Canada faces Sweden on final day of Yongchuan Cup

With all four teams deadlock on three points, it will be Match Day 3 that determines the 2011 Yongchuan Cup champion. Canada faces Sweden and USA faces host China PR on Tuesday 25 January at the Olympic Sports Center in the Yongchuan District of Chongqing, China.



The Canada-Sweden match kicks off at 15.35 local (02.35 ET / 23.35 PT). The match will be broadcast on CCTV Sports in China PR. Fans back home in Canada can follow the match via the live twitter feed at twitter.com/CanadaSoccerEN. The USA-China PR match will be broadcast on CCTV-5.



The Yongchuan Cup Four-Nation Women’s Tournament is a six-match series that is played 21-23-25 January. Canada remains in first place after Match Day 2, with China PR, Sweden and USA ranked from second to fourth in the standings.



USA and Sweden are technically the favourites to win the final group matches on Tuesday 25 January. USA was ranked first overall in the last FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Ranking while Sweden was ranked fourth. As the first four games have shown, however, there is little that separates the four teams that have opened their 2011 season here in Yongchuan.



USA, Sweden and Canada are also taking this tournament in stride as part of a bigger picture. The three nations are currently preparing for this summer’s FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011. Following this tournament, USA and Sweden (as well as China PR) will be off to the 12-team Algarve Cup from 2-9 March while Canada will be off to the 12-team Cyprus Women’s Cup also from 2-9 March. More than half the Germany 2011 field is taking part in one of these two March tournaments, with USA, Sweden, Japan and Norway taking part in the Algarve Cup while Canada, England, France, New Zealand and Korea DPR taking part in the Cyprus Women’s Cup.



Tuesday will mark the 13th international meeting between Canada and Sweden. Their last meeting was in the group phase of the 2008 Women’s Olympic Football Tournament in Beijing. Lotta Schelin scored two goals in that match before Melissa Tancredi countered with a goal for the Canadians. In the previous match on 18 July 2006, Canada won 4:2 in a Women’s International Friendly in Blaine, MN, USA. It was Charmaine Hooper who scored her last international hat trick in that victory.



Canada, whose title sponsor is Winners and presenting sponsor is Teck, opened the 2011 Yongchuan Cup with a come-from-behind 3:2 victory over China PR. Canada fell in match two 1:2 to USA, but remained in first place.







STANDINGS

1. CANADA 1-0-1 (one win, one loss), 4:4 goals scored / goals conceded

2. CHINA PR 1-0-1, 4:4

3. SWEDEN 1-0-1, 3:3

4. USA 1-0-1, 3:3



TUESDAY TIE-BREAKER SCENARIO

Should two or more teams finished tied on points after Match Day 3, the following tie-breaker scenarios will be taken into consideration.

– Greater number of Points in matches between the teams concerned

– Greater Goal Differences resulting from the matches between teams concerned

– Greater number of goals scored in matches between the teams concerned

– Greater goal difference in all group matches

– Greater number of goals scored in all group matches

– Drawing of Lots