MADRID, 5 Ago. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The round of 16 of the Women’s World Cup, which is taking place in Australia and New Zealand, will live its second chapter this Sunday with the attractive dispute of Sweden vs. the United States and also the Netherlands vs. South Africa, whose winner will face the Spanish team in the quarter round.
On the way to the final in Sydney, two of the main contenders for the title face their dangerous crosses, as the spotlight continues to be on the USA and the Netherlands. In the American case, the appointment against Sweden will serve as a real acid test, by virtue of the fact that the Swedes did do their homework in Group G.
With plenty of victories in their three games, and wearing a baggage of nine goals for and only one against, Peter Gerhardsson’s pupils are putting together a good performance and will look for another victory at the Rectangular Stadium in Melbourne that will give them more cachet . If they win, they will face Japan in the next round.
However, reaching that stage will be a major challenge for the current Olympic runner-up. In the round of 16 they will play against the current world champion and number one in the FIFA ranking, although her pride was somewhat hurt by the discreet performance in Group E. An easy victory against Vietnam (3-0) gave way to two bland draws.
The 1-1 draw for the Americans against the Netherlands on matchday two meant that, already in the third and final matchday, there would be no mistakes against Portugal. But the 0-0 loss in that match against the Portuguese, who even had an impressive chance to score in the final minutes, soured the spirits of Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe and company.
All this combination of results made the Netherlands finally lead the group, now meeting at the Sydney Soccer Stadium with the South African team. Thanks to their second place in Group G, leaving Italy and Argentina by the wayside, the South Africans tied their ticket to this round of 16 ‘in extremis’.
It will also mean his debut in said World Cup round. That’s why the team coached by Desiree Ellis starts almost unapologetic in their duel against the ‘Oranje’, more experienced in these battles for life and death. The group that wins will face Spain, in the early hours of Thursday to Friday (03:00), in the quarterfinals.