A top country every year in Germany looks to continue its dominance against debutantes South Africa, inexperienced Spain, and former powerhouses China PR. Preview Group B and see who comes out of the group.
Click on the country names below to see all the players on each team
Germany, China PR, Spain, South Africa
GERMANY
Overview
Germany is ranked 2nd in the world and yet seems to not be one of the clear favorites. Many people think it will come down between the United States (ranked 1st) and France (ranked 4th). But don’t count out this stacked German side and definitely don’t consider them an underdog among the 24 teams. This is the team that took home gold at the 2016 Olympics, the last major soccer tournament. Germany is 3-0-1 for 2019 and one of those victories was over the hosts, France. Germany has been consistent through the years and more importantly consistently one of the top teams in the world.
Key Players
If Germany wants to win its third World Cup title and first since 2007 then they will need Dzsenifer Marozsan to be at her best. The forward has been very successful at the club level winning three UEFA Women’s Champion League titles with Olympique Lyon and has enough personal accolades to fill the rest of this article. Luckily she won’t have to carry all of the offensive workload. Alexander Popp brings plenty of her own firepower and even has more international goals, she has 46 to Marozsan’s 32. If both players can add plenty of goals to their totals Germany will be very hard to beat this summer.
Prediction
Germany will take care of business in Group B and have no scares. They will advance fairly easily. Depending on how the bracket shapes up they could face Canada in the quarterfinals. Germany’s success in big tournaments will prove them well and they will go into the semifinals. The rest could depend on who has rested well, been able to stay injury free, and who can weather the storm late in games. Germany may run out of steam and wind up in the third place game where they would be able to end the tournament on a win, but not the win for the trophy.
CHINA PR
Overview
China PR has a world ranking of 16. This year has been a rough start for China PR who has yet to win a game and has a record of 0-4. There is silver lining that one of the losses was to France and was just 2-1. Another loss was to penalty kicks to the Netherlands in the Algarve Cup that had them finish last in the tournament. China is nowhere near the team who lost to the United States in the World Cup final in 1999. Some recent success they have is reaching the quarterfinals in the last World Cup and Olympics.
Key Players
The biggest name on China PR’s team is without a doubt Wang Shuang. She plays for Paris Saint-Germain in France, the only player on China’s roster to play in Europe. Shuang was the 2018 AFC Women’s Player of the Year and has been quietly rising as one of the top players in the world. Look for Shuang to have a breakout tournament, if not China may have an early exit. Li Ying can help lighten the load some for Shuang. Ying was a big reason China qualified comfortably for the World Cup. She was able to score 7 goals in just 5 games during qualification.
Prediction
China will get out of the group and advance to the knockout stage and they have all of the ability to earn the two spot. Whether China gets the second or third position in the group they would most likely play either the United States or Australia in the first knockout round. Both teams would be too much for China and they will not advance to the quarterfinals.
To see the schedule of the World Cup click: Matches
SPAIN
Overview
Currently ranked 13th in the world and wanting to show that their 8-0 record to qualify for the World Cup was not a fluke but rather a showing of what is to come. Spain is 4-3-2 so far in their 2019 campaign. The victories included a 2-0 win over the Netherlands and a 2-1 victory over Brazil. They lost just 1-0 to England but had a surprising 3-0 loss to Poland who did not qualify for the 2019 World Cup. Spain went to their first World Cup in 2015 and finished in last place of their group only scoring 2 goals. Spain is a better team than in 2015, but it’s unknown whether the team can perform on the big stage.
Key Players
Spain prides itself on defense and not conceding goals. This mentality is led by Irene Parades who was named to the 2017 FIFA FIFPro Women’s World XI. She anticipates forwards well and can even score herself. Parades was the second leading scorer during Spain’s qualifying. The defender racked up 4 goals. The only player to score more goals in qualifying was forward Jennifer Hermosa with 7 goals and unselfishly added 9 assists. If Spain can bring the same goal scoring they had in their World Cup qualifying games it will be hard for teams to stay with them.
Prediction
Their confidence from qualifying will serve them well in group play. If they can hold off China then they will finish second in the group. Unfortunately second place could very well mean facing off against the United States in round one. Spain will not get past the first knockout round, but they will be able to build off of their 2019 World Cup campaign.
SOUTH AFRICA
Overview
South Africa is coming in as one of the lowest ranking teams at the World Cup at 49. They have not had the best start to 2019 since they have not recorded a win and have a record of 0-6-3. This will be South Africa’s first World Cup appearance as they finished 2nd in their qualifying. South Africa will look to play upset this summer and make sure the other teams in their group earn every goal.
Key Players
The most veterned player on the squad is Janine Van Wyk with 160 caps. South Africa will look to her as a calming presence. She controls their defense and sets the tempo for the rest of the team. While Van Wyk anchors the backline the team will look Thembi Kgatlana to lead them up top. She was the top goal scorer in the 2018 Africa Women Cup of Nations and won the player of the tournament. Kgatlana only has 15 caps but has scored 7 goals largely due to her speed and ability to get behind defenses.
Prediction
South Africa is without a doubt going to be excited to be at the World Cup, qualifying is a huge accomplishment. The first game will be emotional for them and a proud moment for many people. South Africa will make an impression for this World Cup and will not just roll over to their opponents. South Africa will not advance to the knockout stage.