Women’s World Cup 2023 LIVE: USA battle Portugal in Group E decider before England face China

England and the United States will look to book their place in the knockout rounds of the Women’s World Cup as the group stage deciders continue in Australia and New Zealand.

The Lionesses face China in their final fixture of Group D, with the Lionesses knowing that a win or a draw would be enough to seal top spot and confirm a meeting with Nigeria in the last-16.

Sarina Wiegman’s side will be without key midfielder Keira Walsh and their hopes of reaching the knockout stages will be in danger should they lose to China, with Denmark facing Haiti for the other qualification spot. You can see the best tips, predictions and bets for England vs China, here.

Elsewhere, the United States must avoid defeat to Portugal in order to advance to the last-16 and keep their title defence alive. Defeat would see the defending champions eliminated, with Netherlands facing Vietnam in the other Group E decider.

Follow the latest World Cup scores, updates and news in today’s live blog:

Women’s World Cup LIVE: Latest updates

• Women’s World Cup continues in Australia and New Zealand

• USA battle Portugal for last-16 spot in Group E decider (08:00am BST)

• England can qualify for last-16 with win or draw against China (11:00am BST)

• Women’s World Cup group standings: How can each team qualify?

• Women’s World Cup TV schedule: How to watch every match today

Women’s World Cup LIVE: Portugal vs USA

07:41 , Mike Jones

There’s a good showing from the United States fans in Auckland for this match. It’s a crucial one for the reigning champions who need to win to ensure they make it into the knockout rounds.

Women’s World Cup LIVE: Portugal vs USA

07:37 , Mike Jones

Team changes

Portugal have made a few changes from the side that earned a historic first World Cup win against Vietnam. Goalkeeper Ines Pereira, defender Diana Gomes and the experienced Dolores Silva all come back into the starting XI.

Vlatko Andonovski makes his first changes of the tournament after naming the same USA team for the first two games.

Rose Lavelle, who had not played since April before this tournament because of a knee injury, starts after coming off the bench against the Netherlands.

Forward Lynn Williams gets her first taste of this World Cup as Savannah DeMelo and Trinity Rodman drop out.

Women’s World Cup LIVE: Portugal vs USA

07:31 , Mike Jones

The USA has played Portugal five times in the last six years but the teams were drastically different when they last met in June 2021.

The US won that game 1-0 the likes of Abby Dahlkemper, Becky Sauerbrunn, Sam Mewis and Christen Press - who started that day - are no longer in this current squad.

Portugal, meanwhile, have shown haow they’ve grown with their results at this World Cup. They held the Netherlands to just one goal and beat Vietnam 2-0.

“Every other day, there’s something that everybody’s shocked by. And it’s not because of one team having a terrible game and the other team the game of their life. It’s because both teams competed well,” USWNT coach Vlatko Andonovski said.

“When we’re talking about the growth of the women’s game and the growth of the sport, this is an indication of it. And I’m just happy to see it.”

Women’s World Cup LIVE: Portugal vs USA

07:27 , Mike Jones

Will the USA get knocked out of the World Cup?

As the United States continue their bid for a third Women’s World Cup in a row, they cannot afford to lose to Portugal or they will be eliminated in the group stages.

The defending champions opened their campaign with a 3-0 victory against Vietnam but were held to a 1-1 draw by the Netherlands, in what was a rematch of their 2019 World Cup final.

The USA are still in a strong position to qualify from Group E and will advance to the knockout stages if a win or draw against Portugal, who are making their first appearance at the World Cup.

Victory would not guarantee the USA top spot - they must still finish ahead of the Netherlands on goal difference, should the Dutch defeat Vietnam in their final fixture.

Women’s World Cup LIVE: Portugal vs USA

07:24 , Mike Jones

Megan Rapinoe starts on the bench for the United States today bit is relishing playing in the World Cup once again.

Because the USA drew with the Netherlands last time out they must now win all of their remaining matches if they want to regain the trophy they’ve won in the last two editions of the Women’s World Cup.

“Now every single game from here on out is that pressure moment,” Rapinoe said. “And that’s the best part of being in the World Cup.”

Women’s World Cup LIVE: Portugal vs USA line-ups

07:18 , Mike Jones

Portugal XI: Pereira; Borges, Gomes, Costa, Amado; Dolores Silva, Pinto, Norton; Nazareth, Jessica Silva, Diana Silva

USA XI: Naeher; Fox, Ertz, Girma, Dunn; Sullivan, Lavelle, Horan; Williams, Morgan, Smith

Women’s World Cup LIVE

07:09 , Jamie Braidwood

“When Keira Walsh got injured, there was a collective groan of sympathy for a world-class player missing the rest of the tournament, but also for the rest of England’s squad. They must now deal with the loss of Walsh, the deep-lying playmaker who knits the team’s approach play together and so brilliantly patrols the space in front of the back four.

“Walsh is probably Sarina Wiegman’s most important player, certainly in the absence of Leah Williamson and Beth Mead, and England have now lost all three of the players who led them to European Championship glory.”

Here’s Kelly Smith’s latest column on how England can adapt to losing their most crucial midfielder:

Kelly Smith: England can cope without Keira Walsh — here is how Lionesses can adjust

Women’s World Cup LIVE

06:59 , Jamie Braidwood

When is England vs China?

The match will kick off at 12pm BST on Tuesday 1 August at the Hindmarsh Stadium in Adelaide.

How can I watch it?

England’s match against China will be shown on ITV 1 and on ITV X, with coverage starting at 11:15am.

What is the team news?

England midfielder Keira Walsh has been ruled out of the match against China, but could play later in the World Cup after the Lionesses confirmed she had not suffered an ACL injury.

England have a fully fit squad elsewhere. Sarina Wiegman made two changes for the win against Haiti, with Lauren James and Rachel Daly set to keep their places.

Laura Coombs replaced Walsh when she was stretchered off against Denmark and could start, with Georgia Stanway moving back to the holding role.

Women’s World Cup LIVE

06:48 , Jamie Braidwood

Zambia end tournament on a high

Debutants Zambia claimed their first-ever victory at the Women’s World Cup with a 3-1 win over Costa Rica at Waikato Stadium, although both teams were already out of contention for the knockout stage.

Zambia, whose first two games ended in 5-0 hammerings, finished third in Group C, as Costa Rica finished bottom and did not pick up a point in their three matches.

Defender Lushomo Mweemba scored the fastest goal of the tournament so far, with a spectacular volleyed effort at two minutes and 11 seconds, and captain Barbra Banda doubled the lead from the penalty spot just after the half-hour mark. Melissa Herrera cut the deficit two minutes after the break and Costa Rica pushed for an equaliser, but substitute Racheal Kundananji netted the third in stoppage time to ensure Zambia’s debut World Cup campaign ended on a high.

“It’s a historic day,” Banda said. “We’ve had a lot of support back home so we wanted to win today ... It was not an easy game for us. It was a battle.

“I’ve been practising penalties in training so I was confident. At the same time, I was nervous, carrying the hopes of thousands of people back home. It was an honour for me to take that penalty.”

Women’s World Cup LIVE

06:33 , Jamie Braidwood

Japan lay down marker with Spain thrashing

Hinata Miyazawa grabbed two goals to become the tournament’s leading scorer as former champions Japan put on a counter-attacking clinic to beat Spain 4-0 and lock up top spot in Group C.

Striker Riko Ueki also scored on the break as the Nadeshiko cut through Spain’s high press with three lightning raids in the first half before substitute Momoko Tanaka added the fourth with another quality strike eight minutes from time.

Japan, winners of the 2011 World Cup and runners-up in 2015, will remain in the New Zealand capital to play Norway in the last 16 on Saturday, while Spain – who similarly to their opponents had already qualified for the last 16 – will move north to Auckland to face Switzerland earlier on the same day.

“In the first and second games, we had more time to work with the ball but had to be wary of the counter-attack,” said coach Futoshi Ikeda.

“In this match against Spain, we knew we would have to defend for long periods. So we knew we would have to take advantage of every opportunity we had to play the game we wanted to. I think were successful in this.”

Women’s World Cup LIVE

06:21 , Jamie Braidwood

Nigeria were disappointed to come away from their final Women’s World Cup group game against Ireland with just a point but would have gladly accepted it before kick-off if they knew it meant reaching the last 16, coach Randy Waldrum said.

Nigeria started the game top of the Group B standings but the 0-0 draw allowed co-hosts Australia to move up to first place after they thrashed Canada 4-0, meaning the African side look on course to face England in the last 16.

A pay dispute has overshadowed their campaign, with the outspoken Waldrum saying he was owed seven months’ wages and some of his players had not been paid in two years. But the American coach said he was proud of what his side achieved despite the complaints.

“I just told them that two years ago, when we started this journey, so many things went well and so many things didn’t go well. They never gave up, they continued to believe,” a smiling Waldrum said after they sealed qualification for the last 16.

“You know, I was actually disappointed in the second half because we could have won the match. So it almost feels disappointing that we didn’t get the result, the three points. But all of us would have taken this result before we started the match just to know we got through.”

Women’s World Cup LIVE

06:14 , Jamie Braidwood

Sam Kerr remained on the bench but thankfully for Australia, they did not need her. In a must-win match, the co-hosts did much more to keep their World Cup alive: thrashing the Olympic champions Canada to reach the knockout stages and restoring belief that looked to have been lost in the shock defeat to Nigeria. With it, Group B was flipped on its head: Ireland’s draw with Nigeria means Australia advance as group winners, avoiding a potential clash with England in the last-16.

Kerr could yet return for that, but Australia finally found a way to play without their star striker and captain. It came at the perfect time with the Matildas facing elimination and a World Cup dream that was instead turning into a nightmare. Kerr was back on the bench after missing Australia’s opening two games with a calf injury, but against Canada they were instead lifted by another returning star in Mary Fowler.

Australia thrash Canada to save Women’s World Cup dream from the jaws of a nightmare

Women’s World Cup LIVE

06:09 , Jamie Braidwood

Group E How can each team qualify?

United States

- The USA will qualify for the last-16 as long as they do not lose to Portugal. They will finish top of Group E if Netherlands draw or lose, or if they win by a greater margin than the Dutch.

Netherlands

- The Netherlands will qualify with a win or draw against Vietnam. The Netherlands could still qualify with a defeat, as long as they had a better goal difference than the USA.

Portugal

- Portugal will reach the last-16 if they beat the USA but will be out if they lose. If Portugal draw, they would require the Netherlands to lose Vietnam by at least two goals.

Vietnam

- Cannot qualify for the knockout stages.

Women’s World Cup LIVE - How can each team qualify?

06:06 , Jamie Braidwood

It’s crunch time at the Women’s World Cup with the final round of fixtures in the group stages set to decide who will advance to the knockouts.

It has been a tournament of shocks and surprises so far, with Nigeria stunning Australia and Colombia’s last-gasp win over Germany standing out as the biggest results of the World Cup.

There are set to be more twists and turns as the final matches of the group stages are played out - with the top two teams in each group advancing to the last-16.

With everything to play for across several groups, here’s what each team needs to reach the knockout stages.

Women’s World Cup group tables and standings: How can each team qualify?

Women’s World Cup LIVE - Today’s fixtures

06:02 , Jamie Braidwood

Group E: Vietnam vs Netherlands (08:00, Dunedin) - ITV 4

Group E: Portugal vs USA (08:00, Auckland) - ITV 1

Group D: Haiti vs Denmark (12:00, Perth) - ITV 4

Group D: China vs England (12:00, Adelaide) - ITV 1

Women’s World Cup TV schedule: How to watch every match today

Women’s World Cup LIVE - Good morning

06:01 , Jamie Braidwood

England and the United States will look to book their place in the knockout rounds of the Women’s World Cup as the group stage deciders continue in Australia and New Zealand.

The Lionesses face China in their final fixture of Group D, with the Lionesses knowing that a win or a draw would be enough to seal top spot and confirm a meeting with Nigeria in the last-16.

Sarina Wiegman’s side will be without key midfielder Keira Walsh and their hopes of reaching the knockout stages will be in danger should they lose to China, with Denmark facing Haiti for the other qualification spot.

Elsewhere, the United States must avoid defeat to Portugal in order to advance to the last-16 and keep their title defence alive. Defeat would see the defending champions eliminated, with Netherlands facing Vietnam in the other Group E decider.

Follow the latest World Cup scores, updates and news in today’s live blog: