INGERLAND!
Real Football Wisdom says penalties are a lottery. The Daily concurs – provided, of course, said lottery is a test of skill under pressure that cannot be grasped by those unfamiliar with the terror of knowing what this world is about, watching some good friends scream “LET ME OUT!”
And so, we happened upon an unlikely situation where the England team – down to 10 and dominated by Nigeria for most of their last-16 knockout tie – found themselves praying for that lonely trudge of contemplation from centre-circle to penalty spot as the planet watches, the best or worst moment of a young life in the balance.
But when presented with the chance to put her team into the last eight, Chloe Kelly delivered a hopping, skipping, wahey of a penalty that made a nonsense of everything we thought we knew. “When I walk up to take a penalty,” she said, “I think, ‘I’m gonna score’. That’s how I look at it. Once I win that mental battle, we’re good.”
Or, put another way, sports folk are not built like the rest of us, blessed with the pulse-rate of a stone and the self-doubt of a politician. Thus they hurl themselves forward to embrace and immerse in this most revolting of experiences – one that could undermine their entire existence – for the sheer fun of it, that being elite-level sport: mental extremes that take in the entire gamut of buzzing or gutted, gutted or buzzing, guzzing or butted, with nothing in between.
Except that not all sports folk are built the same, super-humans but humans nevertheless, and fallible like the rest of us. Nigeria dominated the match but could not score before missed kicks by Desire Oparanozie and Michelle Alozie saw England repatriate what was theirs.
By then, Lauren James had been sent off, reacting in the moment to an intensity she’d never experienced before. This was, of course, entirely understandable – if you’re unsure, consider yourself at 21 without the aggravating factors of talent, fame and prospects – and happily for her but unlike David Beckham and Wayne Rooney, her mates were there to get her out of trouble.
This is no coincidence. The simple being of friends is perhaps the most affirming aspect of this England squad, a bunch of people who love each other, love what they represent, and love the collective power their love gives them; everyone is equal, everyone matters and everyone deserves compassion.
And there’s a lesson there – but only if we’re open to learning it.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I’ve seen what [resources] England have access to. In Nigeria we don’t have access to much. Our training fields aren’t great. The grass is rocky, bumps everywhere. Where we sleep isn’t great. Sometimes we share beds. It’s not good. It’s not good enough. In terms of recovery, we don’t have much of any of that. We don’t have access to a gym in camp in Nigeria. There’s a lot that needs to be done” – Nigeria’s Ifeoma Onumonu laments her side’s exit to England and reveals that not every team at this World Cup is on a level playing field. Quite literally.
TODAY AT THE WORLD CUP
The World Cup hosts, Flamin’ Matildas, romped into the quarter-finals with a 2-0 win over Denmark after goals from Caitlin Foord and Hayley Raso. Sam Kerr even made an appearance in the victory, which sets up a last-eight clash against France or Morocco.
Donald Trump is at it again. The former US president couldn’t resist sticking the boot into the USWNT following their defeat to Sweden. Trump, a longtime vocal critic of the team, specifically Megan Rapinoe, a blue-haired talisman and outspoken LGBTQ+ advocate who missed a crucial penalty during the final moments of the game, said that the team’s loss is “fully emblematic of what is happening to our great Nation under Crooked Joe Biden” and “WOKE EQUALS FAILURE. Nice shot, Megan, the U.S. is going to Hell!!! MAGA.”
FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS
“How about you refrain from fawning coverage of Wrexham getting stuffed at home and give some coverage to financially strapped Southend United. Remarkable result on Saturday; HMRC-related transfer embargo means we only have 15 players so not even a full bench yet we beat promotion favourites Oldham who’ve spent big this summer 4-0. If only we could find a buyer to get rid of our crooked chairman. Great start to the season but impossible to continue like this” – Bryan Matthews.
“Just got sucked down a few 1960s/70s rabbit holes and would like to ask the serious question: was there ever a more graceful footballer / goalscorer than Denis Law? Even his “iconic” ™ single raised arm celebration had something of the ballerina to it” – Russell Richardson.
Send your letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. Today’s winner of our prizeless letter o’ the day is … Russell Richardson.
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