Lauren James’ red card could have cost England but it might just have saved them

Football is increasingly consumed through highlights rather than by watching the full 90 — or 120 — minutes. This was a contest where the highlights were rather brief. There were few goalscoring opportunities, and just one obvious game-changing moment, when Lauren James was sent off. It didn’t, however, change the game as you might expect.

From the outset, England manager Sarina Wiegman brought Keira Walsh back into her side but maintained the 3-4-1-2 shape that worked so effectively against China, an inevitable choice after such a strong performance. That unusual formation — at least in the context of this competition — created an interesting tactical battle.

The game started in an open fashion, with both sides finding space. England’s two-striker system occupied both Nigeria’s centre-backs, while the Nigerian full-backs were brought up the pitch trying to press England’s wing-backs. Therefore, gaps opened up in the channels for England to break into — particularly when Leicester-born Nigerian left-back Ashleigh Plumptre became dragged up the pitch towards Lucy Bronze. Georgia Stanway tried to exploit that space with forward runs, but Bronze twice let England down, first with an overhit pass towards Stanway, then with poor control after a pass from Stanway. England had the right idea, but their technical play was poor.

They also had a tactical problem, though: the two Nigerian wingers breaking in behind England’s wing-backs. This created numerous moments of danger for England, particularly when the dangerous right-sided Uchenna Kanu attacked down the outside. Plumptre, meanwhile, pushed forward to strike the bar from range, then just afterwards produced Nigeria’s only shot on target of the first 90 minutes. Nigeria were more positive than many would have expected.

“They showed what a good team they have,” said Wiegman, who was impressed by Nigeria’s organisation. “They pressed a little higher and we had trouble getting out of that.”

England improved towards the end of the first half, and it made sense for Wiegman to continue with the same system after the break. But after a 10-minute spell of Nigerian pressure, England started to look ragged, and the problem with space in behind the wing-backs was never solved.

At this stage, it was surprising Wiegman didn’t look to revert to a back four. It would have been a simple shift, not necessarily requiring a substitution, with Jess Carter moving out to left-back and Rachel Daly pushing forward. “We considered that but we decided to leave it that way because of the strength of Nigeria,” Wiegman explained. “And the game was also so intense and we’re thinking, ‘If we change, does that help or should we just keep it this way?’.”

But England surely needed to change system.

Enter James — or rather, exit James. Her unnecessary red card for stamping on Michelle Alozie put England on the back foot. Curiously, it also made them more solid. Wiegman was now effectively forced to switch to a back four, using a deep 4-4-1 formation.

Nigeria, having found space in behind England’s wing-backs, now struggled to do so. And while the better side on the night, it’s also obvious Nigeria simply aren’t capable of taking the game to the opposition. They played four matches at this tournament, drawing three of them 0-0. Their one good attacking display — the only time they scored a goal — came when playing on the break in the second half in the 3-2 win over Australia, when the hosts committed too many resources into attack.

In this game, both managers agreed that the red card dramatically helped England. “When Lauren James went off, then of course we dropped deeper with 10,” said Wiegman. “And then they had to make the game a little more, and then they struggled a little bit.”

Nigeria manager Randy Waldrum agreed. “We created more playing against their 11,” he said. “I thought when they went down to 10 and put another player in midfield and just one up top, I thought they actually did a really good job of possessing the ball and keeping it. And I think our players were a little bit panicked. They didn’t know if we needed to keep going direct or to build up. And then our build-up, when we did it, was too slow.

“We needed, at that time, to move the ball quickly as we played from centre-back to centre-back, you know, to get around the corners and to exploit the player (advantage). So we didn’t cause them enough problems to break them down, and they were able to sit in there and maintain that shape. They were very well organised and prepared for that.”

England offered absolutely nothing in attack, and it was curious to see Wiegman opt for Chloe Kelly to lead the line with Daly out wide, when the two are generally accustomed to each other’s positions. Presumably, she wanted Kelly’s speed to offer an option in behind; later she ended up with Beth England there, more of a natural centre-forward. But the Lionesses were playing for penalties.

That made sense. They had the experience of defeating Brazil in a shootout in the Finalissima, they have the official best goalkeeper in the world in Mary Earps, and they looked more organised when preparing for spot kicks. Wiegman gathered her outfielders in the middle of the pitch and gave a lengthy speech, reminding them of key points in terms of their mental preparation. Nigeria, in contrast, were something of a rabble: players, substitutes and coaching staff all together by the touchline, and seemingly everyone giving their opinion.

England eventually prevailed. But, in truth, they got away with one here. The ‘sometimes it’s harder to play against 10 players’ cliche generally seems entirely illogical. Here, it felt very apt.

(Top photo: Matt Roberts – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)