By Chen Xiangfeng (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-09-23 20:03

China answered strongly with strong efforts from Han, Ma and Xie Caixia but to no avail.

Domanski-Lyfors inserted Zhang Ouying and Zhang Tong to boost her attack but even a more aggressive China couldn't find the net.

"We have to be very efficient. We had very good chances in the first half but we did not score," Domanski-Lyfors lamented.

That's not very good. I made it 3-3-4 in the second and it nearly worked. We were very close but close is not enough."

Despite the disappointment, Domanski-Lyfors believes China's prospects are bright even if hers aren't quite so shiny.

"Football is not always logic which we can see today. You need good luck to win and sometimes we do not have it," she said.

"But firstly we have to have a good team like China, they can play really really good football, technically and tactically against the world's best teams. That's the future for China."

"For me, first of all, I have to think about if I would be the coach in the future and in the Olympic Games.

"It's very important to do after a championships. I consider it if everyone else takes the coach of the team, it's a great team and I really love the team."

Previously, two rivals had met on 21 occasions, with Norway winning 11 games and China's seven (plus three draws).

Norway triumphed 4-1 in the Algarve Cup in 1996, but China claimed victory in the teams' two previous FIFA Women's World Cup encounters.

It defeated the Scandinavians 4-0 on home soil in the opening match of the inaugural event in 1991 before securing a 5-0 victory in the semifinal of the USA tournament in 1999.

Norway was a narrow 1-0 winner when the teams last met at the Algarve Cup in 2006.

Norway had never beaten a host nation at the FIFA Women's World Cup.

In 1991 it lost 4-0 to China and in 2003 was eliminated 1-0 by the United States in the quarters.

In the following quarterfinal match last night, Brazil sent Australia packing 3-2 to clinch its place in the semifinals.

Norway now travels to Tianjin to play defending champion Germany on Wednesday while Brazil makes the trip to eastern Hangzhou to face off against the top ranked United States on Thursday.

 

      1   2     

      1   2