SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - JULY 28: Lauren James of England celebrates after scoring her team's first goal ... [+]
England and Chelsea FC forward Lauren James might have made her last FIFA 2023 Women’s World Cup appearance in her team’s win (on penalties) v Nigeria on Monday August 7 which saw them reach the quarter-final.
FIFA has announced that James received a two-match suspension. This implies that she will be absent not only for England's quarter-final clash with Colombia this upcoming Saturday but also for the subsequent semi-final against either Australia or France.
Sarina Wiegman's England will therefore have the option to deploy James solely in the final or the third-place playoff, provided they advance to either of these matches.
Players of England line up before the penalty shootout of the round of 16 match between England and ... [+]
Should Colombia win on Saturday at Stadium Australia in Sydney and resulting in England's elimination, James will bid farewell to the World’s biggest women’s football tournament with three goals and three assists in four matches.
The match was still goalless and the two teams were approaching extra time. The 21-year-old Lionesses prospect purposely stepped on Nigeria’s defender Michelle Alozie.
James was first shown the yellow card, but after a VAR check, the Argentinian referee Melissa Borjas changed the card’s color from yellow to red for violent conduct and therefore sending James off and ruling her out of the quarter-final against Catalina Usme’s Colombia.
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 07: Sarina Wiegman, Head Coach of England, speaks to the media in the ... [+]
At the post match press conference, Sarina Wiegman, England’s Head Coach defended her magical number 7 player as she considered that the Chelsea winger would “learn” from this action. “It was a split second, it was later in the game, so players also get a little tired."
Wiegman added, “She’s an inexperienced player on this stage, and she’s done really well, and I think in a split second she just lost her emotions. She apologized and felt really, really bad.”
The Fédération internationale de football association, commonly known as FIFA released a statement on Thursday confirming that James is banned for two matches, not just one: “The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has imposed a two-match suspension on England’s player Lauren James following a violation of art. 14 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code at the FIFA Women’s World Cup match England vs Nigeria. The suspension will be served for the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ quarter-final and the next international fixture following that.”
Two days earlier, England released a statement on its social media accounts to clarify what happened. “Lauren is really sorry for her actions which led to the red card and is full of remorse,” before adding “It is wholly out of character for her.”
The English Federation showed full support for their growing superstar as the statement continued “We will be supporting Lauren throughout and will be putting forward representation on her behalf.”
Waiting for FIFA’s decision that was yet to be announced, England showed a full cooperation “we fully respect FIFA’s disciplinary process and will not be making any further comment until after any decision has been made.”
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 07: Lauren James of England stamps on Michelle Alozie of Nigeria which ... [+]
Houston Dash’s Super Falcon Michelle Alozie who also works as a part-time cancer research technician at the Texas Children’s Hospital was quick to show her support for James as she 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.”
James quote retweeted Alozie’s tweet and apologized, saying: "All my love and respect to you. I am sorry for what happened," before adding, “also, for our England fans and my team-mates, playing with and for you is my greatest honor and I promise to learn from my experience."