Japan beat Norway to reach the quarterfinals of the 2023 Women's World Cup
* Scored: Engen 15' (own goal), Shimizu 50', Miyazawa 81' – Reiten 20'.
At Wellington Stadium this afternoon, August 5, Japan proved that overcoming Spain to win Group C is not lucky. Japan controlled the ball better, played well and took full advantage of Norway's mistakes.
15 minutes, Hinata Miyazawa passed into the box from the left wing. Ingrid Engen cleared the ball to change direction and goalkeeper Aurora Mikalsen still had to go into the net to pick up the ball despite trying to save. However, Norway soon regained the balance in the 20th minute with an unstoppable header from Guro Reiten.
The balance was extended until the 50th minute, when Vilde Risa made a mistake. In the penalty area, instead of breaking the ball, the Man Utd midfielder passed confusingly to Risa Shimizu to steal the ball. The ball once again hit Ingrid Engen's feet, changing direction to help Japan lead 2-1.
When working hard to find an equalizer, Norway encountered a familiar counter-attack from Japan. In the 81st minute, Aoba Fujino calmly held the ball in the middle of the field and threw a slot to eliminate the entire Norwegian defense. Hinata Miyazawa sped up, sending a left footed shot into the right corner that made Mikalsen's footing. The Japanese striker rose to the top of the list of top scorers with five goals from the beginning of the tournament.
Towards the end of the game, goalkeeper Ayaka Yamashita made an unbelievable save on the goal line after the striker's shot to replace Karina Saevik. Unable to find more goals, Norway accepted a 1-3 loss and stopped in the 1/8 round.
Japan entered the quarterfinals and will wait for the winner of the US - Sweden pair. The Asian representative is showing a disciplined and accurate play in attack with 14 goals and only conceded one after four matches from the beginning of the tournament.
Japan: Ayaka Yamashita, Moeka Minami, Saki Kumagai, Hana Takahashi, Risa Shimizu, Fuka Nagano, Jun Endo, Yu Hasegawa, Hinata Miyazawa, Mina Tanaka, Aoba Fujino
Norway: Aurora Mikalsen, Tuva Hansen, Maren Mjelde, Thea Bjelde, Mathilde Harviken, Ingrid Syrstad Engen, Vilde Boe Risa, Guro Reiten, Caroline Graham Hansen, Emilie Haavi, Sophie Roman Haug.
