England's Lauren James handed two-match ban for red card against Nigeria
Lauren James has been handed a two-match ban for stamping on Nigeria player Michelle Alozie, meaning she will miss England's Women's World Cup quarter-final tie against Colombia, world soccer governing body FIFA said on Thursday.
James, England's top scorer at the tournament with three goals, received a red card for a bad-tempered stamp on Alozie's back in the 87th minute of Monday's game.
The 21-year-old Chelsea player, who will also miss the semi-final if England qualify for the last four, apologised for the incident on Tuesday.
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England were reduced to 10 players for more than half an hour but went on to beat Nigeria in a penalty shootout after the match ended 0-0 following extra time.
"The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has imposed a two-match suspension on England's player Lauren James...," FIFA said in a statement.
"The suspension will be served for the FIFA Women's World Cup quarter-final and the next international fixture following that."
England face Colombia on Saturday. The Football Association (FA) declined to comment on the suspension.
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