The fairy tale run at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup continues for the Matildas who will now take on England in the semi-finals in Sydney on Wednesday night. Can the co-hosts go a step further and make it all the way to the final?
We preview Wednesday night’s Australia vs England matchup below and provide our best bet. Good luck to everyone following!
2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup Betting Tips
Australia vs England
Wednesday 8pm AEST, August 16th, Olympic Park (Sydney)
The stage is set for either Australia or England to create history and advance to a Women’s World Cup final for the very first time. Both teams are peaking in form at the right time and that should make for a world class matchup between two nations littered with superstars. There won’t be many eyes in Australia that aren’t glued to this match!
Australia
Possible Lineup: Arnold — Carpenter, Hunt, Kennedy, Catley — Raso, Gorry, Cooney-Cross, Foord — Fowler, Kerr
The quarterfinal match between Australia and France was probably the most action-packed and dramatic 0-0 draw you’ll ever see. There were numerous golden chances missed by both sides throughout both regular time and extra time, and eventually the result was determined by an epic penalty shootout which the Matildas won 7-6. Goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold was the hero and was thoroughly deserving to be named Player of the Match.
The one obvious concern for the Matildas when looking ahead to the semi-finals is it’s only a five-day turnaround after their marathon match against France. Manager Tony Gustavsson has used the least amount of players from his squad (17) out of the four teams left in the tournament, and his Aussie girls looked out on their feet in extra time against France.
Despite fatigue being apparent in Saturday night’s win, it’s unlikely Gustavsson messes with his winning formula. The only foreseeable change to their starting XI is Sam Kerr to take the place of Emily van Egmond. Kerr will be nearing full fitness after getting plenty of minutes into her legs on Saturday, and it all depends on how the superstar striker and her sore calf pulled up.
England
Possible Lineup: Earps — Bronze, Bright, Carter, Greenwood — Stanway, Walsh, Hemp, Toone, Daly — Russo
Although far superior on paper and priced as massive favourites in their quarterfinal matchup, it certainly wasn’t smooth sailing for England against Colombia. They fell behind 1-0 in the 44th minute but were able to quickly recover to head into the main break on level pegging. The Lionesses were the second-best team for the majority of the second half, having only three attempts at goal compared to Colombia’s 10, but star forward Alessia Russo managed to convert on a rare opportunity in the 63rd minute, which ended up being the match-winner.
The Lionesses have won all five matches in the tournament to date which is a feat only Sweden has also been able to achieve. However, their two wins in the knockout phase could’ve quite easily ended differently had luck not been on their side, particularly their win against the much lower ranked Nigeria in the Round of 16 which came via a penalty shootout.
England manager Sarina Wiegman is tipped to start the same XI that began the match against Colombia on Saturday night. Superstar midfielder Lauren James remains on the sidelines after copping a two-match suspension for her brain fade against Nigeria. Ella Toone replaced her in the lineup last start and did enough to warrant selection once again.
Match Prediction
Unless Gustavsson unexpectedly decides to change things up and use some fresher but also much less experienced legs on Wednesday night, I believe the only realistic chance the Matildas have of winning is in normal time. As mentioned above, they looked gassed in extra time against France and playing another 120+ minutes five days later against a fresher England outfit is just too much of a tough ask.
However, in normal time the Matildas have absolutely every chance of causing the upset here. The Lionesses were shaky at best against a much lower ranked Colombia in the quarterfinals and nearly managed to bottle it. The Matildas are a much tough opponent.
Getting the first goal will be crucial to the Matildas chances in what’s likely to be a cagey affair between two nations trying to secure their first ever trip to the final of a Women’s World Cup. I like their chances, but only for a small staking due to their potential fatigue levels late in the piece.
Australia to Win (regular time)
$3.45 (1 Unit)
