Belgium 3-2 England – Wasteful England’s errors punished again
In another meeting with Belgium, this time in Leuven, saw England wasteful in front of goal again.
In their first match against Belgium (in England) the Lionesses won 1-0 but they had plenty of possession and shots. It led manager Sarina Weigman to call for her team to be more clinical in front of the goal, take time and be patient in possession – her calls were not answered by her players.
Once again, sloppy passes and failures to find the back of the net saw England throw points, meaning qualifying for the Olympics now looks like a tough task.
Belgium’s victory puts them in a strong position to progress. They currently sit second in the table, two points behind the Netherlands but with a head-to-head advantage.
It leaves European champions England, who reached the World Cup final in August, in a precarious position.
Belgium went ahead with De Neve’s free-kick in the first half, before two quick goals by England saw the Lionesses ahead at the break.
Lucy Bronze’s header found the back of the net, followed by a goal from Fran Kirby, who returned to the starting XI for the first time since October 2022 following knee surgery.
But an excellent ball through the middle, splitting England’s defence saw Belgium back equal, before being awarded a penalty after Georgia Stanway was penalised for handball.
It capped off another frustrating performance from England, who have suffered with defensive errors, poor passes and a lack of accuracy in front of goal.