Image copyright: Getty Images
2023 FIFA Women's World Cup
Quarter-finals
Australia v France
Lang Park
Brisbane, Australia
Saturday, 12 August 2023
Kick-off is at 07h00
Australia will be looking to make history when they meet France in the quarter-finals of the
2023 Women's World Cup at Lang Park in Brisbane on Saturday, August 12.
The Matildas beat Denmark 2-0 in Sydney on August 7 to advance to the last eight for the fourth time in eight editions, although they have never gone further than that.
Tony Gustavsson's side qualified for the round of 16 as Group B winners, although they suffered a surprise 3-2 defeat to Nigeria on July 27 to spoil what would have been a spotless record.
The World Cup co-hosts kept clean sheets against the Republic of Ireland, Canada and the Danes, while scoring nine goals in the process.
Image copyright: Getty Images
Gustavsson hailed his players for a mature performance against Denmark, but acknowledged they have to improve their defensive shape for Les Bleues.
"The maturity the players showed tonight, I'm very, very proud of," he said, before adding: "We didn't generate as much press today as we normally do. We need to look into that.
"We did fix it during the game and it got much better, especially in the second half. But in terms of a 90-minute performance in a quarter-final... we need to look into that and get back to where we were defending."
France dispatched Morocco 4-0 in the last 16 on August 8 to maintain their unbeaten run Down Under, having recovered from a slow start which saw them held to a 0-0 draw by Jamaica first up in Group F.
Herve Renard's side then pulled off an impressive 2-1 win over Brazil before trashing Panama 6-3 to secure top spot in their group.
Les Bleues bowed out in the quarter-finals on home soil in 2019 and 2015 (in Canada), having reached the semi-finals for the first time in 2011.
Renard is hoping the occasion will be too much for Australia to handle, just as the French weren't able to cope with the pressure as hosts four years ago at the same stage.
"We know exactly what we're in for," he said. "The host country, we know that that can be a good or bad thing. This is what the French team went through in 2019.
"It can be hugely disappointing as it was for France when they were knocked out. We're hoping to put Australia through exactly what France went through when they were the host country in 2019."
Head-to-Head:
Matches - 4
Australia - 2
France - 2
Draws - 0
2023 Women's World Cup quarter-final fixtures:
Friday, August 11:
01h00: Spain v Netherlands
07h30: Japan v Sweden
Saturday, August 12
07h00: Australia v France
10h30: England v Colombia
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