Twin 4-0 victories set the stage at the Women's World Cup
4-0 is a relatively rare score in professional soccer.
Scoring three goals without a response is much more common; that speaks to a balance of domination and professionalism. A 3-0 scoreline says 'We're clearly the better team here, but let's not embarrass anybody.'
4-0 is different. 4-0 says 'Let's make a statement.'
Two different such scores came up last night at the Women's World Cup, delivered in matches featuring four potential World Cup champions. The first, Japan defeating Spain, 4-0, was an exercise in stunning, cold precision.
The second, Australia blanking Canada, 4-0, was the opposite: a big-hearted overflow of emotion. The results are identical, but the paths to achieving them could not have been more different—and Japan and Australia tell fascinating stories about how each nation hopes to win the Cup.
Japan entered its clash with Spain high on two previous victories. It beat Zambia, 5-0, and Costa Rica, 2-0, and looked imperious in both matches. Spain, meanwhile, had gone one better, also defeating Zambia, 5-0, but tossing in a third goal in its win over Costa Rica. Japan and Spain were set to be a meeting of heavyweights.
But Japan shut down any notion of a Spanish challenge mere minutes into the match. Hinata Miyazawa scored her first of two goals in the twelfth minute. By the time she got her second on the stroke of halftime, Spain was already well beaten.
Why? Take a look at Miyazawa's strike to see. Spain held the ball comfortably in midfield without threatening Japan's goal in the slightest. Japan capitalized on the smallest Spanish mistake and turned it into a goal of its own in a flash. Japan didn't need to see much of the ball to score; it just needed one moment—or, in this case, four. Despite walloping Spain on goals scored, Japan ended the game with just 22% ball possession to Spain's 78%. For Japan, precision wound up being key.
For Australia, however, the goals weren't perfectly architected masterpieces nicked from the midfield. They were messy, hopeful smash-and-grab opportunities that amassed into something great as the match went on. Australia wasn't playing with a ton of precision or discipline; it was playing with the weight of its injured captain and the wishes of its hometown fans as motivation. And that turned out to be just as powerful as Japan's exactitude.
Two 4-0 wins. Two statements. And two very different trophy-caliber teams behind them. There are many ways to win in soccer; Japan and Australia showed us two opposing sides of the spectrum over the course of one wild World Cup evening.
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