There was a time when Belgium women’s national team could not even imagine qualifying for the biggest competitions.

Then, under the guidance of Ives Serneels, who arrived in 2011 and remains in charge to this day, the Red Flames came close to qualifying for the 2013 UEFA Women’s EURO and the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015™ before finally turning a corner by reaching their first major tournament, EURO 2017 in neighbouring Netherlands.

A magical tournament followed in which the Belgians reached the quarter-finals, where they were edged out 1-0 by Sweden in added time. Nicky Evrard, among others, put in some exceptional performances, showings which included penalty saves against both Iceland and France in the group stage.

Today, the goalkeeper and her team-mates continue to hold their own against the women’s game’s elite outfit. Recently, they beat the Netherlands 2-1 in the UEFA Women’s Nations League – a qualifying tournament for the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament Paris 2024 – before drawing 1-1 with Scotland and suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat to England, finalists at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™.

Ahead of the second leg against the reigning European champions, Chelsea goalkeeper Nicky Evrard, who is on loan at Brighton & Hove Albion, spoke to FIFA. The 28-year-old – who was awarded the 2022 Women’s Golden Boot as the best player in Belgium – spoke about the possible reasons for the Red Flames’ progress, her sadness at not qualifying for the 2023 World Cup after a European play-off defeat to Portugal, and the nominees for The Best FIFA Women’s Goalkeeper award.