Ready for the Wellington wind
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Hello from inside the stadium!
We are seated just behind the bench. The wind is whipping around the pitch. It was raining just an hour ago.
The temperature says 52, but it feels a lot colder. Most of the U.S. players are wearing an extra layer or two warming up.
When U.S. coach Vlatko Andonovski was asked yesterday about the variable weather, he told reporters they trained for all of it. Especially Wellington’s famous wind.
Starting for the U.S. tonight
Team USA is going with the same lineup it started for Friday’s win over Vietnam.
The starting squad includes four players — Naeher, Dunn, Ertz and Morgan — who started against the Netherlands in the 2019 World Cup final, which the U.S. won, the USWNT said.
Injuries sideline Dutch stars
The Netherlands will most likely be without forward Lineth Beerensteyn, who was hurt early in her team’s 1-0 victory over Portugal to open the tournament, when they play the Americans on Thursday in New Zealand’s capital city of Wellington.
The Americans are the two-time reigning World Cup champions and Netherlands coach Andries Jonker said on the eve of the match “we would need a miracle” for Beerensteyn to be ready to play.
”And if that doesn’t happen, then she won’t participate,” he said.
The Netherlands came to the tournament in Australia and New Zealand already missing leading scorer Vivianne Miedema, who ruptured her ACL while playing for Arsenal in December. The forward is the Netherlands’ leading scorer with 95 goals.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken ready to dress the part of super fan
Secretary of State Antony Blinken is ready to cheer on Team USA.
He met with the athletes last night in Wellington, New Zealand, and was given a team jersey.
(He was given No. 71 — a nod to him serving as the 71st U.S. secretary of State.)
Blinken’s soccer stop comes as part of his diplomatic trip to Tonga, New Zealand and Australia.
Spain and Japan move on to knockout stage
AUCKLAND, New Zealand — As she has many times before, Jennifer Hermoso answered the call for Spain on Wednesday night.
She scored twice and assisted in her 100th international appearance to push La Roja past Zambia 5-0 on Wednesday, a victory that locked both Spain and Japan into the Women’s World Cup knockout round.
Spain and Japan are the first teams to clinch berths in the tournament’s round of 16. They will play on Monday in Wellington to decide seeding.
Olympic champion Canada comes back to beat Ireland 2-1
PERTH, Australia — Conceding a goal directly from a corner kick against Ireland on Wednesday, Olympic champion Canada was in trouble in its second game of the Women’s World Cup.
After a disappointing 0-0 draw with Nigeria in its opening match of the tournament, and with iconic forward Christine Sinclair on the bench, Canada’s hopes of advancing from the group stage were under threat.
Up against a determined Ireland, an inspired Katie McCabe and torrential rain at Rectangular Stadium, the odds were stacking up against the Canadians.
But with the character of Olympic gold medallists, a touch of fortune and some help from the bench, Canada recovered. Adriana Leon scored the decisive goal early in the second half to complete a come-from-behind 2-1 win that moved her country to the top of Group B and within sight of the round of 16.
Will vets start on sidelines again?
Several familiar names did not make the American starting 11 against Vietnam last week — perhaps in hopes of conserving energy and hiding tactics.
Megan Rapinoe, Rose Lavelle and Kelley O’Hara were among the veterans who began Friday night’s match on the sidelines before being substituted in later.
The 38-year-old Rapinoe, the Golden Ball and Golden Boot winner from the 2019 tournament, has already said she’ll retire at the end of this current NWSL season.
Both teams going for a second W
Both teams in tonight’s showdown are looking for World Cup win No. 2. The Netherlands and United States started the tournament with debut victories.
Technically, the Americans are ahead of the Dutch in Group E by virtue of goal differential — with the U.S. beating Vietnam, 3-0, and the Netherlands netting a 1-0 win over Portugal.
A win by either side could give it a big leg up in winning Group E and possibly avoiding world No. 3 Sweden in the round of 16.
How and when to watch USA vs. Netherlands
Up next for the Americans is a game against the Netherlands, who may be out for revenge tonight. After all, it is the team that the Americans bested in 2019 to capture a second-straight World Cup title.
When: 9 p.m. ET (or 1 p.m. Thursday local time)
Where: Wellington Regional Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand
How to watch: Match televised on Fox and Telemundo and streamed on Peacock.