Switzerland’s World Cup campaign is back on the right track after destroying Ecuador by nine goals on Friday. The European side will look to sustain the momentum from that huge win when it takes on Cameroon in a pivotal Group C showdown at Commonwealth Stadium this coming Tuesday.
Read on below for an in-depth breakdown of this critical matchup and while you’re at it, you can check out our World Cup previews of Nigeria vs. USA and Canada vs. Netherlands.
Switzerland earned its first Women’s World Cup victory by thrashing Ecuador 10-1 on Friday, equalling the record for the most goals scored in a match at the tournament. It was a huge win for the Swiss who climbed into second place in the Group C standings alongside Cameroon.
[sc:Soccer240banner ]Fabienne Humm and Ramona Bachmann were the stars of the show for Switzerland as they both scored second-half hat-tricks in this match. They are just the fourth duo in the history of the Women’s World Cup to score hat-tricks in the same contest. They matched the feats set by Brazil’s Petinha and Sessi in 1991, Germany’s Brigit Prinz and Sandra Smisek in 2007, and Germany’s Celia Sasic and Anja Mittag just this year.
Up next for Switzerland is a crunch clash with Cameroon. For the Swiss to grab all three points in this match and ensure qualification for the next round, they will need to control the midfield and dominate possession once again. The Swiss had 65% of the possession in their last match against Ecuador. That helped Switzerland establish an incredible 24-4 advantage in shot attempts and a 13-2 edge in shots on target against the Ecuadorians.
The Women’s World Cup is finally here! Create a betting account now and cash in on all the exciting soccer action.
Betting on Cameroon
Cameroon suffered its first defeat of the 2015 Women’s World Cup, losing 2-1 to defending champion Japan on Friday night. Goals from Aya Sameshima and Yuika Sugasawa gave the Japanese all three points and sent Cameroon into a tie for second place with Switzerland at three points.
Cameroon’s fate remain in its own hands, though, as it will face Switzerland next in its final group match on Tuesday. It’s a must-win game for Cameroon as Switzerland has a much superior goal difference, the tiebreaker which would see the Europeans take second place in the event of a draw.
For Cameroon to grab the all-important victory, it needs to do a much better job in maintaining ball possession. The Cameroonians only had 43% of the ball in their defeat against the Japanese. They will take comfort in the fact, however, that they created enough chances to trouble the defending champions. They outshot the Japanese in total attempts (20-4) and shots on target (3-2).
The onus is on Gaelle Enganamouit to rediscover her shooting form against the Swiss. After scoring a hat-trick in Cameroon’s opening win against Ecuador, much was expected from the 23-year-old in their match against Japan. She was a non-factor, however, in their second group match, as she found it difficult to breach the Japanese defense. Enganamouit has been a vital cog for Cameroon, scoring five goals in 41 appearances for the national team.
Writer’s Prediction
Switzerland (-150) wins, 4-1, to advance to the knockout stage of the 2015 Women’s World Cup.
