SCOUTING REPORT

ENGLAND’S hopes of topping Group D received a boost last night when Japan were held to a goalless draw in Paris by Argentina. It was a big surprise as this was Argentina’s first ever point at the World Cup having lost all six of their group games at the 2003 and 2007 tournaments, and 2011 champions Japan are aiming for their third final in a row. England now have a great opportunity to qualify top — probably avoiding Holland and Canada in the last 16 — if they get the results they need against Argentina in Le Havre on Friday and Japan in Nice a week tomorrow. Sportsmail takes a look at England’s next two opponents after a hard-fought draw at Parc des Princes...

ARGENTINA

SHE wears No 10 and is Argentina’s best player so the comparisons with Lionel Messi are inevitable, and England will need to watch out for captain Estefania Banini. If they can shackle her and striker Sole Jaimes then Argentina will offer little threat. Breaking down a typically combative Argentina will be significantly harder. Agustina Barroso and Aldana Cometti impressed at the heart of a back four offered good protection by defensive midfielder Lorena Benitez and goalkeeper Vanina Correa stood strong.

JAPAN

DESPITE their World Cup pedigree, this is a young group of players focused on peaking at the Tokyo Olympics next year. Yui Hasegawa, Narumi Miura and substitute Mana Iwabuchi were particularly impressive, but for all their possession, Japan struggled to create chances with Yuika Sugasawa and Hasegawa missing the best of them. Defensively, this was a first clean sheet in eight games, a weakness England can exploit.