Three of Manchester United’s Women players will battle it out for a spot in the World Cup final over the next few days. England, the USA, Holland and Sweden are the four teams in the semifinals, one of them will be crowned champion.
England and the USA get the semifinals underway on Tuesday evening and the Three Lions have been in great form throughout the competition so far.
They kicked off their campaign against Scotland in their first match in Group D and United skipper Alex Greenwood started at left-back for Phil Neville’s side. Abbie McManus started the game on the bench but was brought on for Millie Bright in the second half.
Neville’s ladies finished the group stages with a 100% record, beating Argentina and Japan 1-0 and 2-0 respectively. McManus and Greenwood both started the match against Argentina, however, with their qualification into the knockout stages already confirmed, they were rested for the fixture with Japan.
Scotland failed to qualify out of Group D finishing rock bottom. A loss to Japan, followed by a controversial draw with Argentina confirmed their fate. Both Kirsty Smith and Lizzie Arnot started the match against Japan, with Smith retaining her place against Argentina.
The only United player not representing a UK side is Dutch midfielder Jackie Groenen. Groenen hasn’t actually played for Casey Stoney’s side yet as she was signed this summer, having left Frankfurt.
The Netherlands also stormed through the group stages with a 100% record. Groenen played in all of the three victories against New Zealand, Cameroon and Canada.
Knockout stages
With Scotland out, the Red Devils only had three representatives left at the Women’s World Cup.
England took on Cameroon for a place in the quarter-final and with Bright back in the starting XI, McManus had to settle for a place on the bench. Greenwood returned and marked it with a goal, wrapping up a 3-0 win.
Groenen and her Dutch teammates needed a last-minute penalty to beat Japan and advance into the last eight, however, it was much more of a comfortable display to confirm their spot in the semifinals, beating Italy 2-0.
Similarly, England cruised past Norway 3-0 with both McManus and Greenwood once again rested.
Now both sides are in action again this week. On Tuesday, the Three Lions come up against the USA and on Wednesday evening Netherlands face Sweden for a place in the final.