FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 is inching toward the beginning of the Round of 16. That is the first knockout round that starts on August 05, 2023. Some of the recent events have given the world four more teams that are now qualified to participate in the Round of 16. These are England, the Netherlands, Denmark, and the US.
All four events stand out in one way or another. For instance, England’s win against China marks yet another huge margin victory in the tournament. The English side was able to net the ball 6 times as the Chinese dragon was restricted to just a single goal. Lauren James made it past the keeper two times in the 41st and 65th minutes.
Her contribution goes further with her three times assisting in setting up the ball for other teammates. Wang Shuang managed to make sure that they left the tournament with some dignity. As for Laura James, she now features on the list of top scorers with a total of 3 goals against her name. The list is topped by Hinata Miyazawa with 4 goals.
England is now the second team to have qualified for the knockout stage with three wins from the group stage. The first one was Japan hailing from Group C. England, and Nigeria will not lock horns on August 07, 2023, to confirm a spot in the Quarter-Final.
The Netherlands and Vietnam marked another crucial event on the same day. The Dutch team understood the assignment of keeping a wide margin in the number of goals. That could have played an imperative role had England lost its event against China. This powered them to bring in 4 goals in just 25 minutes of the game. Doubles were scored by Esmee Brugts and Jill Roord.
Needless to say, the Netherlands did not just stop there. Instead, they demonstrated their stand on winning the title in this edition.
Having said that, the US is looking at a time when their fans want them to defend the title but are unsure if that will actually happen. They landed a goalless draw against Portugal, marking the second consecutive time when they neither bagged a victory nor lost a point to defeat. The previous draw was against the Netherlands, with both teams scoring a single goal each. FIFA betting sites still have them in the list of favorites; however, such a performance raises questions about the way they would contest in the knockout.
Their opponent in the Round of 16 will be decided in the remaining two days of group matches.
Denmark only had to win the match. So, they did. The opener came from the penalty shoot, which was delivered by Pernille Harder in the 21st minute. The final blow came in the extra time over the 90th minute. Sanne Nielsen managed to bag the net in the concluding moments of the match.
The side will next face the Aussies on August 07, 2023, in the Round of 16 of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023.
