Day 13 of the FIFA Women’s World Cup delivered the excitement as the Netherlands started the day with a dominant performance while the United States barely hung on to make it to the round of 16.
England finally made its statement win after not being able to make the splash it wanted, and Denmark secured second spot in Group D with a comfortable win.
THE RESULTS
Group D: Denmark 2, Haiti 0 (in Perth) – Game stats || Report
Group D: England 6, China 1 (in Adelaide) – Game stats || Report
Group E: Netherlands 7, Vietnam 0 (in Dunedin) – Game stats || Report
Group E: United States 0, Portugal 0 (in Auckland) – Game stats || Report
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MAIN TALKING POINTS
Netherlands thrashes Vietnam to top Group E
Group E was always going to be a battle between the 2019 Women’s World Cup champions and finalists, United States and Netherlands, but after its showing against Vietnam, it was the Dutch who finished the group stage on top after a 7-0 win over Vietnam.
Even without all-time top goalscorer Vivianne Miedema, who is out with an ACL injury, the Dutch had no trouble finding the back of the net against Vietnam as Lieke Martens gave the Netherlands the lead after just eight minutes.
Martens was one of five different goal scorers, as Katja Snoeijs added a second four minutes later before Esmee Brugts curled a shot from outside of the box to give the Netherlands a 3-0 lead after 18 minutes. Manchester City summer signing Jill Roord tapped in a fourth, and her first of two on the day, after only 28 minutes.
Danielle Van de Donk added a fifth before Brugts added another curling shot and Roord netted her second of the day for the biggest winning margin of the tournament so far.
England finally get its statement win
A 1-0 win over Haiti and a 1-0 win over Denmark were far from the dominant results England was hoping for, but a day after the one-year anniversary of winning the 2022 EURO in dramatic fashion, the Lionesses finally made a Women’s World Cup statement with a 6-1 win over China.
Trying to fill the Keira Walsh-shaped hole in her lineup, England’s star defensive midfielder, Sarina Wiegman opted for a 3-5-2 formation that would be the podium to give one of England’s other stars a chance to be a crucial No. 10: Lauren James.
Arsenal summer signing Alessia Russo fired low into the corner to open the floodgates just four minutes into the match before James found Lauren Hemp for England’s second goal of the half and a goal of her own in the 41st minute.
China would get its lone goal of the match as the team was awarded a penalty early in the second half after a ball appeared to hit the chest of Lucy Bronze, and Racing Louisville’s Wang Shuang put the penalty away.
But even with multiple players on yellow cards and cautious going into the round of 16 against Nigeria, James, Chloe Kelly and Rachel Daly all doubled England’s goal tally as James set up Kelly for her third assist of the night, proving to be the unstoppable force teams will have trouble figuring out.
United States escapes Portugal in scoreless draw
The back-to-back defending world champs had all the hope in the world for a rerun after its 3-0 win over Vietnam where Sophia Smith bagged a brace, but since then, the journey through Group E has been underwhelming for the Americans.
The ending did not, in the end, go completely wrong: The United States players held on desperately to preserve a 0-0 tie with Portugal, a result that delivered them, safely but scared out of their wits, to the knockout rounds of the Women’s World Cup.
The United States was within inches of going home in the group stage as a shot from Portuguese forward Ana Capeta hit the post in second-half injury time. The United States failed to create scoring chances, and when the team did like when Lindsey Horan set up Alex Morgan in the 53rd minute, could not capitalize to find the back of the net.
Portugal controlled the match in the first half, forcing the United States to defend from a low position as its players controlled possession and made way into the final third as Jessica Silva swerved into pockets between Crystal Dunn and Naomi Girma. The Americans may have escaped doing just enough to advance, but the once untouchable champions looked disconnected.
GOAL OF THE DAY
Not only did Rachel Daly beautifully volley the ball mid-air to score England’s sixth and final goal of the day, but Daly has worn a wristband with the word “Dad” to pay tribute to her father, and celebrated by kissing her wrist and pointing to the sky after scoring her first-ever World Cup goal.
MOMENT OF THE DAY
While the Football Ferns made history for the wrong reasons days earlier by bowing out of the competition, some happier history was made as Portugal vs. United States broke the record for the biggest football attendance — men’s or women’s — in New Zealand, as 42,958 people went out to Eden Park to watch the match.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“There’s a difference between being respectful of the fans and saying hello to your family but to be dancing? To be smiling? I mean, the player of the match was that post. You’re lucky to not be going home right now.” — former USWNT player Carli Lloyd after United States drew Portugal 0-0
THREE STARS OF THE DAY
1. Lauren James, England: Not only was James unstoppable and exactly what England needed to make a statement, but with two goals and three assists against China she became the youngest player to be directly involved in five goals in a single Women’s World Cup match at 21 years old.
2. Jill Roord, Netherlands: 13 shots, five shots on target, two goals, seven duels won, and three tackles are just some of the numbers Roord put up in a dominant game against Vietnam, as she has the most shots attempted by a single player in a game in the 2023 competition so far.
3. Pernille Harder, Denmark: Harder converted from the penalty spot against Haiti, which was the 100th goal scored of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and also her first World Cup goal that gave Denmark a 1-0 lead in the match.
LOOKING AHEAD
Groups F and G will be in action tomorrow with Argentina taking on Sweden and South Africa facing off against Italy in Group G action, both at 3 a.m. ET, followed by Group F’s Panama clashing with France and Jamaica kicking off against Brazil at 6 a.m. ET.
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