China vs England – Group Stage – Preview & Prediction | 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup
THE FACTS
When is China vs England on and what time does it start? China vs England will take place on Tuesday 1st August, 2023 – 12:00 (UK)
Where is China vs England taking place? China vs England will take place at Sydney Football Stadium in Sydney, Australia
Where can I get tickets for China vs England? Visit this link for the latest ticket information for China vs England
What channel is China vs England on in the UK? China vs England will be televised live on ITV1
Where can I stream China vs England in the UK? China vs England can be streamed on ITVX
THE LOWDOWN
CHINA
- China knew that needed to gain three points over Haiti to give themselves the best possible chance of qualification going into the final round of fixtures following their late defeat at the hands of Denmark, a win they did, by a goal to nil.
- Goal difference could well prove crucial when it comes to who qualifies and even if China don’t come out on top here, avoiding losing by a margin more than that of a single goal could be crucial depending on Denmark’s result vs Haiti.
ENGLAND
- A second consecutive one-goal victory for England last Friday, this time against Denmark puts them in prime position to qualify for the knockout stage as Group D winners, Lauren James scoring and justifying Sarina Wiegman’s decision to play her from the start.
- The win came at a huge cost though for the Lionesses as influential midfielder Kiera Walsh was stretched off in the first half and whilst an ACL injury has been ruled out, she won’t feature here and her participation in the rest of the tournament is in severe doubt.
THE TEAM NEWS
CHINA
PREDICTED XI (4-4-2): Xu; Li Mingwen, X. Wang, W. Yao, Chen; Zhang Xin, R. Zhang, Yang Lina, L. Zhang; Wu, Wang Shuang
UNAVAILABLE:
QUESTIONABLE:
ENGLAND
PREDICTED XI (4-3-3): Earps; Bronze, Bright, Carter, Greenwood; Stanway, Coombs, Toone; Kelly, Russo, James
UNAVAILABLE: Kirby (Injured), Mead (Injured), Walsh (Injured), Williamson (Injured)
QUESTIONABLE:
THE KEY STATS
- China PR have never failed to qualify for the knockout rounds in their eight previous FIFA Women’s World Cup participations.
- China PR’s record against European nations in the FIFA Women’s World Cup is P17 W8 D3 L6.
- China PR have kept three clean sheets in their last four FIFA Women’s World Cup group matches.
- China PR have only lost four of their previous 23 FIFA Women’s World Cup group matches (W14 D5).
- China PR are only the second AFC nation that England have faced in the FIFA Women’s World Cup, all their previous four matches against AFC opposition were all against Japan (W2 D1 L1).
- England are aiming to win their group for the third time in the FIFA Women’s World Cup having done so previously in 2011 and 2019.
- England have won their last seven FIFA Women’s World Cup™ group matches.
- England have only lost two of their 17 FIFA Women’s World Cup group stage matches (W12 D3).
- England have kept six clean sheets in their last eight FIFA Women's World Cup matches.
- England have scored in their last 15 matches at the finals, equalling the record for most successive games with a goal which Norway achieved between 1991 and 1999.
- England have scored during the first half in each of their last seven FIFA Women’s World Cup matches.
THE PREDICTION
England will understandably be weakened with the absence of midfield maestro Walsh from their side, but this is a strong squad assembled by Wiegman with enough depth to cover for such a loss. Bringing in a player of Lauren James’ quality of their second group game is testament to that and whoever the England head coach picks in Walsh’s place for this one is likely to do a very good job. It’s hard to see China being able to breach a formidable English backline when considering their struggles offensively across the group stage so far and it’s well worth backing a third consecutive Group D win for England.
TIP: ENGLAND TO WIN
