Lauren James has been given a two-game suspension for her stamp on Nigeria’s Michelle Alozie, clearing her to play in the World Cup final should England reach it. The England forward was given a yellow card for the incident but it was upgraded to a red after a VAR intervention. There were fears the 21-year-old could be handed a three-game ban.
James apologised to Alozie and her England teammates replying to a tweet from the Nigeria player: “All my love and respect to you. I am sorry for what happened.” She added: “Also, for our England fans and my teammates, playing with and for you is my greatest honour and I promise to learn from my experience.”
Alozie had tweeted: “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.”
England beat Nigeria on penalties in the last 16 and face Colombia in the quarter-finals on Saturday.
