England faces Germany on Sunday in the final of Euro 2022 and Faye White recounted the Euro 2009 final when Germany ran out 6-2 winners. The game was played at a time when Germany was enjoying total dominance in women’s football. It was their seventh European Championship title and only the second final for the Lionesses. This time around the tie is too close to call.
“There was excitement because we’d never got that far before and no one expected us to do it at the time either. The difference between the two teams was quite massive, they were going for their seventh title and had Inka Grings and Birgit Prinz, their goalkeeper Nadine Angerer was so dominant in the women’s game at that time,” Faye White said talking about the Euro 2009 final. “For us, it was our first final, but at the moment, it was ‘come on, we can do this, we’re in a final, we’ve got to give it everything and you believe it. We stuck with them for about 60 minutes, it was 3-2 at that point, and then they went from third in fifth gear and that’s their experience. You underestimate the nerves and even in the days leading up to it, how much it can drain out of you with the whole excitement of it.”
“Equally, it was a different comparison as far as what they had experienced and how they handled the occasion compared to us,” she added. “I remember things like going to the stadium the night before to train and you walk out, looking around and visualizing how it’s going to be the next day. You just want a good training session to feel good about the next day as a group and you want to take it all in, but you have to be focused as well.”
Also, Read Sue Smith: We prepared for Germany but they were too strong
