Australia and England want to meet Spain
The hostess and the European champion seek the second ticket to the World Cup final
MADRID, 15 Ago. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Australia and England will seek this Wednesday (12:00 pm peninsular time / La 1) to advance to the final of the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, where a launched Spain is already waiting, a match for which the locals will assert their status as hosts, encouraged by a A packed stadium, against an English team, current European champions, who are favorites and have more experience in these rounds, although they have not played their best football yet.
After Spain made history by sealing a historic ticket to the World Cup final, it remains to be resolved who will be their rival to win the coveted trophy. And it will be disputed by the host Australia, which closes the ‘top 10’ of the FIFA ranking, and an England that has not been convincing during the tournament, despite going as European champions and having one of the most complete squads.
In the case of the oceanic, they arrive at the important duel driven, not only by stadiums full of local fans, but also by their sports performance. They qualified for the round of 16 by thrashing (0-4) Canada, Olympic champion; in the first match he got rid of (2-0) with solvency of the Danish team; and in the quarterfinals it took the longest penalty shootout in the history of the tournament to throw out France, one of the candidates.
Thus, the ‘Matildas’ want to defend their status as a ‘surprise’ in these semifinals, since they have never reached this stage in a World Cup. Quite the opposite of their rivals, who have already reached this round in the Canada 2015 and France 2019 editions. Although their memory is not good, since England was defeated 2-1 on both occasions.
In addition, in the last match between the two teams, a friendly last April, Australia won (0-2) to break the streak of 30 games without losing that Sarina Wiegman’s team had. The English have prevailed in two of the last four direct duels, although none in a major tournament.
Australia also has its strength and defensive solidity as a great asset, with four clean sheets in this World Cup -the only team with this data among those who are semifinalists-, three of them, the most recent, consecutively. An iron model that will face an English team that has scored 11 goals in the tournament, with a 1-6 win against China as a great win.
Those of Wiegman, the only female coach of the four semifinalist teams and who wants to certify their fourth consecutive major tournament final, will try to prevent the Australians from having the option of becoming the first hosts to win the World Cup. To do this, they must confirm their first final in a World Cup, after those two failed attempts.
A prize that seems more complicated than it might seem, a priori, for the fourth classified in the FIFA ranking, undefeated so far in the tournament. And it is that his game has not been as lucid as it was in the last Euro Cup, in which they were crowned, far from the superiority that was assumed.
Without such a recognizable style and far from its most forceful version, the ‘Lionesses’ cannot dance with uncertainty again, as happened with Nigeria, round of 16 and penalties, and Colombia, against which they had to come back to reach the semifinals. .
England presents the loss of the suspended Lauren James, so Wiegman will continue betting on the 3-5-2 with Hemp and Russo in attack, although there could be variants to finally hit the key. In Australia, Kerr played 65 minutes against France and coach Tony Gustavsson will be able to count on his captain starting for the first time at the World Cup.
DATASHEET.
–POSSIBLE ALIGNMENTS:
AUSTRALIA: Arnold; Catley, Kennedy, Hunt, Carpenter; Foord, Raso, Gorry, Cooney-Cross; Kerr y Fowler.
INGLATERRA: Earps; Greenwood, Bright, Carter; Bronze, Walsh, Stanway, Daly, Toone; Hemp y Russo.
–REFEREE: Tori Acho (USA).
–STADIUM: Sydney Olympic.
–TIME: 12.00/1.