FIFA Women's World Cup hosts China, who were humiliated by
Brazil 4-0 in Group D second round, are re-accumulating strength
and vow to crush underdogs New Zealand on Wednesday for surviving
the group.
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In the trickiest group, Athens Olympic runners-up Brazil are
topping the rank with two wins and a plus-nine goal difference. The
title favorites are 99 percent into the quarterfinals and only a
heavy loss (not likely) to Denmark may change their fate.
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The Chinese women's soccer
team training in Tianjin on Tuesday. The team are re-accumulating
strength and vow to crush underdogs New Zealand on Wednesday, to
proceed to the next round.
China and Denmark, who lost 3-2 to the hosts but beat the Kiwis
2-0 later, are contesting the second qualifying berth. So far, the
European giant is ranked second with advantage in four goal
difference.
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Worsely, typhoon Wipha, which is hitting the two competition zones
in Shanghai and Hangzhou forced the world soccer governing body to
postpone the Denmark-Brazil game in Hangzhou from Wednesday to
Thursday. The lucky Danes can watch the China-New Zealand duel on
Wednesday and then decide what to do on Thursday.
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If China can not earn a five-goal winning margin, the Danes only
need a 1-0 win over Brazil to qualify.
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New Zealand, who were whitewashed by Brazil 5-0, are almost packing
and their hope for survival is only in theory.
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According to the latest FIFA women's ranking in June, Denmark stood
at sixth, Brazil at eighth, China 11th and New Zealand 23rd.
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As all the previous World Cup hosts qualified for the
quarterfinals, China, who set a target of entering the top four on
home soil, will definitely play all out to defend the record by
hammering the hopeless Kiwis in their last group match.
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In the inaugural 1991 World Cup in China, the hosts rout the Kiwis
4-1 in group stage. China also won all six previous encounters with
New Zealand.
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Both teams do not have any players missing through injury or
suspension.
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However, the current Chinese team is not as strong as any of its
predecessors.
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Domanski-Lyfors, head coach
of the Chinese women's soccer team, meets the press at their
training site in Tianjin. The team are re-accumulating strength and
vow to crush underdogs New Zealand on Wednesday, to proceed to the
next round.
Two eye-catching strikers Han Duan and Ma Xiaoxu did not score a
single goal in the two previous matches at the World Cup. Han,
dubbed as "secret weapon" for China, even failed to create any
scoring chances and squandered several crucial ones.
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Ma, China's new No. 10, shone last year with Golden Ball and Golden
Shoe at FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup and the AFC Women's Player of
the Year award. But this year, she did not score for China so
far.
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In the China-Denmark duel at the World Cup, Ma was named the Player
of the Match through her quick-pace dribbling and never-say-die
spirit on the pitch. But all her techniques could not be seen in
the China-Brazil game.
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Refusing to comment on the Chinese duo up front, China coach Marika
Domanski-Lyfors said Tuesday that the most important thing would be
a win, no matter who would score.
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Domanski-Lyfors, a Swede, led Sweden to the runners-up in 2003
World Cup in the United States and took over the Chinese team in
March this year.
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At the training site, she told reporters that she had full
confidence in beating the Kiwis and qualifying for the next
stage.
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"We won't think too much about the Denmark-Brazil game. We will
concentrate on our own and show our best form in the crucial game
tomorrow," she noted.
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"There's no shame in losing to a world-class team such as Brazil.
Although we've suffered a setback, we still have a chance. We have
to increase our goal difference against New Zealand," she
added.
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The Swede also refused to answer any questions about her formation,
starting lineup and possible changes in several positions.
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It was the second time for New Zealand to appear in the World Cup
finals. In their first World Cup journey in 1991, they lost 3-0 to
Denmark, 4-0 to Norway, 4-1 to hosts China.
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The Kiwis failed to break the jinx so far at the 2007 World Cup
also in China. In the previous two group matches, they even created
few chances for scoring.
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New Zealand coach John Herdman said, "At least theoretically, we
can still qualify. If Brazil beat Denmark and we beat China by
enough goals, we may progress to the quarter-finals together with
Brazil."
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"We'll be doing our homework on the China team and you can be
certain that we'll make life extremely difficult for them. This
next game promises to be extremely tough," he added.
(Xinhua News Agency September 19, 2007)
