England's Lauren James apologises after Michelle Alozie dismisses stamping incident

ENGLAND winger Lauren James has apologised for stamping on Super Falcons defender Michelle Alozie  during yesterday's World Cup match promising to learn from the incident which earned her a red card.

Chelsea star James, was sent off in the 87th minute of England's Round of 16 match against Nigeria, which the Lionesses eventually won on penalties, for stamping on forward Alozie. James, 21, is now facing an anxious wait over whether or not she will play again this World Cup due to her red card with Fifa yet to deliver a decision.

American-born Alozie, 26, who plays for National Women's Soccer League team Houston Dash, was very forgiving and magnanimous after the incident, taking to Twitter to say she has forgotten the matter. After Alozie tweeted "All Respect" to James despite her moment of madness, the winger has responded in kind.

James said in her reply: "All my love and respect to you. I am sorry for what happened. Also, for our England fans and my team-mates, playing with and for you is my greatest honour and I promise to learn from my experience."

In response, the English Football Association have issued an official statement too. It read: "Lauren is really sorry for her actions which led to the red card and is full of remorse. It is wholly out of character for her.

"We will be supporting Lauren throughout and will be putting forward representation on her behalf. We fully respect FIFA's disciplinary process."

So far, James has scored three goals and provided three assists in just three starts in the Women's World Cup. She will now miss their quarter-final clash against Colombia due to suspension.

Players shown red cards at the World Cup are automatically banned for one match but more games can be imposed on review. For instance, Nigeria's Deobrah Abiodun received a red card in the opening match against Canada and was suspended for three games, making her miss the Australia, Ireland England clashes.