The two countries last met four months ago to the day. They battled out a 2-2 draw in the SheBelieves Cup in Nashville. Steph Houghton and Nikita Parris scored for England, their goals bookended by Megan Rapinoe and Tobin Heath in a to-and-fro tussle. England went on to win the invitational tournament for the very first time.
This is the 17th time England have met the USA. The Americans have won on ten occasions, England just the four. But it’ll be just the second time the pair have met at a World Cup. That happened in the 2007 quarter-finals, and the USA won easily enough, thanks to a 12-minute, three-goal, second-half blitz by Abby Wambach, Shannon Boxx and Kristine Lilly. Here’s how the Guardian reported that back in the day.
Preamble
England have made a habit of getting to the semi-finals of major championships lately. In the last ten years, they’ve made it to the last four at Euro 2009, the 2015 World Cup in Canada, Euro 2017 and now France ‘19. So far their strike rate is just one in three – goals from Kelly Smith and Jill Scott took them to the final of Euro 2009 – but trends are there to be bucked. And after winning all five matches so far in France, scoring 11 and conceding just the once, their tails will be up. Especially as five-goal Ellen White is on the lookout to seize the day and make this tournament her own.
Only problem is, the USA’s record is on another level entirely. They’ve never failed to reach at least the semi-final stage at any World Cup. Since the tournament’s inception in 1991, they’ve won four of seven semis, going on to win the trophy on a record three occasions. And it’s not just history on their side. The USA haven’t quite managed to find top gear in this tournament to date, yet they’ve put out the holders, beat the impressive Swedes, and won one of their matches by 13 goals. There’s also Megan Rapinoe, who has been beyond immense, scoring five times and putting in a series of captain’s performances, walking the walk despite having to deal with Big Baby Blowhard bloviating away on social media 24/7. What a woman!
The USA – the reigning champs and world number one team – go into this game as deserved favourites. But England haven’t conceded a goal for 371 minutes, and are buoyed by the memory of going toe-to-toe with the Americans back in March, drawing 2-2 in the SheBelieves Cup. The four meetings before that game resulted in three 1-0 wins for the USA and one 1-0 win for England. So if all that’s any guide, tonight’s match at the Stade de Lyon promises to be a tight, tense tussle. Good luck to all; may the best team win. It’s on!
Kick off: 8pm BST, 2pm in Chicago, home of the USWNT, 9pm in Lyon.
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