Day 11: Popp goes the weasel
Norway scrape through, Morocco make history and Colombia bring the party
Germany 1 - Colombia 2
Colombia came out on top in the most exciting match of the tournament so far as they scored the latest winning goal in a World Cup match since exact timekeeping records began in 2011. Germany would have thought they were leaving with at least a point after Alex Popp had scored a penalty.
Colombia continued to excel at all the things we saw them do well in their opener against South Korea. They harassed Germany on the ball, winning 50:50s and inflicting the kind of physical dominance that Germany are used to dishing out rather than receiving. Mayra Ramirez was once again an incredible outlet on the ball, driving forward and creating opportunities for her teammates. It was Linda Caicedo’s moment of magic that opened the scoring here but Ramirez had been relentless in the minutes leading up to it, and it was she who won the corner which Manuela Vanegas scored the winner from.
Having demolished Morocco in the opener, Germany created little here. An injury to Felicitas Rauch saw Chantal Hagel come in whilst Lena Oberdorf was also fit enough to start in place of Melanie Leupolz. Martina Voss-Tecklenberg seems to have given everyone a free role in attack with Jule Brand once again tucking inside, leaving Svenja Huth with a whole flank to try and marshall at right-back. Clearly Voss-Tecklenberg’s hope is that by utilising players in these slightly different positions, they will create more opportunities but the link up was simply not there with players like Lina Magull and Sara Däbritz being pretty anonymous.
Oberdorf was probably Germany’s brightest spark, both defensively and in attack. Interestingly it seemed like Oberdorf had more license to get forward than Däbritz and she made the most of it, showing off her lesser-spotted passing range (yes she’s good at that like she is everything else). Oberdorf was also the one to win the penalty, in an attempt to not only bail Germany out defensively but also in front of goal. In the end it was not to be and Germany will now need other results to go this way to top this group.
South Korea 0 - Morocco 1
A first World Cup goal, first World Cup points and a glimpse at the last 16 all left with Morocco in this match, as they made more history with Nouhalia Benzina becoming the first woman to play a World Cup match wearing a hijab.
Morocco took an early lead after some poor Korean defending and marshalled this match for long portions of the first half. Their bravery on the ball, with players like Sakina Ouzraoui relishing taking players on, allowed them to play in an aggressive 4-4-2 that South Korea struggled with. As the match went on Morocco did begin to sit back more and more but there was not really a consistent threat from Korea.
That is because for large portions of the match, the gaps between their blocks were far too big. South Korea were playing in a 3-5-2 but regularly looked to bypass the midfield in an attempt to make the ball stick higher up the pitch. That also meant bypassing their best player in Ji So-Yun. When they actually did try to build up from the back, they looked a lot better but unfortunately their quality on the ball also let them down. Morocco were able to hold out for a deserved win, and whilst South Korea are technically not yet eliminated, it has been a very disappointing tournament for them.
Switzerland 0 - New Zealand 0
Despite recording their best ever points total in a group stage, New Zealand could not do enough to qualify for the last sixteen as they drew 0-0 with Switzerland. Switzerland were very lacklustre, sitting off New Zealand in a way that allowed the Football Ferns to grow in confidence early on in the match. There was so much space for them to play through that New Zealand looked massively on top early on. Katie Bowen in particular excelled as she progressed the ball out from the back, and despite a few sloppy passes, helped keep a very tight ship defensively.
As the match went on, Ramona Bachmann did begin to find more space and ignite Switzerland’s attack a bit more but in the end they were having to hold on as New Zealand goalkeeper Victoria Essen sprinted up the pitch three times in the last five minutes to try and help out at attacking set pieces. Switzerland topped the group in the end, but the sparks of brilliance we have seen in this group stage have been obscured by a sense of ennui when they play. Whoever comes out second of Group C (Spain or Japan) will fancy themselves against them.
Norway 6 - Philippines 0
Can I shock you? I think Caroline Graham Hansen is very good at football.
Her return to the team helped inspire Norway to a very comfortable win over the Philippines as they finally found their goalscoring form.
Don’t hold your breathe though, this seemed to have more to do with the Philippines than Norway. E.g. if you are going to leave Caroline Graham Hansen with ample time and space to do what she wants with the ball you will get punished.
There were positive signs for Norway though, namely Sophie Roman Haug and her hattrick. Replacing Ada Hegerberg is no mean feat but Haug has grown into the role from her substitute appearance in the opener. Her first goal also showed that she is not just a fine header of the ball, but also someone whose movement creates opportunities for them. Just like Switzerland though, I don’t think Spain or Japan will be sweating on this one.
Thanks go to Edward Parker Humphreys for his title inspiration today