Zac Goodwin/PA Images/Getty Images
England’s Georgia Stanway celebrates scoring against Haiti.
CNN –
On paper it was a mismatch; The European champions and one of the World Cup favorites England meet tournament debutants Haiti.
But World Cup games are not won on paper, as the Caribbean nation almost equaled the Lionesses at every turn in the two sides’ opening game, eventually losing 1-0 after Georgia Stanway scored from a re-taken penalty.
Several impressive saves from Haitian goalkeeper Kerly Theus meant the score was just one goal apart, despite England having 19 attempts on target, including 10 on target.
Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Alessia Russo from England meets Kerly Theus from Haiti.
Haiti even had a chance to equalize late on, but two brilliant saves in quick succession from England goalkeeper Mary Earps put their side ahead and the Lionesses ended up with a narrow victory.
“They challenged us,” England goalscorer Stanway told ITV afterwards.
“They were very dangerous on the counterattack, we will work on that in training this week. Mary has a big parade ready and everyone did their part. Moments like that make her a top goalie. The most important thing is that we have three points.”
Continue reading: Haiti’s players are hoping to bring “joy and excitement” home from the Women’s World Cup
Haiti defied expectations from their first encounters and created the game’s most promising early chance as Roselord Borgella sped through England’s defense before her shot narrowly missed the goalpost.
England continued to press, seeing a potential penalty ruled out by VAR and forcing Theus to make the first of many brave saves.
But in the 25th minute, a VAR check resulted in a penalty for England after Haiti made a handball in the penalty area. Stanway’s penalty attempt was initially saved spectacularly by Theus, but when it was discovered that the Haitian goalkeeper had moved forward off her line, the penalty was retaken and Stanway didn’t miss a second chance.
Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Georgia Stanway’s penalty marked the difference between the two teams.
“I was just concentrating on the ball and the situation,” Stanway added.
“The first penalty was a very, very good save, you have to give that credit, but obviously she missed it. I was tempted to switch sides, but you need to be confident in your strategy. There’s a process I go through and I’ve stuck to that.”
Although England took an early lead, they failed to capitalize on it and struggled to break through Haiti’s defences, while it was only Earps’ crucial interventions that prevented Haiti from equalizing.
“It was a very tough game, I’m very happy with the three points,” England manager Sarina Wiegman told ITV. “They were very unpredictable, very temporary. They showed that and we struggled with that. We created chances, but we lost the ball and then they were gone. That was tough for us.
“We want to take our chances. We got it from the penalty spot, which was good because winning is the most important thing.”
In the other opening game of Group D, Denmark beat China 1-0 and took an exciting lead in the final minute of regular time when substitute Amalie Vangsgaard – who had been on the pitch for less than five minutes – headed in from a Pernille Harder corner.
There was still time for more drama in the six minutes of added time as China almost equalised, but the ball bounced off the woodwork and was bungled free. However, the goal would not have counted as several Chinese players were ruled offside.
The final minutes changed the picture of what was supposed to end in a goalless draw, as both teams struggled to find a crucial lead.