After the heroic comeback against Rosenborg BK last Wednesday, which earned PSV Women a spot in the next round of the UEFA Women's Europa Cup, Sunday the competition awaits. In Utrecht, Roeland ten Berge 's team will meet an opponent that regularly gives them a hard time. Defender Emma Frijns is still enjoying Wednesday's match, but at the same time she emphasizes the importance of full focus.
After the spectacular remontada in Eindhoven, PSV Women especially radiates resilience, perseverance and confidence heading into Sunday. The narrow 1-0 victory over Excelsior Rotterdam in the opening round already gave three points, but the away game against FC Utrecht promises to be at least as tough a challenge.
Looking back on European stunt
After the sensational comeback against Rosenborg, which earned PSV Women a ticket to the next round of the European Cup, defender Emma Frijns looks back on that night with pride. "Beforehand we knew it was going to be tough, but we had a lot of faith in it as a team. Everything fell our way in the end," she says. Especially the early opening goal gave confidence: "After the 1-0 after three minutes, it felt like our scenario came into effect. The second goal just before halftime and the quick 3-0 after the break, followed by a red card for Rosenborg, meant that everything fell into place at exactly the right time."
The switch to the league
Yet little time remains to dwell on the European success. The focus had to quickly return to the league. "We had a day off to recover properly and then immediately looked ahead tactically to Sunday. Everyone can turn the knob quickly. Wednesday was super nice, but the competition goes on and that's where our focus is now," Emma explained.
A look ahead to FC Utrecht
Sunday awaits FC Utrecht, a team that has given PSV a strong performance in the last three meetings. Twice PSV Women won, but the most recent encounter, in November 2024, went 3-2 to FC Utrecht. Emma Frijns expects another attractive match: "Both teams like to play football and that suits us. We want to play our own game and be on the ball a lot." According to her, the difference will mainly be in details: "In the build-up and field position we have to be careful and be good defensively. If we put FC Utrecht under pressure early and give them little space, we have a good chance of taking the three points."