England have reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup after beating Nigeria 4-2 on penalties.
But the Lionesses will know how lucky they are to still be in the tournament, after Lauren James was sent off in the 87th minute for a moment of petulance that saw her stamp on Michelle Alozie’s back.
James, the hero of England’s 6-1 win over China just days ago, could now be banned for the rest of the tournament, but her actions could have had far worse consequences. Nigeria had been the better side for the majority of the game and had the better of the chances, but couldn’t make their additional player count during extra-time, with the game finishing 0-0.
The Lionesses were grateful to take the game to a shootout, and when they did only Georgia Stanway’s opening kick was off-target. Beth England, Rachel Daly and Alex Greenwood all scored confidently before Chloe Kelly – England’s match-winner in the Euros final last year – secured their place in the final eight.
Who will England play in the quarter-finals?
The Lionesses’ opponents will be either Colombia or Jamaica, who play their round-of-16 fixture at 9am on Tuesday.
Colombia reached the knockouts by topping Group H after beating Germany and South Korea and losing to Morocco. Jamaica came second in Group F behind France. They drew with both the French and Brazil, and beat Panama 1-0.
The game will be played on Saturday 12 August, kicking off at 11.30am, at Stadium Australia in Sydney.
Coverage will be on ITV1 and ITV X, starting at 10.45am.
What is England’s possible route to the final?
If England get past Colombia or Jamaica, then their semi-final opponents will be either Australia, France or Morocco.
Australia beat Denmark 2-0 on Monday to earn their spot in the quarters, while France will face Morocco on Tuesday, with the French fairly heavy favourites.
France and Australia are both ranked inside the top 10 in the world, so would be stiff competition, but England are ranked fourth themselves, and are considered favourites for the entire tournament following the US’ surprise exit on Sunday.
Should England make it all the way to the final, then Spain, the Netherlands, Japan or Sweden will be standing in their way. Japan – the only former champions left in the tournament – might be the toughest test of the lot.
Could Lauren James return after the quarters?
James was initially shown a yellow card following the incident, but it was upgraded to a straight red after a VAR check.
The straight red means she is automatically suspended for England’s quarter-final, but her punishment will be reviewed by a Fifa disciplinary panel. The Fifa rulebook for the tournament states: “If players or team officials are sent off as a result of a direct or indirect red card, they will automatically be suspended from their team’s subsequent match. In addition, further sanctions may be imposed by the Fifa disciplinary committee.”
If James is deemed to have committed a serious act of foul play then she could face a three-match ban, which would spell the end of her tournament.
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