Coach Shui Qingxia (L) and assistant coach Ma Xiaoxu communicate with each other during a training session on February 7 as the Chinese women's soccer team prepares for a game overseas. Visual China.
On February 14th, at 19:00 Beijing time, the Chinese women's soccer team will challenge the Spanish Real Betis women's soccer team, which is the first warm-up opponent in Spain. Although Betis Women's Football Team lost to Valencia Women's Football Team at home three days ago and dropped to the second last in the Spanish Women's Super League, the difference between Betis Women's Football Team and Bilbao Women's Football Team in the 10th place is only 3 points, so the ability of the actual battle should not be underestimated.
The warm-up match was the first for the Chinese women's soccer team in preparation for the World Cup. In the following week, they will face the world's third-ranked Swedish women's soccer team, Spain's Velva women's soccer team and Ireland's women's soccer team. Just from the opponents and the number of warm-up matches, you can feel the urgency of the Chinese women's soccer team's preparation, and the physical fitness improvement is the key for them in the World Cup.
The 2023 Women's World Cup will be held on July 20 in Australia and New Zealand. With nearly six months to go before the opening, national teams have been preparing for the tournament. The Chinese women's soccer team's opponents for the first phase of overseas training include group stage rivals Denmark and England women's soccer team, the latter of which drew 0-0 with Japan women's soccer team in a warm-up match in November, while Denmark won 2-1 in a come-from-behind match against Switzerland.
The Danish women's soccer team has not yet reached its best form, but the Chinese women's soccer team will increase its confidence if it can interfere with the opposing team's middle division, limit side passes, and compress the space for the opposing team's strikers. The training in Spain is the second overseas training for the Chinese women's soccer team, and the coaching staff has selected a list of 34 players, including the main players and substitutes who won the Asian Cup.
Wang Frost is unable to train with the team due to club reasons, and the coaching staff needs to adjust the tactics. Meanwhile, the status of many overseas players became the focus of attention. Li Mengwen made her debut in Ligue 1 Paris, Yang Lina made her debut in La Liga, and Shen Mengyu made her consecutive debuts in the Scottish Premier League Celtic, and their form will help China's women's soccer team to improve their fighting power.
"Overseas players" and "overseas training" are the keys to the rise of Chinese women's soccer. Despite the fierce competition in professional soccer, China's women's soccer team has expressed a strong desire to actively integrate into the world trend of women's soccer. Shui Qingxia said that the status of overseas players is a tough test for her, but she believes it is the right choice.
The Chinese women's soccer team's preparation program consists of four warm-up matches before returning home to rest. As the tournament date approaches, the importance of "overseas training" and "overseas players" is becoming more and more prominent. Shui Qingxia said the Chinese women's soccer team will work hard to improve in order to achieve better results in the World Cup.
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