England forward Lauren James has apologised to the Nigerian opponent she stamped on during their World Cup clash.
James is waiting to discover from FIFA whether the automatic one-match ban will be increased and she will miss further matches if England beat Colombia in the quarter-finals.
The reckless block on the back of Michelle Alozie saw James sent off and England having to hold on with 10 players throughout extra-time before beating Nigeria 4-2 on penalties.
“All my love and respect to you,” James posted on the social media network X, formerly known as Twitter, to Alozie. “I am sorry for what happened.”
It was a response to Alonzie posting: “we are playing on the world’s stage. this game is one of passion, insurmountable emotions, and moments. all respect for Lauren James.”
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England players said James apologised in the dressing room in Brisbane to them on Monday night.
And James went public with that today.
She wrote: “For our England fans and my team-mates, playing with and for you is my greatest honour and I promise to learn from my experience.”
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Lionesses scrape through to quarters
At just 21 years old, James had established herself as England’s star of the tournament through the group stage.
The Chelsea player scored two and assisted three more goals as England beat China 6-1.
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An England team statement said: “Lauren is really sorry for her actions which led to the red card and is full of remorse. It is wholly out of character for her.
“We will be supporting Lauren throughout and will be putting forward representation on her behalf. We fully respect FIFA’s disciplinary process and will not be making any further comment until after any decision has been made.”
