Chile Women come up against Canada Women this Saturday on matchday two of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, with both teams in search of their first win in Group E.
Canada picked up one point on the opening day against Japan, while Chile suffered defeat at the hands of Great Britain in Sapporo on Wednesday.
Match preview
© Reuters
Jose Letelier's side failed to get a foothold in their game against Team GB in the opening fixture of this summer's Olympics, falling to a 2-0 defeat to place them bottom of Group E.
Ellen White scored the first goal at the Tokyo Games after 17 minutes at the Sapporo Dome, and she completed GB's victory over Chile 18 minutes from time when she netted her second goal of the day.
Chile were dominated by Hege Riise's side, who claimed a large proportion of possession throughout the game and limited Chile to just one shot on target at Ellie Roebuck's goal.
Following that game, Letelier admitted that Great Britain outplayed his side on the day, but that they will learn from the defeat and that Chile must surpass these obstacles moving forward.
Chile's opponents on Saturday put one point on the board after playing hosts Japan in the opening fixture, a game which ended in a 1-1 draw at the Sapporo Dome.
Canada's all-time record goalscorer Christine Sinclair added another goal to her collection just six minutes into the game on Wednesday, which was a milestone appearance for the striker as she claimed her 300th international cap.
However, Bev Priestman's side could not hold on to their lead for the remaining 84 minutes, allowing Mana Iwabuchi to equalise for the home side only six minutes from time.
A concern for the Canadians will be that goalkeeper Stephanie Labbe had to be substituted off after 58 minutes against Japan, and she was replaced by Kailen Sheridan between the posts.
The draw means that Canada have extended their unbeaten run, including friendly fixtures, to five games dating back to the beginning of April, but of those matches Canada have drawn their last three.
Canada are likely to be targeting this game against Chile as their perfect opportunity to record their first win at the Tokyo Olympics, considering that Letelier's side are the lowest ranked team in Group E.
- L
- L
- D
- L
- D
- D
- D
- D
Team News
© Reuters
Chile will be in need of more attacking threat if they are to penetrate through a strong Canadian defence, who have only conceded one goal in their last five matches in all competitions.
The front three of Maria Jose Urrutia, Daniela Zamora and Yanara Aedo are likely to start again on Saturday, but they will need to create better chances than they did against Great Britain to find the back of the net this weekend.
Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Christiane Endler looked to be a frustrated figure on Wednesday and is likely to be disappointed with her individual performance, so she will be looking to improve on that to keep a clean sheet against Canada.
As previously mentioned, Canada goalkeeper Labbe was forced off against Japan and she is likely to miss out on matchday two in Group E, with Sheridan now expected to start for Priestman's side.
There is not much doubt that Sinclair will lead the line for the Canadians on Saturday, and she is expected to be followed by a similar lineup to the one which started on Wednesday.
The back four of Ashley Lawrence, Kadeisha Buchanan, Shelina Zadorsky and Allysha Chapman will be confident that they can keep Chile out having not posed a threat to Great Britain's defence this week.
Chile Women possible starting lineup:
Endler; Saez, Guerrero, Pardo, Lopez; Lara, Araya, Lopez; Aedo, Urrutia, Zamora
Canada Women possible starting lineup:
Sheridan; Chapman, Zadorsky, Buchanan, Lawrence; Quinn, Scott; Beckie, Fleming, Prince; Sinclair
We say: Chile Women 0-2 Canada Women
Canada will be another tough test for Chile, similar to the one in which they faced against Great Britain, and the experience of Priestman's side should be enough to pick up three points on Saturday.
Three points for Canada will almost certainly guarantee them a place in the quarter-final stage, and they will be keen to secure that before they face Great Britain next Tuesday.
Top tip
Sammy Wynne
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Canada Women win with a probability of 46.44%. A win for Chile Women had a probability of 27.95% and a draw had a probability of 25.6%.
The most likely scoreline for a Canada Women win was 0-1 with a probability of 10.92%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.22%) and 0-2 (8.27%). The likeliest Chile Women win was 1-0 (8.05%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.18%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with a 9.2% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Canada Women would win this match.
