England Women vs. Nigeria Women Betting Tips: Back the electric Lauren James in last-16 clash
England have the chance to progress through to the quarter-finals of the Women's World Cup when they do battle with Nigeria at Brisbane's Lang Park on Monday 7th August (live on BBC 1 at 8.30am).
After landing three bets from each of England's group stage games, Jack Kitson has his sights set on a couple of Lauren James focused bets, including a 35/1 Bet Builder.
With some big teams already exiting the tournament - including Germany, Canada, and Brazil - and with US and Spain underperforming, it's England that have been installed as the new favourites to lift the World Cup for the first time.
After back-to-back 1-0 wins over Haiti and Denmark, the Lionesses finally came alive in a 6-1 demolition of China in a match that saw the electric Lauren James score twice and assist three goals.
England may be without a cluster of pivotal players in Leah Williamson, Fran Kirby, Beth Mead, and the recently injured Keira Walsh, but in James they have a superstar in the making.
The result saw England top Group D meaning they now face a tough test against Group B runners-up Nigeria in the last-16.
Nigeria are so far unbeaten with two goalless draws coming either side of a stunning 3-2 defeat of co-hosts Australia.
However, the African side are out at 12/1 to shock England in 90 minutes, with the Lionesses priced at just 3/10 to win in normal time, while a draw is available at 9/2.
England Women vs Nigeria Women Tips
After watching Lauren James sparkle in her last two matches I strongly believe there's some excellent value to be had in once again taking advantage of bet365's 11/4 for the Lionesses' Player of the Tournament (so far) to have Over 1.5 Shots On Target.
Given that this bet has landed in both of her starts against Denmark (3 SOT) and China (2 SOT), I'm extremely surprised to see the price so big. For comparison, Sky Bet are offering odds of 7/4 for the same outcome.
After scoring the only goal of the game in the 1-0 win over Denmark, James raised the bar even higher in the 6-1 thrashing of China where she bagged a brace and assisted three goals. On top of that, she scored an absolute stunner from outside the box but this was eventually ruled out for offside.
The technically brilliant James has excelled in her playmaker role behind Russo and Hemp. Anyone that has watched her so far knows she's not afraid to have a dig from range, with two of her goals - plus the ruled out goal - coming from outside the box.
She's been absolutely mesmerising to watch and I fully expect the Chelsea star to continue her assault on the opposition goal against Nigeria on Monday.
For the second bet, I'm going to ramp it up a notch and task Lauren James with registering Over 2.5 Shots On Target, which can be backed at the double-figure price of 10/1 with bet365.
James has recorded five SOT in her last two matches, with the required three on target landing against Denmark, while it would have come in against China too if it wasn't for her stunning strike to be controversially ruled out.
I've paired this with the 5/2 offering of James to have Over 0.5 Assists in the match, a line she effortlessly cleared against China in the form of three assists!
Combine these two bets together and you get yourself a 35/1 Bet Builder.
Betfred England Women's World Cup Offer
If you place a PickYourPunt bet (at odds of 3/1 or greater) on any England Women’s World Cup 2023 game with Betfred you can receive 50% of your stake back in Free Bets up to £5 within 24 hours if your bet loses.
This offer is open to new and existing customers.
Bets placed on pre-existing PickYourPunt or Boosted PickYourPunt Builder markets do not count towards this offer, T&Cs apply.
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