– After a strong first-half performance from England, Colombia had all of the play in the second half. They struggled to create clear opportunities; but they also suffered from some awful officiating, including the first-half penalty decision, and the yellow card given to their goalkeeper, Sepulveda, late on. Numerous fouls didn’t go their way. A draw would have been a fair result, but neither side looked sufficiently dangerous in the attack to trouble the later rounds of the competition.
– So France, with a +4 goal difference, top Group F ahead of England, both sides finishing with six points. Colombia, with four points, go through as a best third-placed team.
France will face theĀ Group E runners-up in Montreal on 21 June, from 16:00 local time. England will come up against Norway, the Group B runners-up, in Ottawa on 22 June from 17:00. Colombia’s Round of Sixteen match is still to be determined, resting on what happens later today in Group E.
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Full-time results: England 2-1 Colombia,Ā Mexico 0-5 France
90 (+4) minutes: That is full time. The match in Ottawa is also over.
90 (+3) minutes: Colombia get the goal their second-half performance has richly deserved. Andrade takes a long pass in her stride, lobbing the ball over Bardsley. It drops in, just clipping the post. England 2-1 Colombia
90 minutes: Four minutes of stoppage time to be played.
87 minutes: Colombia give the ball away in their own area, and Sanderson’s shot is pushed onto the crossbar and out for a corner.
84 minutes:Ā As Colombia appeal for a free-kick on the edge of the English area, the ball is played quickly forward. Taylor tries to toe-poke it past Sepulveda, with the goalkeeper having stormed out of her goal; and the Colombian keeper clearly gets the ball, but the referee still awards England a free-kick and books Sepulveda. Atrocious officiating.
83 minutes: A chipped ball evades the last defender, and substitute Jodie Taylor is through – but the pass is just too high, and she can’t cushion it with her head.
82 minutes: Diana Ospina is replaced by Leicy Santos.
81 minutes: Toni Duggan comes off for Jodie Taylor.
80 minutes: A fifth goal for France, Amandine Henry the scorer. Mexico 0-5 France
79 minutes: Potter pushes Carolina Arias over near the right corner flag, but the referee gives nothing.
74 minutes: A surprising change for Colombia, as Yoreli Rincon is replaced by Tatiana Ariza.
72 minutes: After steady build-up play down the right, the ball eventually finds Sanderson in the Colombian area, but she swivels on the ball and doesn’t strike her shot cleanly.
71 minutes: Bardsley is forced to punch away a dangerous cross from the right from Ospina.
69 minutes: Colombia loft a long free-kick into the box, but it’s an easy catch for Bardsley.
65 minutes: Jo Potter replaces Fran Kirby.
64 minutes: Alex Scott receives a yellow card for tacking her opponent to the ground as Colombia look to break.
63 minutes: With England under pressure, Stoney takes a rest and lies down on the pitch to receive some treatment.
61 minutes: Rincon is trying to make something happen down the right for Colombia. Eventually she picks the ball up after a quick free-kick, and shoots from distance just wide of the post.
55 minutes: Karen Carney comes off, replaced by Lianne Sanderson.
54 minutes: Kirby runs through the middle of the pitch and should find Carney with a through-pass, but she hesitates and the ball is cut out.
51 minutes: Usme and Rincon exchange passes before Arias crosses straight into the hands of Bardsley.
50 minutes: A pass runs through to Alex Scott, who fires over the upright.
49 minutes: Andrade toys with the ball in the England area, before a shot is blocked and cleared by the England defence.
45 minutes: The second half kicks off, and neither side has made any changes.
– With forty-five minutes left to play, France lead Group F by virtue of goal difference, with England in second. Colombia will still qualify as a best third-placed finisher.
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– England fully deserve their lead: they have been more adventurous on the attack, committing numbers, and making driving runs into the Colombian penalty area. But Colombia were unlucky not to pull a goal back before half-time. The referee has also favoured England when it comes to fouls and free-kicks.
45 (+3) minutes: Half-time here in Montreal.
45 (+2) minutes: Rincon dinks a ball over the England defence for Arias, who runs through on goal, but Bardsley is quickly out to block. She clatters into the Colombian on the follow-through.
45 minutes: Three minutes of added time are announced.
40 minutes: Colombia had been coming back into the game before that penalty; but England are more vigorous in the attack, readily throwing bodies forward.
36 minutes: Le Sommer scores her second goal of the game for France. Mexico 0-4 France
35 minutes: Usme picks up the first yellow card of the game for a foul just outside the Colombian penalty area. Houghton takes it, and it deflects off the side of the wall before a scramble in the box results in a penalty for England. It is given for a handball by Arias, but the decision is harsh: Arias is on the ground, and though it does strike her, she makes no movement towards the ball with her arm. The goalkeeper goes the right way, but Williams scores with the penalty kick.Ā England 2-0 Colombia
29 minutes: Andrade cuts past a few players from the left, and curls an effort wide of the near post.
27 minutes: A soft free-kick is awarded against Rincon as England progress down the left, and Greenwood whips the ball in – but nobody can reach it and Sepulveda collects. Stoney needlessly runs into the Colombian keeper.
25 minutes: Carney gets to the byline and chips a cross to the back post, which Kirby meets but can’t control.
22 minutes: Velasquez is a little late into a challenge, and concedes a free-kick, but Greenwood’s delivery from the right flank is straight into the wall.
17 minutes: England cause Colombia problems with a couple of in-swinging corners, but Colombia finally clear.
16 minutes: Colombia try to play out too quickly from the back, and Kirby wins the ball and drives into the penalty area. She plays a low cross, which deflects out for a corner – although Kirby appeals, suggesting it hit a hand.
14 minutes: Colombia are penalised for a handball, and Houghton stands over the free-kick. She curls in a shot, and Sepulveda can only parry. Carney is first to the rebound, and slots through the goalkeeper’s legs to give England the lead. England 1-0 Colombia
13 minutes: A third for France. Le Sommer scores, and France are consolidating their hold on a top two finish. Mexico 0-3 France
12 minutes: When the corner is finally taken, it is played to the edge of the Colombian area for a cross to the back post. Alex Scott heads back across goal for Stoney, but she heads over.
9 minutes: France grab another goal. From a corner, Mexico’s Ruiz puts the ball into her own net. Mexico 0-2 France
9 minutes: England’s right-back, Alex Scott, drills the ball into the area, but it is cut out for a corner before it can reach Duggan. Duggan collides with Colombia’s goalkeeper Sepulveda, who receives treatment on the pitch.
5 minutes: After a few forays for England, the first real chance of the game is created by Colombia. Andrade teases her way down the left and cuts the ball back to the edge of the area, where Montoya fires over.
1 minutes: France instantly take the lead, via Marie-Laure Delie. Mexico 0-1 France
0 minutes: We are underway in the Olympic Stadium, Montreal. But worryingly for England, over in Ottawa…
* * *
– We’ll follow England vs. Colombia here, and keep one eye too on Mexico vs. France. The teams:
England XI: Bardsley, A Scott, Houghton, Stoney, Greenwood, Williams, Moore, Nobbs, Duggan, Kirby, Carney
Colombia XI: Sepulveda, N Arias, C Arias, Clavijo, Velasquez, Gaitan, Montoya, Ospina, Rincon, Andrade, Usme
– To summarise the process, the group phase of the competition has comprised six groups of four teams. The top two sides from each group will qualify for the Round of Sixteen, along with the four best third-placed teams. Qualification depends first on points, with three points for a win and one for a draw; then on goal difference; then goals scored; before the results of matches played between sides are considered.
– It is day twelve of the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, and with just two groups still with matches to play, twelve sides have already qualified for the Round of Sixteen. For finishing in the top two positions in their respective groups, Germany, Norway, Canada, China, Japan, Cameroon, the United States, and Australia are through to to next phase of the competition. Brazil too – who will play their final Group E match later today – have six points and are guaranteed to finish top of their group.
Joining these teams, Netherlands and Switzerland will go through to the Round of Sixteen as two of four best third-placed finishers. At the moment, Sweden and France occupy the two remaining third-placed qualification spots: Sweden with three points and a goal difference of 0; France with three points and a goal difference of -1. Thailand come next, with three points and a goal difference of -7; and Spain – who like France still have a game to play – are last with one point and a goal difference of -1.
Colombia too are through in one way or another. They are in pole position to qualify as one of the top two sides in their group; but otherwise they will at least make the next round as a best third-placed team.Ā In Group F, Colombia have been the surprise package: ranked 28th in the world, their 2-0 victory over the world number 3, France, in the second round of group games, goes down as one of the biggest surprises in the history of the Women’s World Cup.
Colombia drew 1-1 with Mexico in their opening game, while France beat England 1-0. England then went on to beat Mexico 2-1. So as things stand, Colombia top Group F with four points; England lead France on goal difference, with both sides possessing three points; and Mexico lie on the bottom of the group with a solitary point.
Today’s matches see England vs. Colombia and Mexico vs. France. Again, even if Colombia lose to England, they are sure to qualify as a best third-placed team. Even a victory for England may not be enough to secure their qualification, if France also win and score more goals against Mexico. On the other hand if England fail to beat Colombia, then a big win for Mexico could still see them through.
