Alexandra Popp scored twice as Germany thrashed Morocco 6-0 to kick off their Women’s World Cup title defence in style, while Italy won a tense match against Argentina thanks to an 87th-minute winner.
In the last match of day five of the tournament in Australia and New Zealand, Brazil face debutants Panama hoping to make a statement of their own.
The lower-ranked teams at the first 32-team Women’s World Cup have generally held their own so far, indicating a closing of the gap in women’s international football.
But two-time champions Germany blew away Morocco — the first Arab team at a Women’s World Cup — in Melbourne to record the biggest win of the tournament so far.
The Germans are among the favourites once again, along with holders the United States, England, Spain and France, and they showed why with a clinical performance in front of a near sell-out crowd of more than 27,000.
In their 32-year-old skipper Popp they have one of the best goal-scorers around and she took full advantage of some poor Morocco defending with simple close-range finishes.
Klara Buehl made it three straight after half-time to end the match as any kind of contest, before two own goals and a late sixth from Lea Schueller.
Colombia face South Korea on Tuesday also in Group H, in the final match of the first round of group games.