The first six games of the Women's Asian Cup have been completed with a lot of resolute defence and wins for the tournament contenders.
Host nation Australia got a 1-0 victory in Perth to kick-start the tournament, with Sam Kerr's header enough to defeat the Philippines.
Reigning champions China picked up a 2-0 win thanks to two goals in three minutes from Wang Shuang and Zhang Rui, but they were made to work for it by Asian Cup debutants Bangladesh.
While perennial threats, Japan were dominant in a 2-0 triumph over Chinese Taipei. They enjoyed 89% of possession in hot conditions and were held off for over an hour before Momoko Tanikawa broke the deadlock. Kiko Seike sealed it in second-half injury time.
With plenty of action to discuss, ESPN writers Joey Lynch, Gabriel Tan and Marissa Lordanic break down the talking points of the first round of group stage matches.
Q1. Plenty of players put their name up in lights during the first round of matches, but which player was the most impressive on matchday one?
Lynch: Even if two of her three goals may have come from the penalty spot, it's difficult to look past a first-half hat trick, so I'm going to have to shout out the play of North Korea's Myong Yu-Jong. Marking their return to a major tournament after a decade-and-a-half in the wilderness, the North Koreans played some pretty nice football as they cruised to an opening day win over Uzbekistan, further whetting the appetite for a final-group stage game against China that should really tell us about their bonafides as a genuine challenger. It's looking like Myong -- who you might remember from some impressive performances during the 2019 AFC U16 Women's Championships, shortly before her nation's self-imposed exile during COVID -- could play a big role in their fortunes.
Lordanic: Looking through green-and-gold tinted glasses I have to talk about Kerr's goal to give the Matildas an opening win in this Asian Cup. Her combination with Caitlin Foord for the goal was what Australian fans have come to know and love. Every element was picture perfect: Kerr's first goal back for Australia after injury, off her head, in her hometown. But the Matildas player who really stood out was Clare Wheeler, whose cross started the play that ended in Australia's winner. The Everton midfielder was everywhere and took a rare starting opportunity with both hands.
Clare Wheeler was one of the Matildas' standouts against the Philippines with ESPN's The Far Post heaping praise on the versatile midfielder.
Tan: We'll probably have plenty of time to eventually adulate some of the tournament's biggest stars so, while they're still around, I thought I'd focus on some of the less-heralded names -- even more so given they play in arguably the least-celebrated position: goalkeepers Mile Akter and Wang Yu-ting. Still only 19, Bangladesh keeper Akter was simply outstanding in limiting defending champions China to just a 2-0 win -- displaying maturity beyond her years. Similarly, Chinese Taipei's Wang was a key reason why one of the tournament's big favourites, Japan, were made to really work for their opening win, which was only really secured in injury-time. Their displays served as a reminder that there is talent to be celebrated across all the teams at this tournament.
- Japan made to toil but winning Women's Asian Cup opener all that matters
- Vietnam hand India late pain, but hope springs anew
- Inevitable Sam Kerr goal leads Matildas to victory
Q2. Yes, it's a small sample size but let's have an early nail to the mast: which nation will win it all?
Lynch: In lieu of any nation taking the field and blowing their opponents out of the water, I'm going to need to stick with my pre-tournament prediction of Japan. Sure, it took a while for Nadeshiko to get going against Chinese Taipei, but we know they've got the depth and talent to beat anyone in this tournament and, until someone else gives me a reason to think otherwise, I'm going to defer to that.
Tan: Same. Japan may not have been firing on all cylinders in their opening win but that was always going to be difficult against a team content to defend with all 11 players behind the ball. Ultimately, the Japanese still got the job done and their rivals might shudder at the thought of the quality that was left in reserve, including 2023 Women's World Cup Golden Boot winner Hinata Miyazawa, fellow Women's Super League star Kiko Seike, as well as the 164-capped Saki Kumagai -- the last remaining member of the 2011 World Cup-winning team who, for the past 15 years or so, has been their defensive lynchpin but may no longer be required to be an ever-present.
Lordanic: It's not fun to agree with Gabe and Joey, but that is what I'm doing. Japan have this ominous energy. In some ways it's only heightened by the fact that they didn't punish Chinese Taipei more on the scoreboard. But speaking of the scoreboard...
Q3. Of the six games played across this first matchday, five finished in clean sheets. While those teams who grabbed the win will be pleased defensively, should we be worried about the lopsidedness of the tournament? Or is parity coming?
Lynch: Getting myself nice and comfortable on this fence, I'm going to refrain from coming to any kind of conclusion on this until we've got a bit more of a sample size to draw from. Noting that none of the games were blowouts despite the heavyweights largely avoiding each other, too, tournament football can be notorious for pragmatic and low-scoring affairs, especially in the earliest games of their fixtures. Let's see if we start getting some blow-outs, or goals continue to prove hard to come by, in the days ahead.
Tan: I think, if we look at it simplistically just via the scorelines, the fact that there have been no blowouts suggests a growing level of parity. And it's also probably a good look for the tournament. Having said that, in terms of the actual balance of play, there have been some lopsided affairs -- especially when you consider Japan had 89% possession against Chinese Taipei. Similarly, considering they both featured at the last World Cup, the fact that the Philippines only had 14.6% possession and one effort on goal against Australia suggests -- to me -- that a change in mindset is also needed if we are to see the gap truly closing.
Lordanic: I respect a fence sit and want to acknowledge we are working with an incredibly small sample size. While none of the games were blowouts -- no scoreline was bigger than 3-0 -- it's no coincidence to me that the most exciting game was Vietnam's 2-1 win over India. Yes, Vietnam had more of the ball and the better of the chances, but India looked capable of creating something -- and did, as evidenced by Sanfida Nongrum's excellent goal. Without dismissing sitting back in a low block as an option in major tournament football, I think we should want a little bit more than lopsided shot and possession stats. That, of course, requires more investment which is a whole other issue.