Two great goals from Colombia and good to see skill after the poor quality of the earlier game. Excellent play by Germany for their goal and skill on winning the penalty.
@Leuth please watch and try to say positive things when they happen to counter balance the poor shite that you like to share.
As Hayes has just said many of the Colombian women play in Spain.
Also agree Spain and Japan are the best so far with skill and movement.
I've said some nice things here and there!
I seem to have gotten the worst of it with the games I've watched. Feels like most of the good games are ones I've missed. That first Colombia goal was great
Thanks for answering Leuth and TBF it is pot luck and the group games go from the ridiculous to the sublime. (Normally the other way round !) Pleased you saw that there is skill but like buses you can wait sometime before a couple of examples show up. Switzerland have been involved in 2 boring games, ( it may have been 3 ?) and they are well coached which makes it worse as they keep their shape while we fall asleep.
Last season I went to 3 WSL matches but I do tend to watch the elite teams. Chelsea, Man City and my favourite WSL team Arsenal. I was gutted when Vivienne Miedema, Beth Mead and Williamson did their ACL's. 3 players from the same team (Arsenal) shows what an issue it is in the women's game.
If you have never watched Spain before this may be a shock to you but they love the ball and don't like giving it away. Japan will play 5-4-1 but high press in numbers when going forward.
Both teams have 6 points so may lack jeopardy but quality will be in abundance.
2-0 and brilliant counter attacking by the Japanese and the Spanish look shell shocked. Spain will continue to probe and they will still have the 5-4-1 to break down.
Japanese defence isn't over tall and yet the first high cross has just been put into the box.
Huge blow for Spain. Not in terms of the last 16 as i don't think there's that much difference between playing Switzerland and Norway, but it now means that they'll likely have to face USA in the quarters.
Questions surely have to be asked of the Spain manager if he fails at this WC. He's been there since 2015, a period in which the national team should've done a lot better than they have given how good Barcelona are. In 2 Euro's they got knocked out at the quarters both times, and in the 2019 world cup they only made the last 16.
On top of that there was a player revolt last year where a number of the squad demanded his sacking, claiming his management wasn't at the level required. Poor training sessions, tactics, team selection, game management etc. What did the Spanish federation do........they extended his contract.
Possession is the most pointless statistic in football
Agree when the team with just 23% possession are clinical and the team with 77% can't create a clear cut chance.
Japan and the USA are polar opposites the way they play but look stronger than the jaded European sides so far with back to back Euro's and WC.
You don't win tournament football in the group games but you can certainly lay down a marker and the Japanese with 9 points and 11 goals and every outfield player getting game time except for 1 player certainly have.
Eni Aluko is more relaxed as a pundit on ITV in the studio with other women, talking about female players she knows well. She was too nervous talking live on games in men's football and she scored some OG's.
Ellen White and Fran Kirby are very tactical in their appraisal though I did find Ellen's words that without Keira Walsh we have no plan B, a tad disturbing 😱 We will have by tomorrow against China.
No disrespect meant to Laura Coombes in saying she was a journey women footballer because she has a great work rate and attitude but Keira Walsh is yet another big loss to this England team/squad short of so many big hitters because of injuries and retirements.
To lose one host would be careless. To lose two hosts before the round of 16 would be a disaster. The result was so much more important than the performance. Matildas are waltzing into the KO last 16.
Comments
Thanks for answering Leuth and TBF it is pot luck and the group games go from the ridiculous to the sublime. (Normally the other way round !) Pleased you saw that there is skill but like buses you can wait sometime before a couple of examples show up.
Switzerland have been involved in 2 boring games, ( it may have been 3 ?) and they are well coached which makes it worse as they keep their shape while we fall asleep.
Last season I went to 3 WSL matches but I do tend to watch the elite teams. Chelsea, Man City and my favourite WSL team Arsenal. I was gutted when Vivienne Miedema, Beth Mead and Williamson did their ACL's.
3 players from the same team (Arsenal) shows what an issue it is in the women's game.
Japan will play 5-4-1 but high press in numbers when going forward.
Both teams have 6 points so may lack jeopardy but quality will be in abundance.
1-0 and this should be interesting.
Best two teams I've seen technically.
2-0 on the break again. Bloody awesome football.
Spain will continue to probe and they will still have the 5-4-1 to break down.
Japanese defence isn't over tall and yet the first high cross has just been put into the box.
3-0 superb
3-0 and they have totally negated Spain's possession game.
Spain 77% Japan 23% possession.
Japan have just had the 3 shots !
Spain had conceded 2 goals in 13 matches before KO today.
That is normally the weakest part of Japan's game over many WC'S.
Number 7 is Miyazawa and has scored 2 today and 4 in this WC and her pace and finishing has been sublime in that 1st half.
She was taken off at HT because Japan are here to win this World cup.
Agree with the Irish co-commentator they are just sitting in and not high pressing this half.
Excellent game management by Japan.
She plays in Japan so she's got to now be on the radar of some European clubs after this.
4-0 and Spain are discombobulated.
On top of that there was a player revolt last year where a number of the squad demanded his sacking, claiming his management wasn't at the level required. Poor training sessions, tactics, team selection, game management etc. What did the Spanish federation do........they extended his contract.
Agree when the team with just 23% possession are clinical and the team with 77% can't create a clear cut chance.
Japan and the USA are polar opposites the way they play but look stronger than the jaded European sides so far with back to back Euro's and WC.
You don't win tournament football in the group games but you can certainly lay down a marker and the Japanese with 9 points and 11 goals and every outfield player getting game time except for 1 player certainly have.
She was too nervous talking live on games in men's football and she scored some OG's.
Ellen White and Fran Kirby are very tactical in their appraisal though I did find Ellen's words that without Keira Walsh we have no plan B, a tad disturbing 😱
We will have by tomorrow against China.
No disrespect meant to Laura Coombes in saying she was a journey women footballer because she has a great work rate and attitude but Keira Walsh is yet another big loss to this England team/squad short of so many big hitters because of injuries and retirements.
Looked offside to me
To lose two hosts before the round of 16 would be a disaster.
The result was so much more important than the performance.
Matildas are waltzing into the KO last 16.