BRISBANE: England dumped Nigeria out of the Women’s World Cup in a last-16 penalty shootout on Monday with Chloe Kelly scoring the decisive spot-kick, following a 0-0 draw over 120 nerve-jangling minutes.
Beth England, Rachel Daly and Alex Greenwood also converted in a 4-2 shootout win for the European champions, who had a player sent off in regulation time.
England played with 10 women through extra time after forward Lauren James, their top scorer with three goals in the group stage, was sent off in the 87th minute for an ill-tempered stamp on the back of Michelle Alozie after the two went down in a tangled heap.
Misses by Nigeria’s Desire Oparanozie and Alozie set up Kelly for the winner, and the Manchester City forward scored with a shot to the top right corner before being swarmed by team mates.
Fourth-ranked England face either Jamaica or Colombia in the quarter-finals in Sydney on Saturday. James will receive at least a one-game suspension.
Coach Sarina Wiegman said the 21-year-old James lost her emotion in “a split second … it’s not something she really did on purpose. She doesn’t want to hurt anyone.”
The Lionesses, who are unbeaten in 36 of their last 37 games, looked at times under Nigeria’s intense pressure like they might become the latest top-10 casualty in a World Cup of terrific parity.
