Lauren James has apologised to Michelle Alozie for the incident which led to her being sent off during England’s last-16 World Cup win over Nigeria and vowed to learn from the experience.
The forward was dismissed for deliberately standing on the back of Nigeria defender Alozie with three minutes of normal time remaining in Brisbane.
England survived the dismissal to advance to the quarter-finals 4-2 on penalties after the game finished goalless following extra time.
In response to a tweet from Alozie, James posted: “All my love and respect to you. I am sorry for what happened.
“Also, for our England fans and my team-mates, playing with and for you is my greatest honour and I promise to learn from my experience.”
James became the fourth England player to be sent off in a World Cup knockout match after David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and current Lionesses captain Millie Bright.
England boss Sarina Wiegman admitted James had “lost her emotions” during a moment of indiscretion which could see the 21-year-old miss the remainder of the World Cup through suspension.
Opponent Alozie had earlier tweeted in defence of James.
She posted: “Abeg, rest. We are playing on the world’s stage. This game is one of passion, insurmountable emotions, and moments. All respect for Lauren James.”
James faces an automatic one-match ban, which could be extended to three games by FIFA’s disciplinary committee.
England take on Colombia in the last eight on Saturday in Sydney.
Chelsea forward Christopher Nkunku is set for an “extended period” on the sidelines after the Blues confirmed their summer signing has undergone knee surgery.
The 25-year-old France international moved to Stamford Bridge from RB Leipzig for a reported £52million but suffered an injury in Chelsea’s pre-season draw against Borussia Dortmund in Chicago.
“Nkunku has sustained a knee injury which will rule the forward out for an extended period,” Chelsea said in a short statement confirming the attacker had gone under the knife.
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“The 25-year-old has undergone an operation and will now begin a rehabilitation programme with the club’s medical department.”
While the club have offered no official timeframe for recovery, some reports have suggested the former Paris St Germain forward could be out until December.
Nkunku is one of seven summer additions at Chelsea and looked set for a big role under new head coach Mauricio Pochettino before his injury setback.
Jamaica’s historic run at the Fifa Women’s World Cup, came to an end, as they conceded their first goal of the tournament which proved their undoing in a 0-1 loss to Colombia on Tuesday.
The Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, in Australia, where the Reggae Girlz etched their names in the annals of global sporting history, when they denied the mighty Brazil in a goalless draw last week, has ironically become the place of their own farewell, courtesy of captain Catalina Usme’s decisive strike in the 51st minute.
Though it was their most underwhelming performance of the tournament, in which they also held France to a goalless stalemate and defeated Panama 1-0, the Reggae Girlz had much to take heart from, as their run on this second-consecutive appearance, described by many as a fairytale, was nothing short of remarkable.
By virtue of merely making the Round of 16, the 43rd-ranked Jamaicans became the first Caribbean nation –male or female – to play in the knockout stages of the World Cup, since Cuba’s feat in 1938.
Still, for Head coach Lorne Donaldson, that meant very little to ease the disappointment. Instead, his focus was more on how they can capitalise on the successes of this tournament to not only sustain, but more importantly, build the programme going forward.
“It was a decent game, but Colombia played better so they deserve the win. We played hard and it has been a good run for us…nobody likes to lose but Colombia threw the knockout punch. We knew if we gave up a goal, we had to score goals and we didn’t do that.
“So like I said, it was an amazing run, an amazing feat and I am happy for the Girlz that they got here but give Colombia credit,” Donaldson said in a post-game interview.
“I don’t care about history; I just want us to build on what we just did. We can be better, so let us just build on this,” he added.
Captain Khadija “Bunny” Shaw echoed similar sentiments.
“We didn’t perform as well as we should have so we will just have to come together as a group, not just individually, but as a group and look at what we did wrong so we can perfect it going forward. This run means a lot though and it shows that if you believe and you work hard, then anything is possible,” said Shaw.
“We came out, we held our own and we played hard, but its football, you win some and you lose some. We just have to lift our heads high be proud of ourselves, as you can see the gap is closing between the small islands and the bigger countries so this just goes to show that women’s football is growing and we have to keep moving forward and keep pushing it and hopefully we can get it as far as possible,” she stated.
After playing out a goalless first half where chances were at a premium, in front of a massive crowd of over 27,000 dominated by Colombians, it was only fitting that the South Americans gave them something to cheer about, and that they did.
With only six minutes on the clock after the resumption, a delightful long ball from Ana Guzman to switch the point of attack, deceived Jamaica’s left-back Deneisha Blackwood, who stepped too early and was beaten by the flight leaving Usme unmarked at the far post.
While Blackwood gradually recovered to apply some semblance of pressure, the 33-year-old Usme, was cool, calm, collected and steered a left-footer past Rebecca Spencer, who was beaten for the first time this tournament.
That goal was the wakeup call the Jamaicans needed to inject some tempo into their attacking thrust and they could have immediately pulled level from a set play.
This, as Blackwood’s weighted free kick found Jody Brown at the far post, but the diminutive forward slammed her header at the base of the upright.
The introduction of Tiffany Cameron added some impetus to Jamaica’s attack, which was well off colour, as they struggled to complete passes and create anything too meaningful to worry the Colombians.
In fact, their next best effort came in the 82nd minute when Cameron’s weighted cross from the right, fell nicely for Spence, whose header just went wide of the right upright.
Donaldson signalled his intentions to go for broke with the introduction of 19-year-old World Cup debutant Kameron Simmonds and the experience Cheyna Matthews in attack, but the move proved fruitless.
Instead, it was Colombia that almost had another when a dangerous cross from Usme, dipped well enough for Leicy Santos, who applied a timely diving header that had Spencer beaten, but couldn’t beat the left upright, five minutes from time.
The Jamaicans will next turn their focus to the upcoming Olympic qualifying playoff fixtures against Canada in September.
Teams: Jamaica –Rebecca Spencer, Allyson Swaby, Chantelle Swaby, Deneisha Blackwood, Tiernny Wiltshire (Cheyna Matthews 83rd), Drew Spence, Vyan Sampson (Peyton McNamara 79th), Jody Brown (Kameron Simmonds 83rd), Trudi Carter (Tiffany Cameron 67th), Kalyssa Van Zanten (Atlanta Primus 46th), Khadija Shaw
Subs not used: Sydney Schneider, Liya Brooks, Havana Solaun, Paige Bailey-Gayle, Solai Washington, Konya Plummer, Kayla McKenna
Booked: C Swaby (41st), Spence (45+1)
Colombia –Catalina Perez, Daniela Arias, Diana Ospina, Lorena Bedoya, Mayra Ramirez, Leicy Santos (Daniela Montoya 87th), Catalina Usme (Marcela Restrepo 90+2), Ana Guzman, Carolina Arias, Linda Caicedo, Jorelyn Carabali
Subs not used: Sandra Sepulveda, Natalia Giraldo, Camila Reyes, , Angela Baron, Lady Andrade, Monica Ramos, Ivonne Chacon, Daniela Caracas, Elexa Bahr
Booked: D Arias (70th)
Referee: Kate Jacewicz (AUS)
Assistant referees: Kyoungmin Kim (KOR); Joanna Charaktis (AUS)
Fourth official: Marta Huerta (ESP)
Jamaica’s historic run at the Fifa Women’s World Cup, came to an end, as they conceded their first goal of the tournament which proved their undoing in a 0-1 loss to Colombia on Tuesday.
The Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, in Australia, where the Reggae Girlz etched their names in the annals of global sporting history, when they denied the mighty Brazil in a goalless draw last week, has ironically become the place of their own farewell, courtesy of captain Catalina Usme’s decisive strike in the 51st minute.
Though it was their most underwhelming performance of the tournament, in which they also held France to a goalless stalemate and defeated Panama 1-0, the Reggae Girlz had much to take heart from, as their run on this second-consecutive appearance, described by many as a fairytale, was nothing short of remarkable.
By virtue of merely making the Round of 16, the 43rd-ranked Jamaicans became the first Caribbean nation –male or female – to play in the knockout stages of the World Cup, since Cuba’s feat in 1938.
Still, for Head coach Lorne Donaldson, that meant very little to ease the disappointment. Instead, his focus was more on how they can capitalise on the successes of this tournament to not only sustain, but more importantly, build the programme going forward.
“It was a decent game, but Colombia played better so they deserve the win. We played hard and it has been a good run for us…nobody likes to lose but Colombia threw the knockout punch. We knew if we gave up a goal, we had to score goals and we didn’t do that.
“So like I said, it was an amazing run, an amazing feat and I am happy for the Girlz that they got here but give Colombia credit,” Donaldson said in a post-game interview.
“I don’t care about history; I just want us to build on what we just did. We can be better, so let us just build on this,” he added.
Captain Khadija “Bunny” Shaw echoed similar sentiments.
“We didn’t perform as well as we should have so we will just have to come together as a group, not just individually, but as a group and look at what we did wrong so we can perfect it going forward. This run means a lot though and it shows that if you believe and you work hard, then anything is possible,” said Shaw.
“We came out, we held our own and we played hard, but its football, you win some and you lose some. We just have to lift our heads high be proud of ourselves, as you can see the gap is closing between the small islands and the bigger countries so this just goes to show that women’s football is growing and we have to keep moving forward and keep pushing it and hopefully we can get it as far as possible,” she stated.
After playing out a goalless first half where chances were at a minimum, in front of a massive crowd of over 27,000 dominated by Colombians, it was only fitting that the South Americans gave them something to cheer about, and that they did.
With only six minutes on the clock after the resumption, a delightful long ball from Ana Guzman to switch the point of attack, deceived Jamaica’s left-back Deneisha Blackwood, who stepped too early and was beaten by the flight leaving Usme on marked at the far post.
While Blackwood gradually recovered to apply some semblance of pressure, the 33-year-old Usme, was cool, calm, collected and steered a left-footer past Rebecca Spencer, who was beaten for the first time this tournament.
That goal was the wakeup call the Jamaicans needed to inject some tempo into their attacking thrust and they could have immediately pulled level from a set play.
This, as Blackwood’s weighted free kick found Jody Brown at the far post, but the diminutive forward slammed her header at the base of the upright.
The introduction of Tiffany Cameron added some impetus to Jamaica’s attack, which was well off colour, as they struggled to complete passes and create anything too meaningful to worry the Colombians.
In fact, their next best effort came in the 82nd minute when Cameron’s weighted cross from the right, fell nicely for Spence, whose header just went wide of the right upright.
Donaldson signalled his intentions to go for broke with the introduction of 19-year-old World Cup debutant Kameron Simmonds and the experience Cheyna Matthews in attack, but the move proved fruitless.
Instead, it was Colombia that almost had another when a dangerous cross from Usme, dipped well enough for Leicy Santos, who applied a timely diving header that had Spencer beaten, but couldn’t beat the left upright five minutes from time.
The Jamaicans will next turn their focus to the upcoming Olympic qualifying playoff fixtures against Canada in September.
Teams: Jamaica –Rebecca Spencer, Allyson Swaby, Chantelle Swaby, Deneisha Blackwood, Tiernny Wiltshire (Cheyna Matthews 83rd), Drew Spence, Vyan Sampson (Peyton McNamara 79th), Jody Brown (Kameron Simmonds 83rd), Trudi Carter (Tiffany Cameron 67th), Kalyssa Van Zanten (Atlanta Primus 46th), Khadija Shaw
Subs not used: Sydney Schneider, Liya Brooks, Havana Solaun, Paige Bailey-Gayle, Solai Washington, Konya Plummer, Kayla McKenna
Booked: C Swaby (41st), Spence (45+1)
Colombia –Catalina Perez, Daniela Arias, Diana Ospina, Lorena Bedoya, Mayra Ramirez, Leicy Santos (Daniela Montoya 87th), Catalina Usme (Marcela Restrepo 90+2), Ana Guzman, Carolina Arias, Linda Caicedo, Jorelyn Carabali
Subs not used: Sandra Sepulveda, Natalia Giraldo, Camila Reyes, , Angela Baron, Lady Andrade, Monica Ramos, Ivonne Chacon, Daniela Caracas, Elexa Bahr
Booked: D Arias (70th)
Referee: Kate Jacewicz (AUS)
Assistant referees: Kyoungmin Kim (KOR); Joanna Charaktis (AUS)
Fourth official: Marta Huerta (ESP)
Tottenham have completed the signing of key target Micky van de Ven on six-year deal from Wolfsburg.
The addition of the left-footed centre-back is a major coup for the club and helps satisfy the demand of new boss Ange Postecoglou to bring in defensive reinforcements.
Spurs have secured the services of Van de Ven on a contract running to 2029 in a deal worth an initial 40million euros (£34.5million), but with the final fee able to rise to around 50m euros (£43.1m) in add-ons.
The Netherlands Under-21 international has been tracked by the club all summer and, after weighing up a move for him or Bayer Leverkusen’s Edmond Tapsoba, Tottenham pressed ahead with their pursuit of the 22-year-old.
Van de Ven started his career with Volendam before leaving his homeland to join Wolfsburg in summer 2021.
An encouraging 2022-23 season, in which Van de Ven featured 36 times for the Bundesliga club, brought him to the attention of several teams across Europe, with Liverpool also reportedly interested.
Spurs won the race for the Dutchman and he was in attendance for Sunday’s pre-season win over Shakhtar Donetsk after an agreement was reached with Wolfsburg over his transfer last week.
Van de Ven completed his medical at the club’s Enfield training base on Monday and is likely to be part of the travelling party to Barcelona for Tuesday’s friendly against the Catalan club.
Postecoglou refused to directly discuss the defender after the 5-1 victory over Shakhtar but has been open about the need for new centre-backs throughout pre-season.
Ben Davies has played the majority of minutes on the left side of the back four system used by the Australian head coach, but Van de Ven’s pace will be a welcome addition to a team that will also use a high defensive line this season.
Spurs retain an interest in former loanee Clement Lenglet and Fulham’s Tosin Adarabioyo, who only has one year left on his deal.
Tottenham continue to work on incomings but will listen to offers for centre-backs Davinson Sanchez, Japhet Tanganga and Joe Rodon.
Captain Millie Bright insists England have already moved on from learning they would lose Lauren James for at least Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final after the forward was sent off late in the last-16 victory over Nigeria.
The 21-year-old was shown a red after stepping on the back of defender Michelle Alozie, resulting in an automatic one-match ban that could be extended to three games by FIFA’s disciplinary committee, meaning her tournament could be over.
If there is one team-mate who truly appreciates what James is feeling it is Bright, who four years ago in France became the first player in Lionesses history to be sent off in a World Cup knockout encounter when she was dismissed for a second bookable offence in the semi-final against the United States.
“I think it is really important that we look after each other,” Bright said. “I have been through that. I know exactly how that feels.
“I think it is important that she has her space and lets her emotions settle. But it’s done now, we move on. We are through.
“It’s football. Listen, I have had red cards. Everyone goes through it as a player, everyone goes through it on the world stage. But for me, it’s not a situation that needs too much light shining on it.
“It’s happened. It’s in the past. We are through. All that matters is we come together as a group, we have each others’ backs, and it is just another challenge in football that the player has to face.
“But we have got her back completely and we will get ready for the next game.”
England will face Colombia in Saturday’s quarter-final after the world number 25 side beat Jamaica 1-0 on Tuesday to reach the last eight for the first time in their history.
The Lionesses were boosted by the return of Keira Walsh against Nigeria – a comeback from a knee injury few imagined possible after she was removed from the pitch on a stretcher in the first half of England’s second group match, a 1-0 triumph over Denmark.
Scans revealed the issue was not as serious as first suspected and Walsh managed 120 minutes against Nigeria, including the nervy 30 minutes of 10-woman extra time to force penalties, the result sealed 4-2 for England by Chloe Kelly’s emphatic spot-kick.
Though boss Sarina Wiegman’s switch to a 3-5-2 formation in Walsh’s absence seemed to spark the Lionesses into life in their 6-1 group-stage victory over China, her side did not play as well against Nigeria with three at the back, and in fact looked more controlled when they were short-handed.
Bright said: “Many asked, ‘Was that hard out there?’ Of course it’s hard, it’s a knockout game in a World Cup, and we knew that these games were going to be extremely tough coming into this tournament.
“But again, I have said it from day one, our character, our mentality, our resilience to give absolutely everything to the badge and to represent out fans at home, and ultimately find a way to win… we did that again.”
And while she agreed England ultimately were not at their best against Nigeria, Bright added: “To be honest, I don’t think we really care. We are through to the next round. Tournament football is about getting the job done.
“Of course, we all want to be better. We all want to play the perfect performance and be able to come to these interviews and say how fancy we looked.
“But ultimately, I am just bothered if we get through. We are prepared for any opponent, any challenge, that we face.”
Newcastle have completed the signing of Southampton defender Tino Livramento for an undisclosed fee.
The England Under-21 international has agreed a five-year deal with the Magpies after the two clubs agreed a reported fee which could rise to around £35million.
Livramento told the club’s official website: “I’m really excited to have signed for Newcastle United and I’m looking forward to playing in front of the fans.
“I was here for the games over the weekend; even though they were friendlies, there were so many fans and they were still so loud so I can’t wait to see what it feels like to play in front of them in a Premier League or Champions League game.
“The way the manager plays football is really attractive and I feel like it suits me as a player. And with how well the team did last season, the trajectory that we’re on now, I’m just looking forward to being a part of that.”
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has now added three new players to his squad this summer following the arrivals of Italy midfielder Sandro Tonali from AC Milan and winger Harvey Barnes from Leicester.
Livramento, 20, who signed a five-year deal when he joined Southampton from Chelsea for £5m in August 2021, missed all but the final two games last season due to an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained in April 2022.
He returned to action in May, making two substitute appearances in Southampton’s final two Premier League games before they were relegated.
Newcastle will play Champions League football next season after finishing fourth in Howe’s first full campaign in charge.
Howe added: “Tino is a very talented young player with an exciting future ahead of him so we are delighted to sign him.
“At 20, he already has lots of attributes that I admire but he also has the potential and drive to really grow with this team. I’m looking forward to working with him and to seeing him develop in a Newcastle shirt.”
Roy Keane has made an official Manchester United appearance for the first time in 18 years as he launched the club’s 2023-24 third kit.
The former captain’s successful stay at Old Trafford memorably ended in 2005 after an explosive interview with the in-house TV channel MUTV, in which he criticised his team-mates.
Keane has been back to the club many times over the years as a pundit, but his involvement in the promotional video for their third strip is the first in a formal capacity.
The Irishman is seen in the video asking the current crop of players whether they have what it takes to be a true red devil – reference to the return of the fan favourite red devil emblem on the jersey.
“So you’re a devil are you? Well let’s remind you of the terms,” Keane says. “The devil isn’t something you wear. It’s more like a pact, a deal, shall we say.
“It’s not for everyone. We expect a lot. And as sure as the sun will rise, we will know if you mean it. So have a good long think.
“What do you get in return? What’s on offer? It’s Manchester United.
“So there it is. No small print. Sign on the dotted line. But you already signed, didn’t you? Before you were even born.”
Keane ends the sequence sitting at a table in front a plate of prawn sandwiches – a nod to his famous “prawn sandwich brigade” comment, criticising a section of the Old Trafford support.
England defender Lucy Bronze revealed she made a post-match beeline to console “upset” Lauren James after the forward was shown what could be a World Cup-ending red card in the Lionesses’ nervy last 16 victory over Nigeria.
James will miss at least her side’s quarter-final clash with either Colombia or Jamaica after she was sent off late in Monday night’s knockout match in Brisbane for deliberately stepping on the back of Nigeria defender Michelle Alozie.
Bronze was one of the 10 Lionesses who doggedly defended their way through 30 minutes of extra time in the goalless draw before Bethany England, Rachel Daly, Alex Greenwood and Chloe Kelly wrapped up the 4-2 win on penalties.
Bronze said: “Obviously she’s going to be disappointed in herself. I went straight off the pitch after the game to make sure she was OK.
“Obviously she was a little bit upset and rightfully so and more than anything she just feels bad for the team. I said to her, ‘We’ve made it through. It’s a team, it’s not just one player.'”
James’ World Cup fate will now be decided by FIFA’s disciplinary committee, who could extend her ban to three matches, which would see her miss the rest of the tournament even if the Lionesses reach a first-ever final.
The first red card of the competition was shown in the group stage to Nigeria’s Deborah Abiodun for her tackle on Canada’s Ashley Lawrence, who will join James at Chelsea after signing a three-year deal with the Blues on 1 July.
Abiodun’s punishment was extended to three matches after she served the first game, so the same outcome for James, who boss Sarina Wiegman said “lost her emotions” in the incident, is a real possibility.
Bronze and Greenwood are the only two Lionesses to have featured in the past three World Cups, while this is the 21-year-old Chelsea forward’s first.
James is the younger sister of Chelsea and England defender Reece James and said before the tournament that she hoped to use the World Cup to carve out an identity separate from her sibling, whose name is regularly mentioned in tandem with hers but rarely, if ever, vice versa.
She had begun to do so in stunning style before she was sent off in the 87th minute of Monday night’s match-up, scoring the only goal in England’s 1-0 group stage victory over Denmark before netting two and picking up three assists in the Lionesses’ 6-1 win over China, in the process becoming the only England player of either gender to contribute to five goals in a single World Cup contest.
Bronze said: “Although LJ is the youngest in the team, she’s had to mature from a young age because she’s been thrown into the spotlight, whether that’s to do with her brother and her family, or that she’s a fantastic player on her own.
“In the last game, everyone put the spotlight on her. She deals with it very, very well. She likes hanging around with the older players, myself, Jordan (Nobbs), Alex Greenwood, we are the three that she comes to asking for advice.
“LJ didn’t start the first game, she didn’t feature at all during the Euros.
“She’s a massively talented player. We all know that and obviously we’re very disappointed to lose a player of her calibre going into the next game. No one’s going to be more disappointed than LJ. It’s important to support her.”
England defender Lucy Bronze revealed she made a post-match beeline to console “upset” Lauren James after the forward was shown what could be a World Cup-ending red card in the Lionesses’ nervy last 16 victory over Nigeria.
James will miss at least her side’s quarter-final clash with either Colombia or Jamaica after she was sent off late in Monday night’s knockout match in Brisbane for deliberately stepping on the back of Nigeria defender Michelle Alozie.
Bronze was one of the 10 Lionesses who doggedly defended their way through 30 minutes of extra time in the goalless draw before Bethany England, Rachel Daly, Alex Greenwood and Chloe Kelly wrapped up the 4-2 win on penalties.
Bronze said: “Obviously she’s going to be disappointed in herself. I went straight off the pitch after the game to make sure she was OK.
“Obviously she was a little bit upset and rightfully so and more than anything she just feels bad for the team. I said to her, ‘We’ve made it through. It’s a team, it’s not just one player.'”
James’ World Cup fate will now be decided by FIFA’s disciplinary committee, who could extend her ban to three matches, which would see her miss the rest of the tournament even if the Lionesses reach a first-ever final.
The first red card of the competition was shown in the group stage to Nigeria’s Deborah Abiodun for her tackle on Canada’s Ashley Lawrence, who will join James at Chelsea after signing a three-year deal with the Blues on 1 July.
Abiodun’s punishment was extended to three matches after she served the first game, so the same outcome for James, who boss Sarina Wiegman said “lost her emotions” in the incident, is a real possibility.
Bronze and Greenwood are the only two Lionesses to have featured in the past three World Cups, while this is the 21-year-old Chelsea forward’s first.
James is the younger sister of Chelsea and England defender Reece James, and said before the tournament that she hoped to use the World Cup to carve out an identity separate from her sibling, whose name is regularly mentioned in tandem with hers but rarely, if ever, vice versa.
She had begun to do so in stunning style before she was sent off in the 87th minute of Monday night’s match-up, scoring the only goal in England’s 1-0 group stage victory over Denmark before netting two and picking up three assists in the Lionesses’ 6-1 win over China, in the process becoming the only England player of either gender to contribute to five goals in a single World Cup contest.
Bronze said: “Although LJ is the youngest in the team, she’s had to mature from a young age because she’s been thrown into the spotlight, whether that’s to do with her brother and her family, or that she’s a fantastic player on her own.
“In the last game, everyone put the spotlight on her. She deals with it very, very well. She likes hanging around with the older players, myself, Jordan (Nobbs), Alex Greenwood, we are the three that she comes to asking for advice.
“LJ didn’t start the first game, she didn’t feature at all during the Euros.
“She’s a massively talented player. We all know that, and obviously we’re very disappointed to lose a player of her calibre going into the next game. No one’s going to be more disappointed than LJ. It’s important to support her.”
England boss Sarina Wiegman admitted “sweetest person” Lauren James “lost her emotions” as she received a red card that could see the 21-year-old miss the remainder of the World Cup.
The Lionesses advanced to the quarter-finals after surviving James’ dismissal late in the second half to beat Nigeria on penalties, with Euro 2022 hero Chloe Kelly scoring the winning spot-kick in a 4-2 shoot-out success.
James’ brace and two assists earned her player-of-the-match honours against China, but this time she was sent off after it was ruled she had deliberately stepped on the back of Nigeria defender Michelle Alozie with three minutes of normal time remaining of a game that ended goalless after 120 minutes.
Wiegman, who had not watched the incident back, said: “She’s an inexperienced player on this stage and has done really well, and I think in a split second she just lost her emotions.
“And of course she doesn’t want to hurt anyone. She’s the sweetest person I know, and things happen like that and you can’t change it anymore, so it’s a huge lesson for her to learn, but of course it’s not something that she really did on purpose.”
Wiegman said she personally delivered a similar speech to James, adding: “Of course she apologised and she felt really, really bad.”
James became the fourth England player to be sent off in a World Cup knockout match after David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and current England captain Millie Bright, who was shown a second yellow against the United States in the 2019 semi-finals.
Chelsea forward James, who made her World Cup debut against Haiti, faces at minimum a one-match ban, but that could be extended by FIFA’s disciplinary committee to three which would see her miss the rest of the tournament even if the Lionesses reach the final.
England’s spirits were high to begin Monday night’s contest in Brisbane, where midfielder Keira Walsh made a remarkable return from what many thought was a tournament-ending knee injury 10 days ago against Denmark.
Walsh played 120 minutes against Nigeria before being substituted but Wiegman said: “She was cramping a little bit, so we had to take her off, but she’s OK.”
Wiegman benefitted from a healthy side en route to England’s Euro 2022 triumph, but after dealing with multiple injury problems in the run-up to the tournament and coping without key presence Walsh and now breakout talent James, she admitted: “I have never experienced so many problems, but of course it’s my job to think of things that can happen in a game or in a tournament or ahead of the tournament.
“So you try to turn every stone, and then try to already think of a solution if things happen, and today we got totally tested on those turned stones.”
Nigeria had impressed throughout the group stage and were no different against England, twice hitting the crossbar and frustrating the Lionesses by employing a higher press for this knockout encounter.
But England held on in James’ absence to ensure their destiny would be decided by spot-kicks, with Bethany England, Rachel Daly, Alex Greenwood and Kelly all scoring after Georgia Stanway fired the first wide.
“I’m really proud of the team,” added Wiegman. “We’ve had many setbacks. I think this (James red card) was a big one too.
“We had to reorganise and do something else on the pitch and we didn’t need any minute to do so.
“And of course players got really, really tired, but we really stuck together and showed a lot of resilience.”
Nigeria head coach Randy Waldrum, whose contract with his federation is soon set to expire, said: “They just played their heart out. I couldn’t be more proud of them. I take away that we can be and probably should be one of the top teams in the world.
“I certainly hope that FIFA ranking goes from 40 to a better number than that, but more importantly I think we’ve shown that we’re capable of playing with anybody.
“I think we gave some teams that are still alive in this tournament at least a blueprint of how to approach (England).”
West Ham have made an improved £30million bid for Manchester United and England centre-back Harry Maguire, the PA news agency understands.
The Hammers have been linked with Maguire throughout the summer but a previous £20million offer was rejected.
Maguire, 30, fell down the pecking order at Old Trafford last season and was recently replaced as captain by manager Erik ten Hag.
United, however, have always maintained that Maguire remains an important member of their squad and would be happy for him to stay and fight for his place.
Maguire, who joined United for £80million in 2019, faces competition from Raphael Varane, Lisandro Martinez and Victor Lindelof for a spot in the side.
West Ham, meanwhile, have also been linked with a move for Maguire’s United team-mate Scott McTominay.
Liverpool continue to be frustrated in their pursuit of Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia after having a third bid rejected by the Championship side.
After their initial two offers of £34million plus £4m and £42m were turned down, the Reds returned with a proposal worth £46m but that too has been rejected, the PA news agency understands.
Saints are understood to be looking for £50m for a player who has made just 29 Premier League appearances in one top-flight season.
Negotiations are expected to continue between the two sides.
Mohamed Salah’s agent, meanwhile, has dismissed speculation linking the forward with a move to Saudi Arabia as the 31-year-old “remains committed” to the club.
A report in the Middle East claimed talks were taking place between the Egypt international’s representatives and Al-Ittihad about a deal said to be worth around £155million over two years to the player.
Salah’s former team-mate Fabinho has already made the move to Al-Ittihad this summer in a £40m transfer.
In that context the £60m fee being touted for Salah – who has scored 139 goals in 231 Premier League appearances – appeared to under-value a player who is only 12 months into a three-year deal which is the most lucrative contract in Liverpool’s history.
And Salah’s representative insists the former Chelsea and Roma forward has no intention of leaving Anfield in any case.
“If we considered leaving LFC this year, we wouldn’t have renewed the contract last summer. Mohamed remains committed to LFC,” Salah’s agent Ramy Abbas posted on Twitter.
Neymar has told Paris St Germain he wants to leave the club, according to reports in France.
The club have not commented publicly on the matter, but the PA news agency understands the Brazil superstar, who is under contract until 2025, has yet to formally communicate his intention to leave to the club’s executives.
It is unclear whether new PSG coach Luis Enrique sees Neymar as part of his plans in any case, but the report comes at a time when the club are resigned to either selling France striker Kylian Mbappe this summer or losing him for nothing next summer, when he will be out of contract.
Lionel Messi left the club earlier this summer to join Inter Miami and, if Neymar and Mbappe follow him out of PSG, it will well and truly mark the end of an era.
The club are trying to shake off what their president Nasser Al-Khelaifi has previously described as their “bling bling” image of the past and work to develop more players organically rather than bring in top-of-the-range superstars.
Neymar was arguably the epitome of the old approach, with PSG smashing the world transfer record to sign him from Barcelona in 2017 for 222 million euros (£200m at the time).
He has won France’s Ligue 1 title five times since joining PSG but has failed to add to the single Champions League crown he won with Barca in 2015.
Mbappe, meanwhile, has been left out of PSG’s main training group as the standoff over his contract continues.
PSG sources are convinced he has already reached an agreement to officially sign for Real Madrid when his contract expires and benefit from a 160m euro signing-on fee as a free agent.
PSG are understood to have even offered Mbappe a new contract with a “guaranteed sale” clause in it confirming he can leave for a fee next summer, but sources say his representatives have refused to engage on that, or any other, offer they have made.
PSG gave Al Hilal permission to speak to Mbappe after the Saudi club tabled a world record £259million offer last month. However, it was reported Mbappe and his representatives declined to even meet a delegation from the club when they visited Paris.
Chelsea and Barcelona are also understood to be trying to put together player-plus-cash deals to bring in Mbappe, who won the World Cup with France in 2018 and also starred at last year’s finals in Qatar.
Kevin De Bruyne insists he is “way ahead” of schedule on his return from a hamstring injury that cut short his appearance in Manchester City’s Champions League final win.
The 32-year-old scored 10 goals and provided 31 assists as City won the treble last season, adding the FA Cup and Champions League to a fifth Premier League crown in six years.
De Bruyne revealed that he was carrying a hamstring injury for the last two months of the campaign and was forced off just 36 minutes into the 1-0 win over Inter Milan in June.
His first action back was off the bench as a second-half substitute in Sunday’s Community Shield meeting with Arsenal – where he set up Cole Palmer for the opening goal but then missed the first penalty as the Gunners won a shoot-out 4-1.
“I’m way ahead of schedule,” he said after the Wembley clash.
“I was probably looking to be back around the game vs Seville (in the Super Cup on August 16). I just enjoyed my summer, worked on my injury.
“I came back and the scan was good so I trained mostly alone in Japan. That went well, I’m happy.
“You don’t know how the injury will be. Mostly in the past I’ve always been quite a quick healer. It’s the body.”
City begin the defence of their league title with a trip to Sky Bet Championship winners Burnley on Friday night.
De Bruyne, though, admits he does not know if he will be fit enough to start at Turf Moor.
“I don’t know how I am physically,” added the Belgium international.
“I’ve probably trained five or six times with the team. I’m not too worried about it. I played 45 minutes at a good level so I’m happy with that.
“I’m getting better and there’s still around 70-80 games this year so I should be fine!”
Pep Guardiola has yet to confirm who will take over as City’s new captain this season after Ilkay Gundogan departed for Barcelona.
Kyle Walker – linked with a move to Bayern Munich this summer – led City out at Wembley, while De Bruyne took the armband when he replaced Mateo Kovacic on 64 minutes.
Asked about the captaincy, De Bruyne replied: “Nothing yet. I don’t know.
“If I get it, I get it. It’s not going to change anything I do for the club. This is my ninth year, I know the club inside out and people know whatever they ask of me, I’ll do.
“I’m not too worried. I try to do the same as always. It’s an honour if I get it and if not, it doesn’t matter.”
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