ENGLAND v JAPAN

Stade de la Rabine, Vannes

Monday, 16:30 (local time)

A tense opening period gave little indication of what was to follow after the interval, as Jun Endo, Riko Ueki and Saori Takarada continued their superb form to provide the goals, before Germany's Janina Minge scored late on.

The result sets up a mouth-watering semi-final against England on Monday, after the Group B winners beat the Netherlands 2-1.

The Germans came into the match as the only team in the competition to have won all three group matches, and after a tight and tense opening, the first inkling of Japan's eventual control came late in the first half.

A first half penalty from Amelie Delabre was ultimately all that separated the two sides in a hard-fought encounter at Stade Guy Piriou as France progressed to a semi-final against Spain next Monday.

The home side began the rematch of the 2016 final on the front foot, with DPR Korea seemingly content to sit behind the ball and deny them space in the final third for most of the first half.

The Korean approach was largely successful in denying France early chances, with a speculative long range effort from Christy Gavory in the 14th minute the first real attempt from the hosts.

Futoshi Ikeda's side began the day walking a tightrope, but with Jun Endo imperious and Saori Takarada and Riko Ueki both netting hat-tricks, they had no need for the safety net provided by Spain's 2-2 draw with the United States.

The Young Nadeshiko's win equals their biggest ever in the competition and sets up a quarter final meeting with Group D winners Germany, also in Vannes, on Friday.

The Spaniards took an early lead through Carmen Menayo, then defended strongly to win a hard fought contest between two sides who qualified for the competition as champions of their respective confederations.

Japan, though dominant in the possession stakes, lacked their usual incisiveness as they were limited to a single shot on target in the second half.

They had looked characteristically strong in possession early, and Jun Endo - one of three new faces from the side that beat the USA 1-0 on Monday - had what was ultimately their best chance when she skipped past two defenders to advance into the penalty area, only to be denied by goalkeeper Catalina Coll.

The East Asian side had been mere seconds away from securing a win that would have seen them claim the eighth and final place in the Knockout Stage, but Dou Jiaxing's unfortunate own goal meant her side were eliminated on goal difference.

Zhang Linyan's excellent goal put Peter Bonde's side in the driver's seat just before half time but they failed to hold on, extending their 12-year quarter final drought for at least two more years.

The 47-year-old former Urawa Red Diamonds coach took charge of the Young Nadeshiko in 2017 and led his side to a 1-0 victory over world U-20 title holders DPR Korea, to claim Japan’s fifth AFC U-19 Women’s Championship title last year.

Japan are grouped with United States, Paraguay and Spain in Group C, and will begin their campaign against the Americans on August 6.

While Ikeda admitted Japan are in a tough group, he is confident of his team meeting their target of making the final in France.

The Japanese players, said Ikeda, are determined to make the grade for the senior team and will use the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup as a stepping stone to prove their capabilities.

“Experiencing the game at the world stage will help the players development.

“I hope that throughout the tournament the squad and the players, individually, become stronger technically and mentally.”