England defeated a resilient Nigerian side in the ongoing FIFA World Cup to progress to the quarterfinals of the ongoing tourney being held in Australia and New Zealand.
The European champions advanced to the round of eight thanks to Chloe Kelly’s game-winning penalty kick in a 4-2 shootout victory after the round of 16 match had gone scoreless and with England’s Lauren James dismissed.
As a result of the United States’ exit in another thrilling shootout against Sweden 24 hours earlier, their success justifies their ranking as the tournament’s favourites.
However, being considered the favorites in a World Cup can be both a burden and a source of inspiration. During their disastrous campaign, the USWNT did little to earn that distinction. One would argue that Spain, Japan, co-hosts Australia, or Sweden are more deserving of the “most likely to” designation than England, whose only noteworthy performance thus far was the 6-1 group-stage triumph against Asian champions China.
Despite the fact that Nigeria outplayed coach Sarina Wiegman’s team for significant stretches of the game and had to deal with James’ 87th-minute dismissal for a senseless stamp on Michelle Alozie, the Lionesses did what winners typically do: they reorganized, dug deep, and fueled off the disappointment of losing one of their best players to force the game into extra time and penalties before winning that test of nerve.
“We didn’t expect it to be easy,” Wiegman said. “I give a lot of credit to Nigeria. I don’t think I have ever been in such an intense game. It was very intense and competitive.”
But Daly was the star of the show. The Aston Villa star, who shifted from defense to striker last season and topped the Women’s Super League scoring lists, was once again used as a wing-back by Wiegman, and she displayed a sense of unjustifiable resentment that she was not in charge of the attack. Daly has a genuine fire inside of her, but it works to her advantage and makes her such a crucial part of this England team. James has yet to master that critical skill, and had she not received a red card when VAR had rightly asked referee Melissa Borjas to examine her initial judgement of a booking, England might not have won the World Cup.
“She’s young,” Wiegman said of the 21-year-old Chelsea player. “This is just a split second, and she doesn’t want to harm anyone. She will absolutely learn from it.”
