CHENGDU, West China, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- American defender Kate Markgraf said here on Thursday that the United States are confident to beat the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in their women's World Cup opener.

The United States will open their World Cup campaign against the DPRK team on Sept. 11.

"I believe that we can beat the DPRK, we have played twice with them, and we've had two victories," said Markgraf.

The American team arrived in Chengdu on Thursday. Before getting on the bus, the 36-year-old star Kristine Lily also had a short conversation with reporters.

"The champion is too far to talk about. We have just arrived here. The first thing to do is to think about how to beat the DPRK in our first match. I wish I can get a goal," Lily said.

"The other three teams in our group are very strong, I think every match is important for us. All that we can prepare now is too keep on training. "