Barefoot or patent shoe? At the Women’s World Cup it is now in the knockout system to the point. On Thursday, the first of the four quarter-finals will rise. Now there are no excuses. But who is still represented in the tournament, who knows anyway what it is about. Either the big title candidates or teams that have already won a lot. Such a duel is in the first quarterfinals. That’s where Norway, the 1995 World Cup champion, Olympic champion of 2000 and two-time European champion, faces the England team, who were already considered one of the favorites at the World Cup in France.
That’s why England should also be in favor of this match. Norway is not to be underestimated even without top star Ada Hegerberg. By the way, this had voluntarily renounced the World Cup in order to point to the, in their opinion, too little financial appreciation in women’s football. Against the Three Lionesses, the Scandinavians could but their Sturmführerin very good use. Under the given conditions, it may be appropriate in the quarter-final between Norway and England to forecast a victory for the Britons.
For Norway, however, it is not only about the semi-finals, where France or the USA will be waiting for a very big chunk, but also for the ticket for the Olympics. A victory against the English women would be half the battle. Otherwise, the games in Tokyo threaten without the Norwegians on the stage to go, although there is also the possibility to compete in a decision-making tournament. The jump to the semi-finals would definitely increase the chances. We think that England is a little bit stronger, but that does not mean that we would have to place a tip on the team of Phil Neville in the match between Norway and England. In the round of 16, we liked the ex-world champion a bit better. The kick-off for the quarter-finals at the 2019 Women’s World Cup between Norway and England at the Le Havre Stade Oceane will take place on 27/06/2019 at 20:00.
Norway:
The Norwegians have a team that has a tremendous will. This team has not lacked a playful class anyway. The failure of Ada Hegerberg therefore seems to be compensable, because after all, the team of Martin Sjögren has already advanced to the quarterfinals. Norway have taken four wins from their last five games, beaten only by the hosts and title favorites France at this World Cup. Therefore, it might be worthwhile to check the odds on the progress of the Scandinavians in the game between Norway and England. If the ex-world champion appears in the same way as in the last sixteen against Australia, then we would trust the Norwegians everything. However, the team of Martin Sjögren also had to put down an absolute energy output there. It went against the matildas over 120 minutes. It will have to show if the batteries will be replenished by Thursday.
For a long time it looked as if Norway would bring the game home in normal time. After half an hour Isabel Herlovsen shot her team 1-0 lead. The preliminary decision would have been possible several times, but in the 83rd minute the Matildas came by directly transformed corner to equalize. No goals were scored until the 120th minute. On penalties, the Norwegians but the better nerves. Caroline Hansen, Guro Riding, Maren Mjelde and Ingrid Syrstad Engen scored from the point while Australia missed twice.
Now the team looks forward to the game against England, because four years ago they failed at the World Cup in Canada in the second round to the Three Lionesses. Now it’s time to get the revenge. As things stand, all players are fit. Even the battered Caroline Hansen, who delivered an outstanding game against Australia, should be fully restored again.
England:
The English women will fulfill their intended role in this World Cup so far. The team of Phil Neville has continued to win all matches in France. With four wins in a row, it could actually mean that the motherland of football, which is forever waiting for a title of the Three Lions, is now being redeemed by the ladies. The English women can compete with the strongest teams in the world, that means they belong to them. The biggest success in the history of English ladies remains the semifinal four years ago in Canada. The Eleven of Phil Neville wants to stop this at least once on Thursday. A victory against the Norwegians is the prerequisite. No wonder then that the Three Lionesses do not want to know about revenge. Nevertheless, in the duel between Norway and England a prognosis for a victory of the Britons is by no means without alternative.
A very strange game had to complete the English women in the second round against Cameroon. Numerous close decisions required the video evidence, so that in both halves together a total of 17 minutes had to be replayed. These are probably the downsides of the VAR, which evaluated almost every controversial scene against Cameroon in this game. Of course it can be so, but sometimes even offside positions with an imaginary line could hardly be detected. In the meantime it was clear that the Africans did not want to continue playing.
As long as their morale was still intact, they delivered a hot fight. In the end, England won 3-0 thanks to goals from Steph Houghton, Ellen White and Alex Greenwood. Phil Neville felt shame for the adversary’s behavior. However, it is not the fine English way to follow after such a game against a downed counterparty. That is but yesterday’s snow. Now it is time to prepare the team for Norway, at least to stop a historic success.
