Nigeria v France - as it happened

1.26pm: Afternoon all: And welcome to the opening game of the 2011 Women's World Cup. Except that by some procedural quirk, it isn't officially the opening game at all, as the ceremonial honours go to the host Germany taking on Canada at 5pm our time. This one's Nigeria v France at Hoffenheim's stadium. I hadn't expected to have to switch my brain back to football for another month or so, so you may have to excuse the odd foray into cricket terminology. What have I garnered this morning? That France scored 50 goals and conceded none before qualifying for the play-off against Italy that put them through to the finals tournament after a 3-2 aggregate victory. They've only qualified for the finals once before but a recent renaissance saw them through to the quarter-finals of the 2009 European Championship. Nigeria beat Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea to get here and have been in every finals to date but they have gone seven matches at the finals without a win and have made it out of the group stages only once. The Africans' last victory at the finals was a 2-0 victory over Denmark in 1999. I'm relying on the website stream for coverage, so please bear with me if there's the occasional buffering issue. 1.32pm: Team news: Nigeria: Precious Dede; Osinaci Ohale, Onome Ebi, Helen Ukaonu, Faith Ikidi; Perpetua Nkwocha, Ebere Orji, Rita Chikwelu, Glory Iroka; Stella Mbachu, Desire Oparanozie. France: Berangere Sapowicz; Wendie Renard, Laura Georges, Ophelie Meilleroux, Sonia Bompastor; Camille Abily, Sandrine Soubeyrand, Louisa Necib, Elise Bussaglia; Gaetane Thiney, Marie-Laure Delie. Referee: Kari Seitz (US) 1.55pm: It's on Europsort! Hurrah. I've been flicking around in a panic trying to find a stream but who needs one when Eurosport rides to the rescue. It's been a long time, old friend. 1 min: Nigeria kick off in front of a packed crowd but their move up the right-hand side falls apart and France have a goalkick. France's Wendie Renard must be a good six inches taller than any of the other 21 players. 3 min: France free kick on the left and they begin a subtle move, instead of hoying it into the box. Necib played it down the line to Delie who chipped a ball in to the far post but Orji cleared. It goes up the other end and Bompastor builds from the back before knocking a 60 yard pass up the outside left channel and Nigeria concede a corner which Nigeria eventually hustle away. 5 min: France have certainly got the upper hand in terms of attacking intent and Necib and Bompastor in particular have a good range of passing, knocking short before standing it up for Thiney or Delie but they overeelaborate a bit and are caught by Nkwocha motoring up the right, skinning Bompastor, beating the centre-half with a nice dummy but her final ball gets booted clear. 7 min: Shades of a foul throw there but the referee was lenient but blows her whistle when Ikidi is block tackled by Soubeyrand. Didn't look dangerous. 10 min: France make progress up the right with a series of throws that are cleared into touch by Nigeria but on the fourth one, Ukaonu turns it inside and looks to set Iroka free up the right. Again France drag their defensive four across the field to snuff out the attack, with Bompastor stepping up and into the tackle. 12 min: Bompastor and Necib link up well down the left again. Bompastor certainly seems to know where her Lyon team-mate is going to run as she's picked her out four or five times. Necib curs in from the left touchline, the ball under control, and fools Ikidi with another trick as she races up the goalline but her pull-back is cut out. 15 min: Nigeria try to hit on the break, Mbachu getting free at the back post but the cross is overhit and she can't control it. Goal kick to France. 18 min: I'm going to need a macro for "Bompastor feeds Necib up the left" as the left-back has just done it for the umpteenth time, rolling the ball up the outside of Ikidi who had half-turned to cover the inside ball. Necib again runs into the space, draws the defender but her cross is shanked out by Ukaonu. From the corner it comes out deep and Bussaglia has a shot from 30 yards that Dede tips wide. Another chance from that corner, a snap shot but Nigeria had bodies to block. 20 min: Free kick to Nigeria about 30 yards out when Georges and Renard sandwich Nkwocha in an aerial challenge. They stand it up to the 18-yard line without getting numbers in the box and Meilleroux Jack Charlton's it clear. 23 min: Afternoon Philippa Booth: "Have the US ESPN coverage, and am sure they've likened Renard's playing style - and hair - to Zidane. Given that Renard's CL Final 'do was a mighty affair that made David Luiz look a rank amateur, at least one of those statements seems a bit odd." Has she shaved herself a Benedictine circle on her pate. I can't see from here. Oparanozie has her first shot but slices it and France motor up the other end, Ohale is now alive to the threat of Necib and she git tight to give away a corner. Dede drops the cross and Renard sticks out her leg to shoot instinctively but lobs it over. I'm not going to go into assorted Lovejoyesque cliches about goalkeepers but Dede does look rather vulnerable, a Scott Carsonesque catalogue of errors so far. 26 min: Necib is crowded out up the left, essentially she's being double teamed at the moment when she gets wide which is a huge compliment and correct tactical switch given her impact so far. But when she loses the ball Nigeria break fast, Oparanozie sprints clear, to the right of goal, burst past Meilleoux and Bompastor and has a shooting opportunity with only the keeper to beat. She spoons it wide very tamely. 28 min: But France keep coming back at Nigeria, Abily's control on the right losing the impetus of this thrust and then Renard booming in a cross when she picks the ball up, massively overhit and putting Dede under no pressure. 30 min: Nigeria corner, taken by Mbachu. Only five go into the box and the second ball falls to Renard who shanks it behind her and they take no chances and put it out for another corner. This one is easily cleared but Nigeria's policy of not committing too many forward pays off and they stem the France attack and get back up the right,w inning another corner, which is again hit long where Nkwocha (I think) has a header from distance. 32 min: Tenacious work from Abelie, winning a tackle on the floor, frees Delie whose cross is again diverted for a corner off a swinging leg. Ohale meant to knock it up front but too many of the clearances today have actually gone behind the defender. 34 min: Early substitution for Nigeria. Ikidi off for Chukwunonye. Tactical we're presuming as Necib has been giving Ikidi a torrid time, or was for the first 20 minutes. But then the pictures of Ikidi suggest she's unwell. 36 min: What a cross from Necib. Sorry if I'm being monotonous, but she's superb with the ball. This was from a Harry Hodge position on the left, more left-sided midfield than left wing, 10 yards out of the box and 10 yards infield. Her left-foot chip to Abily, who was running into the box, was perfect and only Abily's attempt to trap it rather than shoot first time let France down. Not too badly as if she had connected it was goal of the tournament territory this early. 39 min: Nigeria's defending makes me nervous but they've stood up to waves of French attacks rather well, in the results they've achieved rather than the exceution. Just now Abily's shot was blocked well by Ukaonu and then, though Dede waved hello at the ball from the corner rather than catching it, though she came for it, her defenders got her out of trouble again. 43 min: Chikwelu was hurt during a tackle with Thiney, went down, stayed down and France played on quite rightly. The crowd boos. Necib then soots from 25 yards, curling it with her right foot and Dede leaps to tip it out for a corner even though it didn't have the curl to go in the goal. Philippa Booth has a stat for us: "Been counting - French squad made up of only four clubs - 10 from Lyon, five PSG, four Montpellier and two Juvisy." That's a hell of a small constituency isn't it? 45 min: Bompastor crosses from the left, again from quite a deep position and Ukaonu gets there first to whack it behind. Delie was offside, though. 45 min+2: Sapowicz was slow to react when Nigeria countered and were given a throw in and then a corner to break the momentum. The whistle for half-time came when the corner came into the box. Half time: Nigeria weathered the storm of France's early attacks and gradually came more into the game, looking very threatening on the break. But the passing of France's midfield, Necib in particular, has been sublime. Good game, good game, as a certain new knight would say. Back in 10 minutes so Eurosport can try to convince me to holiday in Kazakhstan. Mbonu Ugochukwu writes: "Rob, before the first 45 minutes started, you typed 'Europsort' after the first 45 minutes, you typed 'Eurosport' So, which is correct?" Erusoport? Here's Lousia Necib: Rocking a goth look She spends half-time opening cans of beans with that left foot, I would think. France substitution: Le Sommer on for the skipper Soubeyrand. 46 min: Throw in for Nigeria up the right, taken long and into the box, Meilleroux lets it bounce and Mbachu hooks a cross in across the face of goal towards Orji at the far post. Sapowicz comes out to punch and smacks Renard in the face but France still manage to strangle the chance. 48 min: Good start from the Nigerians to this half but Abily gets wide on the right and spins in a cross with rather too much power and the ball sails over everyone in the box. 50 min: Oparanozie is rather harshly penalised for shirt pulling when running into the box and France take the free kick and start to build, up the right more this half – they have a cross that Dede doesn't deal with then a shot that scampers into her arms. 52 min: Orji bursts into the box on the left and a long cross finds her run but she attempts to hit it on the volley with the top of her right foot rather than shooting with her left or diving to head and wastes a decent opportunity after a fine move. 55 min: France free kick for a non-foul by Chikwelu on Necib but nothing comes of it after France stab it forward. They're overelaborating a tad so far this half. Philippa Booth points out: "On Lyon, however, easy to explain their representation on the squad - their results from this season – played 22, won 22, goals for 106, goals against 6." GOAL! Nigera 0-1 France (Delie) France play it up the right to Le Sommer who has held her run, then snapped past the full-back, sqaured the ball back along the ground, Necib dived in, missed it and Delie knocked it up and smashed it home. 58 min: France sub, Thomis on for Thiney. For those asking about the coverage, I'm watching on Eurosport. 60 min: Thomis looks like she's going to hang out on the right and use her pace. Philippa you're not the only person emailing me. You're the only one emailing me who's not sending in tosh or asking how to watch Eurosport legally or illegally. 62 min: The French are looking fairly comfortable now because Nigeria are not committing enough players forward to help Oparanozie and France have had a number of attacks, the latest thanks to Thomis who whipped in her cross towards the six-yard line where Delie gets her boot to it but Dede gathers. All their play this half has been up the right, up the left in the first. Is it any coincidence that this side is under shade? 65 min: Tentative defending and some tenacity almost got Nigeria an equaliser there after some hard running from Oparanozie, beasting Bompastor then passing to Orji. Pinball clearances from France almost gives Orji a chance but they ride their luck. That was Oparanozie's last touch, she's off and Michael comes on. 67 min: Shout for a Nigeria penalty when Renard charges Orji but they're given a corner instead and from it they create another good chance but again France ride their luck. 69 min: Third France substitution Lepailleur on for Renard. 71 min: Nigeria charge down Bussaglia's shot but when the ball canons uo front only Michael is up there and she's squeezed out of possession. Abily gets a free-kick when Chukwononye studs her ankle, taken by Bompastor for Necib but the ball runs out of play. 73 min: Nigeria are frustrating the commentators with their conservatism but it seems to me that they're wedded to counterattacking and confident that they'll get a chance. They should be, they've already had one or two and France are very open in terms of formation. Nigeria have a corner. 75 min: Delay while Orji gets treatment after seemingly pinging her hamstring. The corner is blasted across the box by Mbachu, Nigeria wins a header but it goes out for another corner. Then Ohale leaps into a challenge, lands awkwardly and she joins Orji on the floor. 77 min: Ohale has hurt her arm, so Nigeria are down to nine at the moment. Their free-kick just inside their own half is belted long diagonally to the right flank but Bompastor heads it away. 79 min: Ohale comes back on, Orji remains grounded getting a massage. And Ohale makes a crucial tackle in the box to rob Thomis in the box. Sunday comes on for Orji. 81 min: The game has lost its zip these last few minutes, France happy to probe up the right, always looking to get the ball to Thomis who doesn't always take her best option. 83 min: Ukaonu takes a long throw into the box, Sunday wins the header but too far from goal given she couldn't get any power into it from her standing leap. 85 min: More good defensive work from Nigeria gets the ball away from Le Sommer and up the field quickly to Sunday whose lanky legs stretch to control the pass, she tries to throw Georges one way and unleash a shot but Georges didn't buy it and the shot was blocked. 87 min: "I am nervous for France, as you say, they look very open, they do look like they could concede - and from the weakest team in the group - with Germany and Canada to come, they have to firm up a bit back there," writes my co-commentator Philippa Booth.They do. The midfield seems to be great going forward, less adept at screening Georges and Meilleroux at times and they look vulnerable to quickly taken set-pieces. Dede catches the ball and throws out quickly to Sunday but France are alive to it. 89 min: France free kick, 25 yards out, fairly central. Necib gets it over the wall but can't get it under the bar. Nigeria goalkick. 90 min: One free kick leads to another for Nigeria as they advance up the field in increments of 20 yards a time. Forty yards from goal Ukaonu shoots, even though she'd sent five players up. It's blocked and she shoots again from the rebound. Daft thinking, that was. 90 min +2: It's petering out now as the ref consults her watches. Thomis tries a through ball after some good work from her but messes up at the last moment. As soon as she does the ref blows her whistle. Full time Well, I thought France were full of subtle variation, very skilful and manipulated space very well … and then came the second half. The quality of their players on the ball was evident throughout but tactically they are going to have to tighten up or the rugged Canadians might steamroller them, never mind the reigning champions. As for Nigeria, they defended womanfully, looked a threat on the break but didn't get much luck when the ball broke for France in France's penalty area and were too cagey for too long. A very enjoyable first half, though, and it bodes fantastically well for the tournament. Thanks for keeping me company, and especially to Philippa Booth for her insights. Much appreciated. Bye!