Forget Argentina. The team making the biggest strides in women's football at the moment is New Zealand. As well as the commitment from the players, the general feeling is that highly-rated coach John Herdman has been the driving force behind the improvement.

Herdman, a former youth team coach with Premier League side Sunderland, has won many admirers from FIFA TSG members in Qinhuangdao as well as FIFA Women's World Cup-winning coach Tina Theune-Meyer for his transformation of the team from underdogs to genuine quarter-final contenders.

But while the plaudits are nice to receive, the Durham-born coach and his squad believe that they are one result away from making the rest of the world sit up and take notice of their progress. That opportunity will come against the USA. FIFA.com caught up with the coach in the team hotel shortly before their departure to Shenyang.

FIFA.com: Given the praise given to this team for their performances against Japan and Norway, it's incredible to think that the girls almost did not make it here, isn't it?
John Herdman: We qualified through Oceania and I had to make a 45 minute presentation in front of the NZOC selectors, as they were not convinced that this New Zealand team had done enough to deserve the Olympian mantle. It's held in massive regard in the country and they are very precious about who actually receives it. I was sweating through the whole presentation, and so I was relieved when they said that they would send the girls to China because they believed that they would be a medal prospect in 2012, which I think is realistic.

How far have they come since the turn of the year?
The girls are getting better and better. This will be our seventh international in a month, which is really important for this team. We've never had this amount of continuity in terms of preparation and consistent development with top-level teams. So, if we're going to do it, it's now. There is a belief there. We have some key players who they are going to have to take care of, and they are certainly not firing on all cylinders at the minute.
We've looked at the States, we've been watching them over the year and this is our biggest opportunity to really make a big impression on the world.

What was more important: changing the girls' perceptions, or changing people's perceptions?
The girls' perceptions have changed already, but people's perceptions will always be that they are a second-tier team. But the girls don't think like that now - and that is the most important thing. They have developed a belief that they can not only match these teams, but thrive in this environment. I thought that the girls did not perform well in the Japan game. Our midfield unit did not perform, but against Norway they did - and they will do again against Boxx and Lloyd of the US, and we're desperate to take a scalp.

Against Norway you had lots of possession but created little in the way of clear-cut chances, so how do you go about changing that - and scoring goals?
The game against USA will be a little bit more open. Both teams need to get a win. I don't think USA can sit back and play for a draw. If we'd have equalised, I'm sure that Norway would have taken a point. They scored an early goal, dropped off and defended deep, but when a team does that, you know that you need a little bit of creativity. You need a Marta, or you need a Prinz that will really frighten a team. We lacked that tonight - and that little bit of imagination. But with the game against USA being a little more open and both teams being stretched, we must take our chances when they arise. I would love it if we beat them.