England were given an almighty scare by Nigeria, but will now face Colombia or Jamaica in the q/finals
By Kehinde Okeowo
England qualified for the quarter-finals of the Women’s World Cup with a dramatic penalty shootout victory over the Super Falcons of Nigeria in a match played at Brisbane Stadium.
Going into the encounter, the reigning European champions, England were clear favourites but the Nigerian ladies ensured it remained 0-0 after extra time.
Both teams could not break each other down, however, an 87th minute red card for Lauren James meant the Lionesses had to survive a gruelling onslaught having gone down to 10 players
She was sent off after stamping on Michelle Alozie’s back and a review by the video assistant referee (VAR) confirmed it was the right decision.
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Nigeria could have taken the lead through substitute, Uchenna Kanu but she couldn’t make contact with the ball with only the goal at her mercy after she was nicely set up by Ajibade.
The game eventually went into a shootout, but despite the first penalty-taker, Georgia Stanway, firing wide, Nigeria missed their next two and England secured their spot in the last eight when Chloe Kelly smashed in the winning kick.
England were given an almighty scare by the Super Falcons but will now face Colombia or Jamaica in the quarter-finals.