AUCKLAND, New Zealand — In the space of some four minutes, Cristiana Girelli made history.
Girelli became the first Italian to score in two Women's World Cups with her goal in the 87th minute that gave Italy a 1-0 win in its tournament opener against Argentina on Monday night.
“There’s nothing special, it’s just that I did my duty," Girelli said. “I did my best. I was really willing to help my teammates.”
Italy put the ball in the back of the net twice in the opening half but both times were offside, before Girelli's breakthrough header. Girelli came into the match as a substitute in the 83rd minute.
The Italians have never dropped an opening match at the World Cup. But this time they faced tenacious Argentina, eager for its first-ever win in the tournament. Going into the World Cup, La Albiceleste were inspired by their men's side and star Lionel Messi, who brought home the World Cup trophy from Qatar late last year.
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“We will try to leave this game behind us, learn from what happened, and continue reinforcing the positive. Now we need to clear our minds, look at what comes next and take on the group," Argentina forward Estefania Banini said.
Italy has had more success on the big stage, advancing to the World Cup quarterfinals in 2019 after a 2-0 round of 16 victory over China. The Italians were stopped by the Netherlands, which went on to lose to the United States in the final.
Argentina had a boisterous section of fans — including a drum corps — at the match at Eden Park. The crowd at the match was announced at 30,889.
Argentina’s women returned to the World Cup four years ago in France after a 12-year absence and had a tough time: after a draw with Japan and a loss to England, the team played to a tie with Scotland — but couldn’t collect enough points to advance out of the group.
“We couldn't really manage to get a positive result, but my players gave it their all. Yes, they gave it their all and they know this. I told them this,” Argentina coach German Portanova. “We took the field with a certain mindset, but we couldn't do it for the 90 minutes.”
Colombia's Linda Caicedo, left, and South Korea's JI So-yun competes for the ball during a Women's World Cup Group H match on Monday in Sydney, Australia.
COLUMBIA 2, SOUTH KOREA 0: Cancer survivor Linda Caicedo scored on her debut at the Women's World Cup as Colombia beat South Korea.
The Real Madrid forward, who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer at the age of 15, fired in her country's second goal of the match at Sydney Football Stadium before racing toward Colombia's fans in celebration.
The 18-year-old Caicedo, who is an inspirational figure on and off the field, further enhanced her reputation as one of soccer's rising stars with her goal and performance as Colombia made a winning start to the tournament.
In a moment for the history books, 16-year-old Casey Phair became the youngest-ever player in the Women’s World Cup when she went on as a second-half substitute.
Germany's Alexandra Popp takes a shot during a Women's World Cup Group H match on Monday against Morocco in Melbourne, Australia.
GERMANY 6, MOROCCO 0: Alexandra Popp scored twice in the first half and Germany added four more in the second in a rout of a Morocco team making its debut at the Women’s World Cup in Melbourne, Australia.
The margin of victory is the largest of the tournament so far as the two-time champions dominated throughout against Morocco, the first Arab and North African country to qualify for the tournament.
Popp scored her 63rd and 64th international goals, moving to third on Germany’s all-time list. The Wolfsburg forward quickly made her mark on the tournament after missing out on the final of the 2022 European Championship against England because of injury.
“I haven’t set myself a goal on how many goals I’ll score," Popp said. "I want to reach the finals and to win the finals. Apart from that, I’m just happy. I hadn’t scored really well before (in the World Cup), but these two goals were a boost.”
Brazil's Ary Borges celebrates her hat trick goal during a Women's World Cup Group F match on Monday against Panama in Adelaide, Australia.
The second half featured two Morocco own-goals sandwiched between goals from Klara Bühl and Lea Schüller.
BRAZIL 4, PANAMA 0: Bia Zaneratto’s spectacular finish will take some beating for goal of the tournament at the Women’s World Cup. And on the evidence of its win over Panama in Adelaide, Australia, Brazil will take some beating for the title.
Ary Borges scored a hat trick on her World Cup debut, but it was her assist for Zaneratto’s second-half strike that was the standout moment of the match and arguably the tournament so far.
“I’ve waited a long time for this moment. It’s a dream to be able to be here, playing in a World Cup," Borges said. "It’s one of the best days of my life. I’m very, very happy for the three goals, but the main thing was a debut in which we imposed ourselves.
"It was a lot of emotion, remembering everything I did to be here. It was a mixture of feelings. I was happy, I cried, anxious to start the game. Being here is truly a dream.”
When Debinha’s cross landed at Borges’ feet toward the end of a sweeping move, the forward, who had struck twice in the first half, looked set to add a third. Instead, she checked, wrong-footed Panama’s defense and backheeled to Zaneratto, who lifted her shot into the top corner.
It was a goal full of the flair that Brazilian soccer is famed for.
