Two of the tournament’s best performers, Hinata Miyazawa, who is the competition’s leading scorer, and goalkeeper Zecira Musovic, will be going up against each other when 2011 winners Japan and Sweden, who finished in third-place in 2019, face off in the quarterfinal on Friday.
Miyazawa, who dons the No. 7 jersey for Japan has been nothing short of prolific for the Nadeshiko, with her five goals keeping her atop the goal scorers’ standings. Though the Japanese women have scored 14 goals in four games, they will be going up against a Swedish side that have conceded just one goal thanks to solid defending mixed with the reflexes and confidence of Chelsea goalkeeper Musovic.
The 27-year-old shot stopper has prevented 44 goals for the blue and yellow, including keeping three clean sheets across four games. Her heroics against the United States frustrated the defending champions, whose forwards Lindsey Horan, Trinity Rodman, Sophia Smith, and Alex Morgan threw everything they could in the hopes of getting a goal, but all to no avail.
⚽⚽Get to know the teams in the quarter-finals of the #FIFAWWC
Friday: #ESP v #NED
#JPN v #SWESaturday: #AUS v #FRA
#ENG v #COLWhich teams do you think will make the last four?????
Make your predictions!!#Afrosport #AUSNZL2023 #BeyondGreatness pic.twitter.com/Nw3TwUQQOV— AfroSport (@AfroSportTV) August 10, 2023
Musovic made 11 saves against the USWNT, setting the record for the most saves by a Sweden goalkeeper in the FIFA Women’s World Cup, four more than anyone in the past.
However, it is important to note that Miyazawa currently averages a goal every 53 minutes for Japan at the tournament, and if anyone can pose a threat to Musovic’s hunt for a fourth straight shutout, the midfielder is sure to be atop that list.
The two sides are also not strangers to one another, having met 14 times in the past, with Sweden edging the Asians with 6 wins to 5, and the other three encounters ending in a draw. At the Women’s World Cup, they have met each other in three separate meetings in the past; Sweden won two games (1991 and 1995) with a combined score of 10-0, while Japan won the most recent meeting in 2011 with a 3-1 win.
Japan and Sweden will face off in the second game of the last eight at Eden Park on August 11 at 8:30 a.m. WAT.
YOU CAN WATCH THE QUARTER-FINALS CLASH BETWEEN JAPAN AND SWEDEN LIVE ON AFROSPORT ON FREE TV CHANNEL 730 0R STREAM ON VIDIVU ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 11, AT 8:30AM WAT.
