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England v Haiti - Women's World Cup preview
England got off to a winning start at the Women's World Cup by beating Haiti despite being made to work hard under the lights in Brisbane. Georgia Stanway's retaken first-half penalty was the difference between the two teams, although the match was a lot closer than many would have been expecting prior to kick-off, with Haiti asking several questions of the Lionesses on the break.
England started brightly as they looked to make their superior quality count from the first whistle, although they were let off on several occasions as Haiti failed to capitalise on a few lapses at the back. The Lionesses were somewhat fortunate to take the lead from 12 yards, with VAR used to give the spot-kick before it was called into action to order a retake after Haiti goalkeeper Kerly Theus was judged to have been off her line for the initial attempt.
Haiti continued to break down the flanks when given the opportunity to move the ball forward, but the underdogs lacked the cutting edge required to beat Mary Earps between the sticks for England. The latter was called into action on more than a few occasions and did well to deny Melchie Dumornay during the closing stages of the match before Sarina Weigman's side held on to claim all three points in their Group D opener.
Thanks for joining us to follow England's win over Haiti as the Lionesses got their World Cup campaign off to a positive start.
They were nowhere near their best, though, and will certainly need to improve against Denmark in their next match to stand the best chance of making it two wins from two in Group D.
"A very hard game and I'm happy with the three points," says England boss Sarina Weigman as she runs the rule over her team's performance on ITV Sport.
"Haiti are unpredictable and very transitional and we struggled with that. We did create chances but lost the ball in moments we weren't expecting, so that was hard for us.
"We want to finish our chances. The win was good and the most important thing but we want to finish our chances and be better in the possession game.
"Sometimes we could have made the last pass instead of shooting ourselves, little things like that. I hope that in the next game we can score a goal from open play."
Sarina Weigman knows that England will need to improve against Denmark on Friday (Image: GETTY)
"At the end of the day, group stages, first game of the World Cup, you have to find a way to win and England have done that tonight," says former Lionesses goalkeeper Karen Bardsley on BBC Radio 5 Live.
"We probably could have finished more opportunities in front of goal, lacking that final third quality. We didn't quite have the rhythm that we were expecting to see in terms of build up play, going through the midfield.
"Big difference in the second half when Lauren James came on, Rachel Daly made an impact but perhaps it just wasn't long enough."
"They challenged us, very dangerous on the counter so that's something we'll work on in training this week," England scorer Georgia Stanway tells ITV Sport.
"Mary came up with some big saves and everybody played their part. Mary was very good, moments like that are why she's become a top keeper. The most important thing is the three points and in the first game, so off to a good start.
On her retaken penalty, Stanway added: "You kind of block out everything that's around you, the first one was a very good save so credit to her but she was off her line. There's a process that I go through and I just stuck to that.
"We've been here alone for two weeks. The first game is just to settle the nerves and it was just nice to get that World Cup feeling after watching the first two days."
England were made to work hard for it, but they've managed to win their World Cup opener against Haiti!
Their unfancied opponents had plenty of joy on the break but were unable to make any of their chances count, with Mary Earps denying Melchie Dumornay from close range on a couple of occasions.
Sarina Weigman will be pleased with the result but the 53-year-old will be equally desperate for the Lionesses to improve before facing Denmark in their next Group D encounter on Friday.
England have finally settled into this game and are knocking on the door as they chase a second goal.
Alex Greenwood tries to pick out Alessia Russo with an outswinging delivery from the left flank but Kerly Theus jumps well to pluck the ball out of the sky.
England are showing their quality as we enter the final 15 minutes (Image: GETTY)
Haiti manage to get into the final third once again but fail to trouble Mary Earps despite breaking through England's defensive line for the umpteenth time.
The Lionesses have been sloppy at the back too often and will certainly need to improve before coming up against a tougher opponent at this World Cup.
The referee blows the half-time whistle in Brisbane and it's the Lionesses who lead at the break, with Georgia Stanway's retaken spot-kick the difference between the two teams.
England have undoubtedly been the stronger side but you get the feeling that plenty of improvements could still be made in the second half.
They were somewhat lucky to avoid conceding to Haiti after giving the ball away on too many occasions and Sarina Weigman will be desperate to stamp out their defensive mistakes when the action resumes.
This game is by no means over and Haiti will fancy their chances of pegging England back, but will they be able to make one of their opportunities count before the final whistle?
England lead at the interval but it hasn't been plain sailing for the Lionesses (Image: GETTY)
Chloe Kelly drills a well-placed cross in the direction of Alessia Russo but the Arsenal forward is unable to divert the ball on target and it trickles out for a goal kick to Haiti.
Chloe Kelly goes down in the box under the challenge of Dayana Pierre-Louis and VAR is checking for a possible penalty.
The referee jogs over to the monitor to take a closer look... but it's not given!
Replays show that Alessia Russo clipped a Haitian defender just before the foul on Kelly, although Pierre-Louis is booked regardless for her full-blooded lunge.
Chloe Kelly is fouled in the area but no penalty is given (Image: GETTY)
Sarina Weigman has said that she sees no reason why England cannot challenge to win the World Cup after establishing themselves as one of the planet's most feared international sides.
"We're here and we have a dream," said Weigman. "Of course there is always a chance to win the World Cup.
"We will give everything. You call it noise [the pay row]. When we go on the pitch, everyone is aligned and everyone is focused on football.
"I haven't seen any other behaviours, so yes, we are ready."
Ella Toone has insisted that England do not fear any opponent as they look to follow up last year's European triumph by excelling on the world stage over the next few weeks.
"There’s a lot of unbelievable teams out here and a lot of unbelievable talent," said Toone.
"They’ll make it hard. We know it’s going to be difficult but we’re in our own little bubble. We believe in ourselves.
"We want to win. I don’t think we fear anyone else. I don’t think you can. I don’t fear anyone."
Ella Toone has insisted that England's players are supremely confident (Image: GETTY)
Here's a look at how the Lionesses will line up for today's Group D opener...
Your #Lionesses for our first game of the tournament! \ud83c\udff4\udb40\udc67\udb40\udc62\udb40\udc65\udb40\udc6e\udb40\udc67\udb40\udc7f pic.twitter.com/npKM72s0sD
Hello and welcome to Express Sport's live coverage as England get their Women's World Cup campaign underway against Haiti.
The Lionesses will be firmly expecting to win today against their unfancied opponents, although it will be important for Sarina Weigman's squad to stave off the threat of complacency in order to stand the best chance of avoiding a shock upset.
We're just half an hour away from kick-off in Brisbane and will be on hand to keep you updated with the action as it unfolds...
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