a title,' she says. 'In England you're starting the league thinking: 'I'm going to try my best to finish top five.' The top four never really change. In America, because of the salary cap and everything that is different here, I feel like everyone has the same level. But I love English football, England is the country of football. That's why it was really hard for me to leave. 'When I start a competition, I want to win as many games as I can,' she adds. 'I'd prefer to lose 5–0 but [know I] tried than to park the bus and concede three. This is not my vision of football. 'Our first objective here was to qualify for the playoffs but, as a group, we want so much more. We're kind of going step by step. It's a completely brand-new team. With 11 or more new players, what we're doing right now is unbelievable. I do think we have the team to compete for something big.'
The Guardian
07-06-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Kenza Dali: ‘I will tell my story after the Euros. A lot of lies have been told'
'I had hard times and this team really gave me back my love and motivation for football,' Kenza Dali says of San Diego Wave as she prepares to open up on a turbulent year. Over the course of a refreshingly honest conversation, the midfielder reveals why she left Aston Villa to move to the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) in January, details why she is enjoying working under Jonas Eidevall and discusses, for the first time, the grief that affected her participation in the Olympics. There is, however, one topic on which she is not quite ready to go into details yet. The 33-year-old, who has 76 caps for France, was one of three experienced stars – alongside the former captain Wendie Renard and Eugénie Le Sommer – left out when head coach Laurent Bonadei named his squad for the European Championship. Dali is clearly saddened by the situation but does not want a war of words to distract her compatriots as they prepare for the tournament. 'I will tell my side of the story after the Euros, for only one reason – it's because I have too much respect for my teammates to put the spotlight on a decision that is difficult to accept because I think there are a lot of lies,' she says. 'I really hope they do well. I have too much respect for the jersey to put out my side of the story now. I know it's going to be everywhere and they are preparing for the Euros and I don't want to disturb that. But it's difficult for me because I've been playing maybe some of my best football. It's really difficult to digest because there are a lot of lies in the story that's been told but I will tell my side after the Euros.' Dali has good reason to feel proud of her form since moving to California. She has been a key player for San Diego this season, helping them to a flying start. The Wave are second in the table, a vast improvement on their 10th-place finish last term, under the guidance of the former Arsenal manager Eidevall, who was appointed head coach in January. 'When I signed for San Diego a lot of people thought I was crazy,' she says. 'They were like: 'They had a terrible season last season, the environment isn't great' … I heard a lot of things. But I'm someone that wants to see with my own eyes and the work of the people behind the scenes has been incredible. The recruitment has been really, really good, and the appointment of Jonas was a massive difference too. 'The funny part is, I heard a lot about Jonas in England and not always nice things. When I joined San Diego, people were like: 'What is she doing? She's going with Jonas!' But I really enjoy the way he is working. He's really tactical. He really works a lot and San Diego's performances are credit to him. He built an identity in a short space of time. My relationship with him is great. I'm really enjoying every single minute.' Dali goes on to express how much she is enjoying coffee by the beach along the Pacific coast after her spells in England with West Ham, Everton and Villa. Her mood is good, which is a contrast to last summer as she competed at a home Olympics feeling upset following a family bereavement. 'I lost someone that I was really, really close to, a member of my family,' reveals Dali, who scored in France's group-stage victory over Colombia in Lyon to help them reach the quarter-finals. 'I don't want to say who but that really affected me personally. The Olympics were really, really difficult for me because this person used to be at all my national team games. 'I didn't want to play the Olympics because I was grieving and it happened two weeks before. My teammates convinced me to stay, Hervé Renard [France's coach at the time] was amazing to me. I ate with the team and participated with training and meetings and then I was going to see my family. So the Olympics were really tough.' And then she returned to her club. 'After the Olympics I got time off, because of my circumstances, and then I arrived at Villa. I was really happy to come back but the new manager [Robert de Pauw] didn't want me there,' she says. Sign up to Moving the Goalposts No topic is too small or too big for us to cover as we deliver a twice-weekly roundup of the wonderful world of women's football after newsletter promotion 'I still don't know the reason, but he made it clear that he didn't want me there. So I was like: 'Wow, this is a shock,' because I had been really looking forward to [returning to] Villa. 'I waited until the winter. Then they changed manager again [to Natalia Arroyo after Shaun Goater had briefly been in charge on an interim basis] and my contract was until the end of June, so I went straight to the club and said that I'm staying even if the offer from San Diego was massive [because], for me, Villa was home. But I didn't feel the club wanted me to stay. They didn't make me feel that I was a priority any more.' 'San Diego really put everything in for me to come and, after all that had happened for me, I really wanted to be in an environment that I was valued,' Dali adds. 'This is a completely honest answer that I've never shared, this is what happened. Jonas really wanted me. He explained to me his gameplan and where he sees me in his system, and he convinced me. I had other offers but I picked San Diego. I'm glad I did it because I'm enjoying my football again.' Dali, who helped France reach the Euro 2022 semi-finals, is not only enjoying playing for San Diego but, more broadly, playing in the NWSL: 'The massive difference is the fact that every team is playing for a title,' she says. 'In England you're starting the league thinking: 'I'm going to try my best to finish top five.' The top four never really change. In America, because of the salary cap and everything that is different here, I feel like everyone has the same level. But I love English football, England is the country of football. That's why it was really hard for me to leave. 'When I start a competition, I want to win as many games as I can,' she adds. 'I'd prefer to lose 5–0 but [know I] tried than to park the bus and concede three. This is not my vision of football. 'Our first objective here was to qualify for the playoffs but, as a group, we want so much more. We're kind of going step by step. It's a completely brand-new team. With 11 or more new players, what we're doing right now is unbelievable. I do think we have the team to compete for something big.'
The Guardian
22-05-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
France drop Renard, Le Sommer and Dali in shock cull before Women's Euros
France have dropped their captain Wendie Renard, their vice-captain Eugénie Le Sommer and the experienced midfielder Kenza Dali for their upcoming Nations League games with little prospect of either making a return for this summer's Euros. Laurent Bonadei's side face Switzerland and Iceland in the international window. There had been reports of the trio being left out but the announcement still came as a shock to many. France are one of the favourites for the European Championship in Switzerland but have been drawn in a tough group with England, the Netherlands and Wales. 'These are tough choices,' Bonadei said. 'They are difficult to make and difficult to announce to the players. It's a decision that's hard to hear, hard to understand and almost impossible for them to accept because they're legendary players for the French team. 'I didn't make this decision on the spur of the moment. You'd think, given the timing, that this is crazy but it's not. As Einstein said: 'Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.' I want different results for this team so I have gone with a different selection.' France have never won a major tournament and were eliminated by Brazil in the quarter-finals of last summer's Olympics in Paris. Renard, Le Sommer and Dali were all in that squad. Bonadei refused to confirm whether they were definitely out for the Euros but did say: 'It's something I've been thinking about since the start of the season. When I announced at the start of the season that everyone had a chance, that no one was indispensable, in my mind it wasn't just about giving young players a chance but also players who had suffered psychologically after the Olympic Games and making sure that everyone was involved.' Le Sommer and Renard have partly paid for their lack of playing time over the last few national team gatherings. The forward, who has 200 caps for Les Bleues and was due to be honoured for that feat in Nancy before the game against Switzerland on 30 June, played just 27 minutes in Les Bleus' last four matches. Renard missed three of those through injury with her former OL teammate Griedge Mbock shining alongside Maëlle Lakrar against Ada Hegerberg's Norway. Sign up to Moving the Goalposts No topic is too small or too big for us to cover as we deliver a twice-weekly roundup of the wonderful world of women's football after newsletter promotion 'Things happened naturally, with a mix of generations in the first few games and we racked up four wins from four Nations League matches. In those four games the playing time for these players was fairly limited. My thoughts were refined, in consultation with my staff, so I made my decision,' Bonadei said before explaining that he called each of them on Tuesday to let them know about his decision before Thursday's announcement.
