Fifa Women’s World Cup: can China shift the gloom in must-win clash with Haiti? Time off is key, coach says
- Defeat in Adelaide, after opening loss to Denmark, would effectively end China’s campaign before their last group game against England
- China coach Shui Qingxia tells her team to ‘put aside the last match and take a good rest and then adjust ourselves’
China coach Shui Qingxia leads her team into their must-win Fifa Women’s World Cup clash with Haiti on Friday hoping a hiatus from the tournament’s pressures will help them keep alive their chances of progressing.
Defeat in Adelaide against Haiti, who arrived unfancied but pushed England during a 1-0 loss in their first game, would effectively end China’s challenge before their clash with the European champions on Tuesday.
But after giving her players time off to recalibrate and attempting to keep the mood positive, Shui is seeking to move on from the Denmark defeat and instead focus on the task that lies ahead.
“The first match was unfortunate,” said Shui, who saw her team lose against the Danes courtesy of a 90th-minute header from Amalie Vangsgaard. “I should say we are sorry to concede a loss in the last minute.
“We have two more matches to tackle, so [I told the players to] put aside the last match and take a good rest and then adjust ourselves to do our very best.
“Psychologically, we have provided a more positive assessment so that the players can get prepared for the matches to come. That’s why I thought giving them some time off would really be a good option.”
Haiti’s performance against the English, when they lost as a result of a penalty from Georgia Stanway, means Shui will not be underestimating the Caribbean nation, who came into the tournament ranked 53rd in the world, 39 spots behind 14th-ranked China.
“After the Denmark match, this is indeed a critical match,” Shui said. “We all have had some rehearsals, reviewing the videos.
“I think for the team, we do have some pressure because the individual expertise of Haiti as a team is quite strong. But we have realised that if we can control the football as much as we can and reduce the chances of our opponents, then that’s what we plan to do.
“The first match is already something that has happened. We shall take on every match one by one, so let’s focus on [this] match. We’re going to do all that we can.
“We don’t just look at each other by the simple view of ranking. Of course, we’re going to adjust ourselves. Some positions will change and that’s something I’m going to consider very carefully and we will make the appropriate adjustments because we’re facing a different team.
“We have to do things accordingly. The four teams in this group at this time are more or less in a similar situation.”
Shui dismissed suggestions that China’s status as the reigning Asian Cup holders – after winning that title against the odds last year in India – would give her team a mental edge over less successful opposition.
“In the group stage there’s no weak team,” Shui said. “So being Asian Cup champion is something in the past. We start from zero. What we’re going to do is to fight and then work towards our goal.
“We are never afraid of starting from zero. Only when we start from zero can we have new growth and development.”
