The final round of Women’s World Cup group-stage fixtures sees Group D leaders England take on third-placed China at Brisbane’s Hindmarsh Stadium on Tuesday.
Having won each of their two games so far, England find themselves three points clear at the summit of Group D, with Denmark and China both on three points.
Tricks, flicks & touches ✨ pic.twitter.com/yYLflcYf5O— Lionesses (@Lionesses) July 30, 2023
Tricks, flicks & touches ✨ pic.twitter.com/yYLflcYf5O
Although fourth-placed Haiti have no points ahead of the final round of group-stage fixtures, all four teams in Group D still have a chance to qualify for the knockout phase.
England kicked off their campaign with a 1-0 victory over Haiti, although the Lionesses deserved to come away with a bigger win, having racked up 75% possession and 21 shots.
The reigning European champions defeated Denmark by the same scoreline in their second match, with Lauren James scoring an excellent goal inside six minutes.
Again, England dominated proceedings against Denmark, registering 13 shots while enjoying 71% of the ball, so they will be confident of dispatching China.
That said, the Lionesses have only managed to win two of their past five games in normal time, recording two draws and one loss in the process.
Aa for China, they suffered a 1-0 defeat to Denmark in their opening match, with Amalie Vangsgaard scoring the winner for the Danes in the 89th minute.
Six days later, China bounced back to claim a 1-0 victory over Haiti, despite playing the majority of the game with 10 players after Zhang Rui’s 29th-minute red card.
Thanks to two friendly wins and one draw earlier this month, China have lost just one of their previous five encounters across all competitions.
When you look at the bigger picture, China have suffered just two defeats in their last eight games, so they will fancy their chances of causing an upset on Tuesday.
Head-to-head: England and China’s only previous meeting came during the 2005 edition of the Algarve Cup, with the Asian nation defeating the European side 1-0 on that occasion.
However, given that England and China last faced each other almost two decades ago, you can’t read too much into the only previous result.
Team news: England and Barcelona midfielder Keira Walsh will miss Tuesday’s clash after sustaining a knee injury in the victory over Denmark last time out.
On the flip side, China will be without suspended midfielder Zhang Rui following her red card against Haiti last time out.
Ultimately, when you consider the gulf in quality between these two sides, all the signs point towards a comfortable England victory on Tuesday.
Forebet predicts that England will secure a high-scoring win over China, with the Lionesses also expected to keep a clean sheet.