World Cup group games tomorrow afternoon
A draw would virtually guarantee a spot in the round of 16
England make it two in a row with 1-0 win over Denmark England's Lauren James, right, celebrates scoring the first goal in the sixth minute during the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia-New Zealand 2023 Group D match between Denmark and England at Qatar Stadium on Monday in Sydney, Australia. England won 1-0 to make it two wins in a row.
"I'll consider it a tournament."
"We know what's at stake against Morocco," South Korea women's soccer coach Colleen Bell said on Monday, two days before her team's second Group H match at the 2023 FIFA World Cup Australia-New Zealand.
South Korea will face the Moroccans on June 30 at 1:30 p.m. in Adelaide, Australia. It's a must-win game to advance out of the group stage. The first and second place finishers in each group advance to the round of 16. Morocco, ranked 72nd in the FIFA rankings, is the second-lowest-ranked team in the 32-nation field, behind only Zambia (77th) in Group C. Morocco lost its first group game against Germany (No. 2) 0-6.
South Korea (17th) did not earn a point in its first game against Colombia (25th) on Sept. 25, losing 0-2. That's why it's imperative for South Korea to get three points against Morocco before facing its final group opponent, Germany, on March 3. A draw against Morocco would virtually guarantee South Korea a spot in the round of 16.
"If we lose, we'll have to go home with no spark for the round of 16," said midfielder Ji So-yeon. I don't think there's a single easy team in the World Cup. We have nothing to lose," she said of the team's mood ahead of the game against Morocco. "Against Colombia, we focused on defense and didn't create many chances," said Ji So-yeon. "Against Morocco, we must attack aggressively and score and win."
The South Korean women's soccer team reached the round of 16 at the 2015 World Cup in Canada, their highest-ever finish, losing 0-2 to Brazil in their first group game but winning their second and third games to advance.