China PR Women vs Spain Women Predictions

Things didn’t quite go to plan on match-day one, though the Chinese bounced back last time out, as they beat South Africa by a goal to nil. In contrast, Spain, who got the job done first time out, were beaten on match-day two. Whichever side wins this fixture will qualify from the group in second place.

First time out, China struggled to match a very strong German side; they didn’t offer a great deal going forward, as they posted only one shot on target and somewhat predictably failed to get on the score-sheet, though their efforts greatly improved against a lesser South Africa side. Last time out, they were good at both ends of the pitch. They kept a clean sheet and gave away only 0.26 expected goals, while they found the net going the other way, creating a pleasing 1.62 expected goals for.

However, while their second effort in France was a solid one, China did benefit from facing weak opposition. Facing a side that ranks 49^th in the world was never going to present Xiuquan Jia’s women with the toughest task. Facing Spain, who’re ranked 13^th, will be far harder.

Spain struggled on match-day two, but they can be forgiven for not being at their best, as the Germans are extremely tough to face. In fact, as the rankings suggest, it’s only really USA who’re tougher to go up against than Die Nationalelf. In truth, although they lost by the same score-line, Spain fared better against Germany than China did. While the Chinese were on the back-foot when registering just five shots at goal, Spain dominated the ball as they managed to send 13 shots towards the German goal.

Not only did the Spanish put up more of a fight than China against Germany, but they also fared better against South Africa, or rather their performance was slightly more encouraging than that of the Chinese. Against the South Africans, Spain found the net on three occasions, as they created 3.4 expected goals for, while China only netted once in posting 1.62.

If we compare the efforts of both China and Spain at this tournament, then it’s probably fair to say that both have got something about them going forward, while neither look overly sturdy at the back. That said, in terms of overall quality, especially in the final third, it is the Spanish that appear to have the edge.

At the prices, ‘Spain to Win & Both Teams to Score’ catches the eye. As the Spanish failed to keep a clean sheet against both South Africa and Germany, the Chinese cannot be discounted going forward, though Spain, who created more than China against each of the other sides in Group B, averaging 1.87 expected goals for compared to China’s 1.23, have it within them to outscore their opponents.