Women World Cup: Nigeria Lose 4-2 on Penalties to England
By Juliet Agoyi
The Nigerian Super Falcons have crashed out of the Women World Cup taking place in Australia and New Zealand.
The Nigerian girls lost 4-2 on penalties to the European champions, England, in a pulsating round of 16 game in Brisbane on Monday morning.
Chloe Kelly scored the winning penalty for England, who will face one of Colombia or Jamaica in the last eight.
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Lauren James was sent off for violent conduct, leaving England severely weakened before extra time. With 87 minutes on the clock, James – one of the stars of the group stages – deliberately stood on Michelle Alozie, and though the referee originally issued a yellow card, she later showed a red card after consulting with VAR officials.
Even before the dismissal, Nigeria had been the better side, hitting the bar twice through Ashleigh Plumptre and Uchenna Kanu, while Rachel Daly missed England’s best opportunity, her close-range header drawing a fine save from Chiamaka Nnadozie.
Before that, England’s Daly thought she had won a penalty when the referee pointed to the spot after a challenge from Rasheedat Ajibade, but after reviewing the footage, the Honduran referee decided there was no infringement.
The Super Falcons had a very good game for 120 minutes but fell short in the spot kick losing two out of four.
