After losing on penalties 4-2 to the European Champions, England, in the round of 16 match on Monday, the Nigeria Super Falcons were eliminated from the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
England defeated Nigeria 4-2 on penalties on Monday in Brisbane to advance to the Women’s World Cup quarterfinals.
The game ended 0-0 at the end of extra time, with Nigeria having the majority of the chances, but the European Champions, who were down to 10 players, managed to sneak in front of 50,000 fans.
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After playmaker Lauren James was sent off for an unnecessary stamp, England managed to hold on, but they will know they need to get better if they are to win the World Cup in addition to their European championship.
On Saturday, they will compete for a spot in the semifinals against either Colombia or Jamaica.
Georgia Stanway missed the target to give England a disastrous start in the penalty shootout, but Desire Oparanozie was unable to capitalise and failed with an almost identical attempt.
Beth England made no errors, but Michelle Alozie of Nigeria’s shot high over the top gave England a lead they never lost, and Chloe Kelly’s composed conversion sealed the victory.
The Lionesses, who triumphed in the European Championship at a sold-out Wembley Stadium in London last year, were picked to win easily against the 40th-ranked team in the globe.
However, the Nigerians have demonstrated at this World Cup that they are capable of competing against anyone.
They shocked the home team, Australia, in the group stage, winning 3-2 by capitalising on their quickness in transition.
The Nigerian onslaught frequently left England’s back three vulnerable, so they used the same strategies against them as well.
As the Lionesses found plenty of space out wide, England shook Nigeria in the opening exchanges of the game.
In the first half, they completed 173 passes compared to Nigeria’s 83 attempts, controlling possession as well.
However, the Nigerians appeared the most dangerous and frequently gave the European champs a real scare.
Ashleigh Plumptre, an English native, missed two excellent chances to start the scoring, the first of which came in the 16th minute when a shot from outside the box hit the crossbar.
A minute later, she caused Mary Earps to make a great diving save.
In the first half, the Nigerians had eight shots on goal, three more than England, whose finest opportunity was created by Alessia Russo in the 23rd minute.
English had the most of possession in the second half, but Nigeria appeared to be the more threatening team.
With 15 minutes remaining, England had a great opportunity to win the game, but Chiamaka Nnadozie made a great save on Rachel Daly’s strong header.
Nigeria once more appeared to be the most likely to win the game in extra time, with Michele Alozie and Oshoala both coming close, but neither team was able to break the tie.