Germany beat New Zealand 3-0 on the second day of Group B of the U20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica to take the lead in the series.
Clara Froehlich (58), Sophie Weidauer (64) and Zia Corle (90+4) scored the goals of the match at the Alejandro Moreira Soto Stadium in Alajuela, northwest of San Jose.
With this result, Germany leads Group B with 3 points, the same as Colombia, while Mexico and New Zealand have one, although the Colombians and Mexicans have a game in hand.
After losing their first game against Colombia, the Europeans came into the meeting with a sense of urgency. Against the New Zealanders, the plan was to regain control of the ball in search of an opposition goal, but it took nearly an hour to convert that dominance into goals.
Germany’s Selina Voppian was able to score early on when, after a mistake by the New Zealand defence, she stood alone in front of the goalkeeper she couldn’t beat.
In the second half, Maja Sternat, in a similar move, naively handed the ball to the opposition goalkeeper.
In the 58th minute, Bayern Munich defender Clara Froehlich ended the Teutonic’s goal drought at the World Cup with a beautiful header after a corner kick.
Then, a penalty awarded to Sternard, who were more active in the second half, helped Whittier extend their lead.
Corle happily scored the third after receiving an assist with the goalkeeper already beaten.
jjr/ma
“Typical beer advocate. Future teen idol. Unapologetic tv practitioner. Music trailblazer.”