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James sees red but England in last eight

Published:Tuesday | August 8, 2023 | 12:10 AM
Nigeria’s Michelle Alozie (left) and England’s Lauren James vie for the ball during the Women’s World Cup round of 16 match between England and Nigeria in Brisbane, Australia yesterday. James was sent off in the 87th minute.
AP
Nigeria’s Michelle Alozie (left) and England’s Lauren James vie for the ball during the Women’s World Cup round of 16 match between England and Nigeria in Brisbane, Australia yesterday. James was sent off in the 87th minute.

BRISBANE, Australia (AP):

Down a player after star forward Lauren James was ejected, England were facing the prospect of an upset against Nigeria and a round-of-16 exit at the Women’s World Cup.

The European champions remained calm enough to get through regulation and extra time at 0-0 and won a penalty shootout 4-2 to scrape into the quarterfinals yesterday.

England became the title favourites after the two-time reigning champions United States were eliminated on Sunday in a penalty shootout loss to Sweden. No. 2-ranked Germany, Olympic champions Canada and Brazil didn’t even reach the knockout stage.

But the Lionesses struggled to create opportunities against Nigeria and, with five minutes remaining in regulation, an upset loomed when James received a red card after a VAR review.

She initially was given a yellow card by referee Melissa Borjas after falling on top of Michelle Alozie and then stepping on the Nigeria defender. The crowd groaned as slow-motion replays on the stadium screens showed the incident, and, after a delay of several minutes, the yellow card was upgraded to red.

British media instantly reacted by comparing it with David Beckham’s red card for kicking out at Argentina’s Diego Simeone at the 1998 World Cup in France. The red card means James will miss at least the quarterfinal and a potential semifinal.

Adapting to every challenge

But after a run of injuries to senior players and the loss of James, England coach Sarina Wiegman praised her team for adapting to every challenge.

“I’ve never experienced so many problems,” Wiegman said. “It’s my job to think of things that can happen in a game or a tournament. You try to turn every stone and try to already think of a solution if things happen. Today, we got totally tested on those turned stones.”

Wiegman said her 21-year-old star “in a split second lost her emotions”.

“Of course she doesn’t want to hurt anyone,” the coach added. “She’s the sweetest person I know.”

After narrowly escaping with a win, England will meet Colombia or Jamaica in Sydney next Saturday in the quarterfinals.

Hosts Australia are also in the quarterfinals. They blanked Denmark 2-0 in the round of 16 at a raucous Stadium Australia. Australia will play either France or Morocco in the quarterfinals.