China lose to Australia,winless in Algarve Cup
0 Comment(s)
Print
E-mail Xinhua, March 7, 2017
 |
|
China's Zhao Rong tried to control the ball in the game. [photos:Xinhua] |
Chinese women's football team could not convert their one-goal lead before the break into a victory over world No. 6 Australia as they lost 2-1 at 2017 Algarve Cup on Monday.
China were placed fourth in Group C with just one draw and two losses.
"Except the result, I'm very satisfied with the team performance," admitted Bruno Bini, China's head coach.
The two sides recorded a 1-1 tie one year ago, both going through the Asian qualifications to Rio Olympic Games.
China, nailing just one point in previous two rounds, made one change to their starting line-up, bringing Wu Haiyan in as center-back Wang Yan withdrew due to hamstring against Sweden three days ago.
The Chinese team set up a solid defense in front of their Australian counterparts, and the latter could not pose much threat to the Chinese team's goal.
China recorded their first goal at the tournament thanks to consecutive passes among their attacking trio, before Wang Shanshan beat Australian goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold in the 36th minute.
Australia, who made several changes to their line-up in the second half, began to get an upper hand. Substitute Emily Gielnik finished a brilliant volley past goalie Zhao Lina on 61 minutes.
China suffered another blow with less than ten minutes remaining, when Ellie Carpenter headed in the game winner from a corner kick.
"Our players did well both on tactic and technique. We got many chances, but unfortunately, we did not get what we deserved," said Bruno.
"Players may feel a little disappointed about the result, but we cannot change it," he added.
"Today we dominated the game with the ball. We had more chances and more possessions than we had in other games. For us, it was just the beginning of a cycle, and we just started to get better and better," commented Australian head coach Alen Stajcic.
Also on Monday, the Netherlands upset Sweden 1-0. With two wins in hand, Australia ranked first in Group C, ahead of the Netherlands with a better record in the two teams' matchup.
Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)