France wins in extra time
As the score remained tied in extra time and the clock ticked toward a shootout of penalty kicks, France’s stress kept increasing. Hosting the Women’s World Cup, Les Bleues are expected to win the title or at least come close.
“It’s not simple. We’re playing on our home turf,” coach Corinne Diacre said through a translator. “There’s a constant reminder that we have this pressure to perform.”
France survived its first knockout match of the tournament and advanced to the quarterfinals when captain Amandine Henry redirected Amel Majri’s free kick for a tiebreaking goal in the 107th minute of a 2-1 victory over Brazil on Sunday night in Le Havre.
The World Cup hosts, in the quarterfinals for the third straight time, will play either the United States or Spain on Friday in Paris. The top-ranked Americans, trying to repeat as champs and win their fourth World Cup title overall, will take on 13th-ranked Spain today.
Valerie Gauvin, whose first-half goal was disallowed in a video review, put fourthranked France ahead in the 52nd minute before a crowd of 23,965 at Stade Oceane, but Thaisa tied the score 11 minutes later for No. 10 Brazil.
Henry scored on a left-footed shot from 7 yards, getting ahead of Monica for her 13th goal in 86 international appearances, her second goal of the tournament.
› England 3, Cameroon 0 VALENCIENNES, France — Steph Houghton scored on a rare free kick to set third-ranked England on its way to a shutout victory in a tense match, with the win securing a quarterfinal against 12th-ranked Norway on Thursday.
There were times when it appeared Cameroon’s players might refuse to resume the match as they protested decisions while referee Quin Liang struggled to maintain control.
Houghton scored the first goal after the captain was set up for an indirect free kick in the penalty area in the 14th minute. Ellen White added to the lead in the fourth minute of first-half stoppage time with a goal only awarded after an offside call was overruled on a video review.
Cameroon players were seething again when they were denied a goal at the start of the second half when another offside video review went against the lowest-ranked team, at No. 46, remaining in the competition.
England, which finished third in the 2015 tournament in Canada, scored again in the 58th minute when Alex Greenwood swept in from a corner kick by Toni Duggan.
The unusual opening goal set the tone for a game of remarkable moments at Stade du Hainaut. When White crossed from the left flank to Duggan, Cameroon’s Augustine Ejangue intercepted and passed back to her goalkeeper, Annette Ngo Ndom.
The indirect free kick was awarded, sparking anger among Cameroon players. Ejangue was caught on camera spitting toward Toni Duggan but she faced no repercussions, even with video assistance available to review the incident that could have resulted in a red card.