Usa outline11/30/2023 ![]() “Aitana played very well today, she scored goals and was player of the match, but the rest of the team played very well too. Instead, it was her Barcelona teammate Bonmati who took centre stage, and Vilda was asked if the 25-year-old might now be a candidate to win the next Ballon d’Or. The reigning Ballon d’Or winner is still recovering her fitness following a serious knee injury and made just a cameo off the bench. It was a defiant response to Spain’s 4-0 defeat by Japan in their last group game and justified coach Vilda’s decision to leave Alexia Putellas out of his starting lineup. Norway’s Sara Horte is dejected after her team’s 1-3 defeat and elimination Spain thrash SwitzerlandĮarlier the day, Spain’s coach Jorge Vilda said he had “the 23 best players in the world” after Aitana Bonmati starred in a 5-1 demolition of Switzerland to send the Spanish into the Women’s World Cup quarter-finals for the first time.īonmati scored twice and got two assists in front of 43,217 at Auckland’s Eden Park – a record for a football match in New Zealand – with Spain playing the Netherlands or South Africa in the last eight.īonmati’s early opener in the last-16 tie was cancelled out by a spectacular Laia Codina own goal, but Alba Redondo restored Spain’s lead and Bonmati scored again to make it 3-1.Ĭodina then made up for her error by getting a fourth before the interval and Jennifer Hermoso made it 5-1 in the second half. ![]() Norway and Japan had met only once before at a World Cup, in 1999, when Norway won 4-0. Miyazawa produced a copybook finish in the 81st, running onto a superb through ball and directing her shot wide of Mikalsen. Miyazawa tried to hold up the ball near the goal, lost possession to Boe Risa, who tried a back pass but rolled the ball into the path of Shimizu rushing in from the right to score. Shimizu’s winner came in the 50th minute as Japan pushed forward again from halfway. The goal came entirely against the run of play. Japan seemed well on top but in the 21st minute, and from the first time in the match Norway had threatened, Vilda Boe Risa got away on the right, took the ball to the byline and crossed to the middle where Guro Reiten stood tall and headed wide of the diving Ayaka Yamashita into the left corner. She managed only to deflect it wide of Aurora Mikalsen in goal for the eighth own goal of the tournament. In the 15th minute, Miyazawa curled the ball in from depth on the left and Engen extended her leg to parry the ball. When the defence finally yielded, it was in unusual circumstances. With long balls or sharp, quick passing, Japan continually pressed forward and Norway, which conceded only one goal in group play, often seemed rattled at the back. ![]() While it was ineffective, it was an early declaration of intent. The softer colour scheme did nothing to dull its attacking style it pressed forward from the start and had its first corner after two minutes. Japan traded its regular blue uniform for pastel colours on Saturday, pink and purple. After beating Spain 4-0 with only 23 percent of possession in its group-stage finale, Japan once again was a tactical chameleon in the round of 16 – playing with more than 60 percent of possession in a commanding performance. ![]()
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