After months of buildup, England took to the World Cup stage in Brisbane with a frail defensive display. For a side whose success in the Euros last summer depended so heavily on their ability in defence, they were made to look fragile, and at times chaotic, by a fast and tenacious Haiti side who took the game to the European champions.
The Lionesses’ backline was always going to be a focal point when Millie Bright was declared fit by Sarina Wiegman a little over 24 hours before kick-off. The England captain played her first 90 minutes of competitive football since injuring her knee in March. While she had received some minutes in a behind-closed-doors game last week against Canada, the cobwebs were clear to see.
Known for her combative nature and her distribution across the field, Bright was a second or two off the pace, particularly in the first half. A series of wayward passes and missed challenges allowed Haiti to find joy in the speed of their counterattacking game.
It will not have helped that the best partner for Bright in that defensive area is also under debate and will continue to be going into the next game against Denmark on Friday. When the team was announced, the biggest uncertainty was whether it would be Jess Carter or Alex Greenwood who would fill the roles at centre-back and left-back.
It was Carter, Bright’s teammate at Chelsea, who went into the middle, putting in a solid performance on her World Cup debut, often recovering at pace when Haiti turned over the ball.
When asked about England’s difficulties in transition, Wiegman said: “That started [with needing to be] a little tighter on the ball and a little better connected. But that also had to do with the defence of Haiti where, if we were a little too long on the ball, they really got on to us.
“We lost the ball a couple of times when we were still playing our possession game, and then it becomes hard because a lot of players are running forward … A couple of times in defence, because they play the long ball so quick, we should have been a little more compact.”
It will have caused alarm to England how often and easily Haiti were putting them under pressure in possession and finding the long ball forward. Melchie Dumornay, their prolific young forward, exploited that weaknesses with joy.
Haiti’s manager, Nicolas Délepine, was keen to praise her despite highlighting room for improvement. “She’s extraordinary. We are never surprised to see what she’s capable of. She was maybe disappointed today, she’s capable of more.”
With Lucy Bronze regularly getting caught too far forward, Dumornay broke into the space in behind with ease and caused trouble with her perseverance and quality of delivery. The 19-year-old was particularly effective in the first half, showing her acrobatic skills. In the second, she forced a brilliant stop from Mary Earps with a powerfully whipped effort.
The England keeper had another standout game, being troubled perhaps a little more than expected. Along with her opposite number, Kerly Théus, she produced a series of world-class saves.
“That’s why she’s No 1,” said the goalscorer, Georgia Stanway. “That is why she’s the Fifa Best. Coming up with saves like that that keep us in the game and keeps those three points. You’re the best for a reason and moments like that explain why.”
In such tense circumstances, it was always going to be a mistake or a matter of inches that decided the outcome. In a first half marred by chaos and prolonged by three VAR checks, it was England who found the breakthrough with a 29th-minute penalty.
Stanway stepped up to provide a moment of calm, despite having to take it twice.
While Denmark will pose a different threat there is clearly work to do in all areas on the training ground. They will provide a sterner test with more attacking weapons at their disposal and the Lionesses can ill-afford a repeat of their defensive errors.
