Soccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Sweden's Kosovare Asllani in action with Megan Rapinoe of the U.S. REUTERS/Phil Noble
LE HAVRE, France (Reuters) - Holders the United States beat Sweden 2-0 on Thursday to maintain their perfect women's World Cup record and top Group F, setting up a last-16 clash with Spain.
Lindsey Horan netted the tournament's fastest goal after three minutes and Jonna Andersson scored an own goal as the U.S. beat the record for most goals (18) in the women's World Cup group stage.
Sweden, who were also qualified before kickoff, finished second in the group with six points and will face Canada for a place in the quarter-finals.
Soccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Sweden's Sofia Jakobsson in action with Megan Rapinoe of the U.S. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo
"It’s a good performance and we wanted to continue to build momentum," U.S. coach Jill Ellis told a news conference.
"We have things to work on to make sure we’re sharper next game, and the players know that. It was a rival game and I thought the players showed a great mentality."
The U.S. did not concede a goal in the group phase.
Soccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Crystal Dunn of the U.S. in action with Sweden's Nathalie Bjorn REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo
"It’s huge and a big part of what we’re trying to do both offensively and defensively. We talk about the idea of 360-degree defending where everyone is defending," said midfielder Tobin Heath.
The U.S. made a fast start when Horan tapped in the opening goal from close range from Megan Rapinoe's corner.
That equalled Norway's record group-stage tally of 17 set in 1995 but despite Sweden's determined resistance, the mark seemed destined to be beaten at the Stade Oceane.
Soccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Rose Lavelle of the U.S. in action with Sweden's Linda Sembrant and Julia Zigiotti REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo
Five minutes into the second half, Heath's header took a deflection off Andersson as the U.S. doubled their lead.
The goal was confirmed after a VAR review which ruled that Heath was not offside.
Chile beat Thailand 2-0 to finish third in the group but were eliminated from the tournament. Thailand ended without a point.
Soccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Sweden's Kosovare Asllani in action with Samantha Mewis of the U.S. REUTERS/Phil Noble
(Writing by Julien Pretot; Editing by Ed Osmond)
Soccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Lindsey Horan of the U.S. scores their first goal REUTERS/Bernadett SzaboSoccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Lindsey Horan of the U.S. celebrates scoring their first goal with Rose Lavelle REUTERS/Bernadett SzaboSoccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Christen Press of the U.S. in action with Sweden's Amanda Ilestedt REUTERS/Phil NobleSoccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Carli Lloyd of the U.S. in action with Sweden's Kosovare Asllani REUTERS/Phil NobleSoccer Football - Women's World Cup - Group F - Sweden v United States - Stade Oceane, Le Havre, France - June 20, 2019 Christen Press of the U.S. celebrates with Alyssa Naeher and team mates after the match REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo
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