Lieke Martens

The Netherlands, after playing with fire and group stage elimination at Euro 2022, reeled off three goals in the final minutes to turn a precarious 1-1 scoreline against Switzerland into an emphatic victory on Sunday, although the reward of passage to the quarterfinals is sobered by the fact that it's France lying in wait.

Playing again without star striker Vivianne Miedema — who was still experiencing Covid symptoms — the Dutch looked much less than the sum of their parts against a stubborn Swiss defense that threatened on the attack through the dazzling feet of Ramona Bachmann.

On Wednesday, July 6 at Old Trafford, England and Austria kick off the opening match of what's expected to be a thrilling and highly competitive Women’s European Championship. When looking at the groups, it's stunning to see just how many blockbuster matches are lined up. In anticipation, we’ve picked out our top five games you definitely need to circle on the calendar.

Netherlands vs. Sweden

Date: Saturday, July 9 | Time: 3:00 p.m. ET | TV: ESPN2

Paris Saint-Germain signed Lieke Martens on a three-year contract after the Dutch forward left Barcelona, the French club announced on Friday.

Martens joins PSG on a free transfer after her contract at Barcelona was set to expire this month. The 29-year-old had earlier confirmed her Barca exit on Instagram, saying it was "time for another adventure."

Barcelona Femení's remarkable 2021-22 season continued Wednesday with a 5-0 victory over Sporting Huelva at Johan Cruyff Stadium. Dutch winger Lieke Martens has been the star of the show recently, and she went top of the Primera División scoring chart with a hat trick after 73 minutes before also assisting on an Alexia Putellas goal.

The first Martens goal was a right-footed volley in the 34th-minute that was hit with too much power for goalkeeper Chelsea Ashurst to deal with.

The USWNT has been far from impressive at the Tokyo Olympics. The defense has been shaky, the midfield often overrun and the forwards unable to stay onside. But Team USA is through to the medal rounds thanks to the heroics of goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, the one constant this tournament.

Speaking from firsthand experience, I know how hard it can be on your body to wake up in the middle of the night to watch Olympic soccer played in Japan. I thought it was fun in 2002 for the World Cup, but my body rebelled hard after the first day of play on Wednesday. 

And yet, I can’t wait to wake up early for the next Group F match, because those games have been stupidly entertaining at the 2020 Olympics.