Japan and Spain qualified for the Round of 16 on Wednesday, the day of the Women’s World Cup match in Australia and New Zealand.
The Asians defeated the best of Costa Rica, while the Europeans, ranked among the contenders, defeated the best of Zambia in the second round of Group C.
Thus, the two winners are looking forward to the match that will determine the top of the group with 100% performance and without conceding a goal.
Olympic champions Canada prevailed over the Irish from a deficit, taking the lead with a rarely seen goal: Katie McCabe scored from a corner kick in the fourth minute. Continuing, Canada had the upper hand in terms of possession, but they only managed to equalize before the break, courtesy of an Irish own goal. In the second half, the Canadians’ game improved significantly, and they clearly dominated their opponents and took the lead in the 54th minute with the goal of Adriana Leon. No more goals were scored until the final whistle, so the Olympic champions won their first match after an opening round tie against Nigeria.
Women’s World Cup Group Stage Second Round:
Group B:
Canada-Ireland 2-1 (1-1)
Group C:
Japan-Costa Rica 2-0 (2-0)
Japan-Costa Rica 2-0 (2-0)
Spain-Zambia 5-0 (2-0)
Spain-Zambia 5-0 (2-0)
the job: 1. (and advanced) Spain 6 points (8-0), 2. (and advanced) Japan 6 (7-0), 3. Costa Rica 0 (0-5), 4. Zambia 0 (0-10)
