Nadeshiko Japan will face the Netherlands in the round of 16 at the Women's World Cup next Tuesday.

Japan, which secured the top spot in Group C with a 1-0 win over Ecuador on Tuesday in Winnipeg, will return to Vancouver to face the Dutch, who finished third in Group A but qualified as one of the four best third-placed teams in the group phase.

"They've got some big players and are also equipped with speed and technique," Japan manager Norio Sasaki said of the Netherlands, which beat New Zealand 1-0 and lost by the same score to China before drawing 2-2 with host Canada.

Having six days off before its next game, Sasaki planeed to rest his squad on Thursday to give them time to refresh.

"We're on course thus far. We'll roll our sleeves up and prepare again," the 57-year-old said.

Japan beat Switzerland 1-0 in their opener and edged Cameroon 2-1 before beating Ecuador to finish with a perfect group-stage record.

Because favorite Germany, the United States and France are all on the opposite side of the knockout-stage draw, Nadeshiko cannot face any of them until either the third-place match or the final. The Japan-Netherlands winner will take on either Brazil or Australia in the quarterfinals.