Netherlands:

Charlotte Englebert (24) crowned herself the match winner of the Oosterplas on Thursday. The Belgian international, who had a rock-solid second season with Den Bosch, used the decisive shoot-out in the blood-curdling final against SCHC to seal the historic treble. She now breathes the Bossche DNA as if she has been playing in black and yellow for ten years. ‘SCHC’s statements only excited us more.’

Amid patient autograph hunters – with a gold medal dangling around her neck – Englebert tells her story. Still beaming from ear to ear, but as cool as she looked in the one-on-one duel with SCHC goalkeeper and compatriot Elodie Picard, she was so nervous leading up to the match. Englebert, no longer a rookie with 84 international games for the Red Panthers, had to pull herself together mentally.

‘I was initially number six on the shoot-out list, but because of Laura [Nunnink’s] injury, I moved up a spot,’ Englebert said. ‘When I heard that, there was a moment of panic. Just ask my girlfriend, haha. I just thought shit, shit, shit, now I really have to take one when it comes down to it.’

‘I didn’t play my best game’

Immediately in her mind haunted that one painful memory: the missed shoot-out against Argentina in the battle for Olympic bronze. Partly because of that, Belgium missed out on a historic medal – and Englebert had a lot of sleepless nights. ‘My girlfriend said: you are now focusing on that miss, while you have also scored so many times with shoot-outs. I started working on a plan. Elo knows me through and through from the national team, so I wanted to do something unexpected. I opted for a little seesaw, which she still half-turned. Fortunately, I was sharp on the rebound. My heart almost stopped, but it worked.’

What followed was an enormous release and a long sprint towards her teammates, who waited for her overjoyed. In desperation, SCHC asked for a video replay, but the shoot-out was clear. End of match. National title number 23 for Den Bosch, and the second in a row for Englebert.

‘I was angry with myself, because I didn’t play my best game,’ she says honestly. ‘First, I defended a ball sloppily, allowing SCHC to score the equalizer before halftime. And in the closing stages I also grabbed a stupid green card which put us in a deficit. It was therefore not an option for me to miss that shoot-out.’

WV2025 WV2R4700 scaled - Netherlands: - Charlotte Englebert (24) crowned herself the match winner of the Oosterplas on Thursday. The Belgian international, who had a rock-solid second season with Den Bosch, used the decisive shoot-out in the blood-curdling final against SCHC to seal the historic treble. She now breathes the Bossche DNA as if she has been playing in black and yellow for ten years. 'SCHC's statements only excited us more.'

Englebert at the center of the Bossche celebration. Photo: Willem Vernes

Mental steps taken

She says it with the conviction befitting a champion. In her second season with Den Bosch, Englebert revealed herself more and more emphatically as the versatile attacking midfielder she has been for years in the Belgian shirt as well. After a relatively anonymous first year, she threw off all her shyness and with ten goals in all competitions contributed significantly to the drive of coach Marieke Dijkstra’s team.

‘I did indeed have a better season than last year,’ Englebert agrees. ‘I had a fixed position in the forward line on which I could really focus. That felt good. And I think above all I have grown mentally. During team meetings I now dare to have my say. That was not so obvious last year.’

WV2025 WV2R4583 - Netherlands: - Charlotte Englebert (24) crowned herself the match winner of the Oosterplas on Thursday. The Belgian international, who had a rock-solid second season with Den Bosch, used the decisive shoot-out in the blood-curdling final against SCHC to seal the historic treble. She now breathes the Bossche DNA as if she has been playing in black and yellow for ten years. 'SCHC's statements only excited us more.'

Charlotte Englebert concentrates on her shoot-out against Elodie Picard. Photo: Willem Vernes

Ten percent extra for Nunnink

That Englebert could not be as dominant in the final as she was earlier this season also had to do with the absence of Nunnink. Alternately, Emma Reijnen, Imme van der Hoek and Englebert herself played in the controlling role that the long-term injured Nunnink normally fills with suppleness.

‘Laura is actually irreplaceable,’ Englebert said with respect for her teammate on crutches. ‘I’ve been up front all season, so secretly I was excited to take this role. We had to watch, shift, adjust a lot … but the three of us handled it well. Her injury actually gave us extra energy: we really gave ten percent extra against SCHC – for her.’

Finally, Englebert reveals another source of energy. ‘The interviews of the coach of SCHC… When you say with such conviction that you will become champion, that only excites us more. His statements hung with us in the locker room. They wanted to play a mental game, but in the end they lost it.’