Japan off to the quarterfinals, Norway back home
After beating Norway 3-1 Japan is off to the Women’s World Cup 2023 quarterfinals with hopes of achieving even more.
Japan started this Women’s World Cup on the right foot to get their second world title. During the group stage, they overcame Spain, Zambia, and Costa Rica finishing first in their group. They won all three matches and got a ticket to the round of 16 without a doubt. However, their opponent wasn’t an easy one, it was Norway.
Match highlights
The Japanese started with an early celebration as Ingrid Syrstad Engen scored an own goal setting the match 1-0 (15′). Celebrations were cut earlier than expected as Guro Reiten fixed the error of her teammate with a great header (20′).
The second half came around and Japan started pushing even more to take the lead. With the help of Risa Shimizu, they took the lead and control of the game (50′). To help her team completely seal their victory Hinata Miyazawa extended Japan’s lead with a solo run past the Norwegian defensive line in the 81st minute. Norway tried to push back in the last minutes but. wasn’t able to find the back of the net.
Japan, who were eliminated in the round of 16 in the 2019 Women’s World Cup have now advanced to the quarterfinals for the fourth time in the history of the competition. They’ve done this only conceding one goal during the entire competition being the one Norway was able to score. At the moment they sit as one of the favorites to lift the trophy and become two-time Women’s World Champions.
Is Japan going to be able to win this 2023 Women’s World Cup and lift the trophy for a second time? If not, who do you think will win the 2023 Women’s World Cup?
