The group stages of the Women’s World Cup are over, and 16 teams remain. The tournament now enters the knockout stages, arguably the most exciting aspect of an international competition, and there are some intriguing fixtures to watch. Highlights include Germany vs Sweden and Japan vs Netherlands, but England’s own match is set to be a nail-biting affair.

The Three Lions beat Colombia 2-1 in their last group match, showing off impressive attacking football in the first half of the match. A goal from Karen Carney in the 15th minute and a penalty from Fara Williams in the 38th minute reflected England’s dominance in that half. However the second half became more disjointed, and they failed to add to their goal tally. Despite a nervy few last seconds due to a late goal by Colombia in the 90+4th minute, England held out to gain another 3 points, leaving them on 6 points. This was equal to France’s six points, but it was Les Bleus that topped the table due to their superior goal difference, after they put 5 past Mexico.

England therefore had to settle for second place, and a last 16 match against Norway. The Norwegian side are only 5 places lower than England in the FIFA rankings, and many have considered them dark horses in this tournament. What’s more, they held footballing giants Germany to a 1-1 draw in group stages, and so they are going to be a much harder test for the Three Lions than Mexico and Colombia. Nonetheless, every game has seen England improve upon their previous performance and grow in confidence, and so this game is set up to be extremely entertaining.
A list of the last 16 games can be found here:

Saturday, 20 June:
Germany v Sweden
China v Cameroon

Sunday, 21 June:
Brazil v Australia
France v South Korea
Canada v Switzerland

Monday, 22 June:
Norway v England
USA v Colombia

Tuesday, 23 June:
Japan v Netherlands

Nancy Gillen

Fara Williams photo – www.newsday.com
Featured image: England team – www.topbettingsites.com