England take on Haiti in the group stages of the World Cup. Photo Credit: FIFA via Instagram.
England claimed all 3 points in their opening match against debutants Haiti, but the game was far from easy. The Lionesses had a rusty performance against a fast and physical young Haiti side, whose unpredictable and transitional play caught them out multiple times. A Georgia Stanway penalty meant that they walked away with the win, yet still haven’t scored from open play since April.
Statistically, England seemed to dominate the game, with 75% possession and 21 shots, compared to 7 from Haiti. But stats don’t tell the full story. From the first whistle, Haiti threatened the Lionesses’ defence. They looked fresh, with England struggling to control their counter-attacks. England seemed careless in possession, having less time on the ball than they usually would and continuously getting caught out. Teenage sensation Melchie Dumornay especially posed a danger throughout, the 19 year old Lyon star dribbling though the backline as she does so effortlessly.
To England’s relief, all targets on goal were stopped by Mary Earps. The goalkeeper was superb today, kept busier than she perhaps expected but remained focussed in pulling off her saves and crucial blocks. Out of both keepers, she made the bigger saves today. Haiti’s goalkeeper Theus was also impressive, unarguably one of their best players of the game. The 5’4 keeper comfortably dominated aerial duels with Russo as well as close-range and longer efforts. She certainly frustrated the opposition, who without her could have easily netted a lot more.
There were some tough battles in the first half, with England being controversially denied a penalty for fouls on both Russo and Kelly in Haiti’s box. However soon after they got what they deserved, with VAR identifying an undeniable handball by Batcheba Louis, whose arms hit the ball before Bronze at the back post. Stanway’s penalty was first saved, but with Haitian goalkeeper Theus evidently off her line, she slotted the ball into the bottom left corner of the net, showing great composure with the retake.
Surprisingly to many, Wiegman made no substitutions at half time but rather switched wingers Kelly and Hemp. This did make a difference, with the Haitian players struggling to adjust to Kelly’s pace down the left wing. This further improved with Lauren James being substituted on for Lauren Hemp, although many expected her to replace Ella Toone in the number 10 position, which we’d already seen in the Portugal game. Toone seemed disconnected and fairly quiet, with there being huge gaps in the midfield inviting Haiti to counter-attack into. The Haitian style of play better matched James, whose speed and physicality tired the opposition and allowed her to carry the ball up the pitch.
Jess Carter was also excellent, partnering Millie Bright as a centre-back, with Greenwood instead playing left-back. With some fans unsure as to whether she would start ahead of Niamh Charles, she showed why Wiegman made the right decision, managing the Haitian front-line with her pace and strength. Given this was her World Cup debut, she looked incredibly composed at the back.
Haiti continued to push for an equaliser, coming close a few times but began to lack energy and look a little more tired in the last 20 minutes. By this point, it was about choosing their moments to counter attack. However they certainly kept England on their toes, forcing another save from Earps in injury time.
With Haiti ranked 49 places below England, it could have seemed like the Lionesses simply underestimated their opposition. However, captain Millie Bright confirmed after the game that they were not surprised by Haiti’s performance, having analysed and prepared to take on the side full of spritely youth talent. However, there’s only so much you can prepare for – actually playing the team is a different level. Taking on Denmark and China, England will encounter very different styles of play to Haiti, and potentially ones that they have more experience with, and will have a better understanding of what to expect. Both ranked in the top 15, they’ll still pose a threat and England will have to up their game drastically, to clench six more points. Although Haiti was theoretically the ‘easiest’ team in the group, they expectedly came as a challenge, being a squad that the Lionesses hadn’t experienced before.
This game would certainly give Wiegman and the Lionesses some food for thought as they head into their next group games. Starting Russo over Golden Boot winner Rachel Daly was a risk, yet she left the field with no goals. In these games where England are struggling to capitalise, Bethany England seems like an obvious substitution, having played for Spurs where she’s not gifted very many chances in front of goal so has to make them count. It’s baffling to many why she’s not been utilised in situations like this match. England missed that clinical edge in the front-line.
Ultimately, England escaped a tough challenge that saw them take all three points. The post-game felt more of a relief than celebration that they could cling onto their precarious one-goal lead. However, we saw these same first-game jitters in the Euros, before witnessing some incredible performances from the Lionesses. We’ll be hoping for a similar taste as they prepare to take on Denmark and China to make it out of the group stages.
Despite the result, Haiti will be pleased with their performance against one of the world’s best teams. For a debut team with little expectation to make it through the groups, they’ll take this confidence into their next two games and use the same strength and speed to try and get some points under their belt. They put up a good fight against the Lionesses, so who knows how they could do in their next matches?
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