Japan 0-1 England: Ellen White hands Lionesses vital SheBelieves victory to ease pressure on boss Phil Neville
- Phil Neville’s England faced-off against Japan on Sunday in New Jersey
- The first-half ended goalless with both sides appearing evenly matched
- England finally broke through with Toni Duggan squaring for Ellen White to score
Ellen White’s late strike inspired England to a crucial SheBelieves Cup victory over Japan on Sunday, lifting some of the scrutiny on Phil Neville.
England were on a tough run of form and had got the competition off to a rough start, with the Lionesses already losing 2-0 to world champions USA.
The first-half ended goalless, with either side looking capable of winning. The second half followed a similar pattern, before finally England made the breakthrough with eight minutes left.
Toni Duggan nicked the ball as Japan’s defence suffered a lapse in concentration before squaring to White, who neatly finished.
More to follow…
England battled but had to wait until late on to finally break through a error-prone Japan
The two nations looked closely matched early on, with the outcome tough to call
Japan have been left rock bottom of the four-team table after another lacklustre performance