China's Under-17 Women Run Riot: 7-0, and Then the United States
China’s Under-17 women’s team made it two wins from two at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup on Wednesday, dismantling Samoa 7-0 in a group-stage match that was effectively settled inside the first half. The result leaves the young side top of its group heading into a final fixture against the United States, with first place in the group on the line.
The scoring opened from the penalty spot. Fang Zhenzhu won the foul and then took the kick herself, converting to settle any early nerves. From there the goals came in a rush: Cheng Wandi delivered a cross that Xu Yue finished, and shortly before the break Wu Yichen’s effort deflected in off Xu Yue to make it three.
Cheng was at the centre of almost everything. Deep in first-half stoppage time she met Deng Jingjie’s cross with a header to make it four, and after the interval she won and converted a second penalty to complete her brace. By then the match had long stopped being a contest, but China kept pushing rather than easing off.
The substitutes made their own case. He Hanruo cut the ball back for Liu Yuxi to score, and Yang Lan, brought on late, wrapped things up with a long-range strike that would have been worth the ticket price on its own. Cheng finished the night with two goals and two assists, a stat line that underlines how much of China’s attacking play runs through her.
For a youth tournament, the manner of the win matters as much as the margin. Samoa are among the smaller footballing nations in the field, and a 7-0 scoreline says more about China’s sharpness in front of goal than about the opposition. The real test arrives next, and everyone in the camp knows it.
That test is the United States, in the final round of group matches, scheduled for 2am Beijing time on October 26. Both sides will be chasing top spot, and the winner will likely get a kinder draw for the knockout rounds. China’s coaching staff now face a familiar problem: how to keep a young squad grounded after a night of easy goals.
China has invested steadily in women’s youth football, and tournaments like this are where that work shows up — or does not. A first-half blitz built on quick wide play and confident finishing is encouraging, but the group decider will reveal whether the team can impose itself against a physically stronger, better organised opponent.
One detail worth noting: China’s goals were spread across six different scorers, including three who came off the bench. Depth of scoring is often the difference between a team that can win a group and one that can survive a knockout bracket. On October 26, against the United States, that depth gets its first genuine examination.