China are set to face off against Denmark, New Zealand and
Brazil in the group stage of the women's World Cup after the draw
was made public on Sunday in Wuhan, the largest city of central
China. China, the hosts, have been seeded as the top team in Group
D but are under no illusions about the difficulty of the challenge
lying ahead.
"It is a tough draw, Denmark seem to be unbeatable in Europe of
late while Brazil were the runners-up at the Olympic Games three
years ago," said Domanski-Lyfors, the newly appointed coach of the
Chinese team. "But I think the semi-finals are open to us if we
work hard.
Domanski's appointment is hoped to bring to a close a difficult
chapter in Chinese women's soccer, which saw the squad disgraced
after losing six games in a row at the Algarve Cup in Portugal last
month.
The pressure is being firmly placed on Domanski's shoulder with
Chinese sports officials demanding a semi-final appearance at the
very least.
However, their opponents are also fearing China during the group
stage.
"I was there to watch the all-star game yesterday and China
played a fantastic match. They are skillful and technically strong.
To beat them, we have a lot of work to do," said Kenneth
Heiner-Muller, head coach of Denmark, who finished second in the
Algarve Cup, losing 2-0 to the US in the final.
New Zealand, having never won a competitive women's soccer
match, are approaching the game cautiously.
"We have played against China before, technically they are a
better team and we hope to find a way to beat them in September,"
said Maia Jackman, New Zealand's all-star player who played in the
world stars game on Saturday.
The Women's World Cup, the leading competition in the sport will
have sixteen teams competing, with games played in Shanghai,
Chengdu, Hangzhou, Tianjin and Wuhan from 10 to 30 September
2007.
Defending champions Germany have been placed in Group A with
Japan, England and Argentina while the United States, North Korea,
Sweden and Nigeria will be in Group B, dubbed the Group of Death.
Norway will be thanking their lucky stars with an easier time of it
against Ghana, Australia and Canada in Group C.
(Xinhua News Agency April 23, 2007)