Georgia Stanway of England made sure her retaken penalty counted to give the Lionesses a 1-0 victory over debutants Haiti in a thrilling Women’s World Cup opener on Saturday at Lang Park.
After Haitian goalkeeper Kerly Theus left her goal early to stop the Bayern Munich player’s initial attempt, which was awarded after a handball, Stanway was given two penalty kicks.
To the delight of the numerous England supporters present, the midfielder recovered from the mistake and buried her second opportunity in the far corner. Coach Sarina Wiegman also raised her fist in joy.
Wiegman’s Lionesses, the reigning European champions, are one of the favorites to win the World Cup and are currently ranked fourth, 49 places ahead of Haiti.
With England being denied a penalty early in the game, there was plenty of drama in the first half. Chloe Kelly appeared to have been fouled in the box, even though VAR determined that there had been a foul before the Manchester City forward went down there.
Alessia Russo appeared to have fouled a Haitian defender in the penalty area. Dayana Pierre-Louis was ultimately given a free kick for fouling Kelly, but she nonetheless received a booking.
The most intriguing of the difficult decisions Lionesses manager Wiegman had to make before the game involved her starting lineup was the decision to start Arsenal’s Russo over Aston Villa’s Daly.
Karly Theus: who is she?
Kerly Théus, now 24 years old, was born on January 7, 1999. She plays goalie for Aigle Brillant AC and the Haitian women’s national team.
In the group’s first-ever significant women’s international competition, the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, Théus participated for the Haitian under-20 national team in each of the team’s three games. She has represented Haiti’s senior national team, most notably on January 28, 2020, when Haiti took on the United States in a CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying Championship game.
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