Vancouver - The Women's World Cup heats up this weekend with Australia challenging holders Japan and hosts Canada up against England in the quarter-finals.
The rerun of last year's Asian Cup final at Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium will see temperatures of 31 degrees celsius, with the heat at ground level set to swell closer to 50 degrees celsius due to the synthetic playing surface.
Canada will then go head-to-head with England in Vancouver's BC Stadium later Saturday, where west coast temperatures are also soaring.
But Australia coach Alen Stajcic believes his young side, ranked 10th, can cool the spirits of fourth-ranked Japan, a team the Matildas have played often.
"We played Japan twice in the Asian Cup and we fought back to 2-2 in the first game," he said. "They played us in the final and they managed to beat us 1-0 on a set piece.
"We've got a big assignment on our hands. We're up against a very good team, but we've been very dangerous as well in this tournament and there's no reason why we can't be dangerous again against Japan.
"We've evolved greatly on and off the field. We'll be a new proposition for Japan. It's going to be hot, 31 predicted, which will be a challenge for both teams.
"I'm confident we can beat them but it's going to be an extremely tough match."
Norio Sasaki's Japan have won all their games so far -- an unmatched feat for the remaining teams.
"We're used to playing Australia," said Sasaki. "But Australia now is a completely different team, they have improved a lot and are technically superior."
AFP
