Group B: Germany, China, Spain, South Africa
A heavy-hitting nation like Germany often takes the focus away from other contenders in their group. And for good reason, Germany are two time World Champions with eight European Championships under their belt. However, dark horse Spain, a fresh South Africa, and traditional powerhouse China, should not be underestimated.
Germany are favourites to lead this group, but be assured it won’t all be as smooth sailing as pundits would have on paper. China and Spain are likely to battle it out for the second and possibly third qualifying spot, with South Africa looking to ruin the party for either nation.
Group Schedule
- 8 June: Germany v China PR (Rennes, 23 : 00 AET)
- 9 June: Spain v South Africa (Le Havre, 2 : 00 AET)
- 13 June: Germany v Spain (Valenciennes, 2 : 00 AET)
- 14 June: South Africa v China PR (Paris, 5 : 00 AET)
- 18 June: South Africa v Germany (Montpellier, 2 : 00 AET)
- 18 June: China PR v Spain ( Le Havre, 2 : 00 AET)
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GERMANY (GER) – UEFA
https://www.instagram.com/p/BxcOcbYomTc/
| Coach: | Martina Voss-Tecklenburg |
| Captain: | Alexandra Popp |
| Ranking: | 2 |
| Average Age: | 25.9 |
| Average Caps: | 34.4 |
| Previous WWC: | Group Stage
10 – 0 Ivory Coast 1 – 1 Norway 4 – 0 Thailand Round of 16 4 – 1 Sweden Quarter Finals 1(5) – 1(4) France Semi-Finals 0 – 2 United States |
| Last 5 Matches: | 5 – 2 Italy
0 – 0 Spain 1 – 0 France 2 – 1 Sweden 2 – 2 Japan |
| 3 Key Players: | Schult is in the vein of strong German goalkeepers. On top of her quality to stop the ball, it’s what she does in possession that’s important. Strong with her feet, Schult will often be found in a sweeping position well off her line, receiving and hitting passes. For Germany to be ticking and playing with the confidence and swagger they usually do out of the back, Schult will be a massive part of that.
Marozsan brought some absolutely eye catching performances in Canada 2015, pulling the strings of the German attack from her midfield base. Since 2015 Marozsan has made the switch to French heavy weights Lyon domestically, where she is a mainstay in a squad of quality players. Considered amongst the world’s best, France could perhaps present the opportunity for Marozsan to cement her status and prove she’s the best. Popp brings experience in attack for Germany and a host of goals. The Wolfsburg forward will be an essential piece of the puzzle for Germany in this campaign. With a goal ratio on the national stage at close to a goal every two matches, she’s the player Germany will be looking for goals consistently in France. |
Tournament expectations are always going to be high for a traditional powerhouse, such as Germany. This is the country that won the 2004 and 2007 World Cups, have successfully navigated their way out of the group stage, and won a gold medal at the Rio Olympics to add to their impressive trophy cabinet.
Despite all their success, the pressure on this team in France is huge. The coaching personnel has changed three times since Silva Nied steered the Germans to fourth place in Canada four years ago. Their most recent outing in a major tournament, the UEFA Women’s Euro in 2017 would be considered woeful by their usual standards, bombing out to Denmark and didn’t come within touching distance of the grand final.
However, don’t be fooled into thinking Germany have lost their touch. They are still a team to be feared. Always consistently sound in defence, the sides ability to mix up their attack through the flanks and the centre off their quick springing transition will no doubt see them find success once again on the biggest of stages.
CHINA PR (CHN) – AFC
NATIONAL TEAM | Meanwhile, the Steel Roses train for the @FIFAWWC. Less than a month for the debut against Germany! (📸: IC) #SteelRoses #WomenInFootball pic.twitter.com/UdjhtEIuXJ
— China Women's Football – 中国女足 (@CHNWNT) May 11, 2019
| Coach: | Jia Xiuquan |
| Captain: | Li Dongna |
| Ranking: | 16 |
| Average Age: | No squad yet |
| Average Caps: | No squad yet |
| Previous WWC: | Group Stage
0 – 1 Canada 1 – 0 Netherlands 2 – 2 New Zealand Round of 16 1 – 0 Cameroon Quarter-finals 0 – 1 United States |
| Last 5 Matches: | 3 – 0 Nigeria
1 – 0 Korea Republic 1 – 3 Norway 0 – 1 Denmark 1 – 1 Netherlands |
| 3 Key Players: | Wu Haiyan is a mainstay at the heart of China’s defence. Her side’s captain, Wu has her eyes on the prize and will be hoping to marshal her side to a good tournament. The experience she brings in the back, will be essential to ensure China remain organised off the ball in the way everyone expects them to be.
Wang Shuang is a clever midfielder, who will look to create many of China’s attacking opportunities. Plying her trade away from home at Paris Saint-Germain, the skill Wang brings on the field is mesmerizing. With the ball at feet, this is a player who will keep you on the edge of your seat. Li Ying is in dazzling form for her country. In a fierce field of goal scorers in the 2018 Asian Cup, Li found herself on top of the pile bagging the golden boot with an eye watering seven goals. There’s no doubt this is a player who knows how to find the back of the net. |
Once a powerhouse of women’s football, China will be seeking to rise to those heady heights again. Their best finish in a World Cup was a toe to toe with the USA in 1999, where they were second best in a dreaded penalty shootout. The last piece of major silverware China grasped was the 2006 AFC Women’s Asian Cup.
Successfully navigating the difficult AFC confederation, with a third place finish in the 2018 Asian Cup, China are a side who could easily play above the expectations of those unfamiliar with the team.
China always look to punch above their weight. Canada 2015 is an example that China will be looking to repeat, and perhaps go one further. During that tournament, they eased through the group stages in the trails of the home nation and went on to win by a goal over Cameroon, to then be knocked out by the eventual champions, the USA, in a match very much in the balance bar a Carli Lloyd goal.
On the field, expect a well organised outfit, who will suffocate opponents holding the ball. They also have star quality talent up front to slip a few into the back of the net, giving the side a good balance and allrounder feel.
SPAIN (ESP) – UEFA
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bxra0JfoA5T/
| Coach: | Jorge Vilda |
| Captain: | Marta Torrejón |
| Ranking: | 13 |
| Average Age: | 25.2 |
| Average Caps: | 35.6 |
| Previous WWC: | Group Stage
1 – 1 Costa Rica 0 – 1 Brazil 1 – 2 South Korea |
| Last 5 Matches: | 0 – 3 Poland
2 – 0 Switzerland 2 – 1 Brazil 1 – 2 England 4 – 0 Cameroon |
| 3 Key Players: | Marta Torrejon is the captain for club and country, and for good reason. A formidable force to be reckoned with in defence, her usual position for Barcelona is at the heart of defence, while Spain often deploy her as a fullback, giving her more freedom to bomb up the flanks. Expect the defender to lead her side well from anywhere in defence.
Alexia Putellas is the flying winger who will be looks to attack at any opportunity. Holding a spot firmly on the left flank for her country, the precision of passing, crosses and shots Putellas brings is going help keep Spain ticking and provide an avenue for the side to change things up when pushing forward. Jennifer Hermoso will be leading the line for Spain. Anything that’s happening in the final third of the field will likely involve the Spanish forward. Not only will Hermoso be looked at for goal scoring opportunities, but her link up play is impeccable. For Spain to hit the ground running in the World Cup, Hermoso will be key to ensure her side finish the many chances they will create. |
A second consecutive World Cup for Spain has many tipping them to be the dark horse of the competition. Given the rapid rise of their domestic competition, la Liga, there is solid ground to dub this side a potential heart breaker.
Spain’s previous World Cup outing saw them konk out of the group stage with a draw against Costa Rica. This time round they will be keen to improve and show the world what they’ve got. However, they’ve yet to really crack it during a major tournament. In the UEFA Women’s Euro they have struggled to win a knockout game, with their last knockout match victory in 1997.
Any side that successfully navigates qualification through Europe deserves their weight in gold and shouldn’t be underestimated. The Spanish qualified in style, with a good cushion over second place Austria in their qualifying group. Add a handful of strong friendlies and Spain look to be a real contender in a very tough group.
In the vein of Spanish football, this is a team with silky moves like Jagger. They work tight spaces in a way that’ll leave you speechless. If Spain can find their goalscoring boots, they’re going to look deadly.
SOUTH AFRICA (RSA) – CAF
Here are the 23 players that will represent South Africa at the @FIFAWWC in France next month as we are 20 days away from kickoff #fifawwc @Banyana_Banyana @BafanaBafana #forbanyanabanyanacomeshowyourlove #BanyanaBanyana #DareToShine pic.twitter.com/1Qevg6nM5W
— Banyana_Banyana (@Banyana_Banyana) May 18, 2019
| Coach: | Desiree Ellis |
| Captain: | Janine Van Wyk |
| Ranking: | 49 |
| Average Age: | 25.9 |
| Average Caps: | 33.2 |
| Previous WWC: | N/A |
| Last 5 Matches: | 1 – 4 Korea DPR
1 – 2 Czech Republic 0 – 3 Finland 1 – 1 Jamaica 0 – 3 United States |
| 3 Key Players: | Janine van Wyk is an institution in South Africa’s backline, with the captain racking up over 150 appearances. Not only will van Wyk be essential defensively with her ability to read play to produce key challenges, but her passing and calmness on the ball will mean she will play the role of South Africa’s metronome if they’re to hold any amount of possession.
Refiloe Jane has just recently teared the rule book up in the W-League with stellar performances. Jane will be sure to carry over that fine form for her country. Her ability to shield the defence, breaking down opposition attacks and nous to produce defence splitting passes will be essential for South Africa during the tournament. Thembi Kgatlana is a lightning fast forward who will be the player South Africa look to as their main source of goal. With a golden boot in the bag following a strong showing in the African Cup of Nations, there’s no doubt that if supplied with the right ball, Kgaltlana will produce the goods. Namely running at defences towards goal, causing a headache for her opponent. |
South Africa are one of the handful of sides making their debut on the world stage. This may be their first World Cup, but they’ve played in Olympic campaigns, so expect this team to come in with their feet on the ground and ready for battle.
While silverware has eluded them, South Africa qualify for the tournament on the back of narrowly missing out in the African Cup of Nations final against Nigeria, in a match that went down to the wire.
Their Olympic experience consists of appearances in 2012 and 2016. While they’ve yet to bag a win in either campaign, they’ve managed to register a point on the board each time. South Africa appear to be priming themselves for a successful tournament. Since qualifying, they’ve organised a number of big match friendlies for preparation, meaning the World Cup isn’t going to be a baptism of fire.
With the blistering pace South Africa possess on the flanks, they will be out to surprise. While they’ll be asking questions of their opponents, they have been dealt a tough hand in this group and will definitely need to be firing on all cylinders to find any hint of breathing room.
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