NEW DELHI: Denmark's captain, Pernille Harder, scored her first Women's World Cup goal by converting a penalty in the first half, leading her team to a 2-0 victory over Haiti in Perth on Tuesday.
This win secured Denmark's spot in the last 16 of the tournament, marking their first advancement to the knockout stage since 1995.
England topped Group D after defeating China 6-1 and will face Nigeria in Brisbane on Monday, while Denmark, as the group runners-up, will take on Australia in Sydney.
Denmark started the match strongly, and although defender Simone Boye scored in the third minute, the goal was disallowed after a VAR (Video Assistant Referee) review deemed it offside.
However, in the 21st minute, Haiti midfielder Dayana Pierre-Louis conceded a penalty for a handball, providing Pernille Harder with the opportunity to score, and she calmly slotted the ball into the bottom-left corner from the spot.
Harder had chances to add to her tally, but an effort in the 45th minute was ruled offside, and an 83rd-minute header was disallowed after a foul was called on forward Signe Bruun for a challenge on Haiti's goalkeeper, Kerly Theus, outside the box.
Despite Haiti's spirited efforts in search of an equalizer, particularly in the periods after the break, Denmark's experience and higher ranking (18th in the world) helped them maintain control. Substitute Sanne Troelsgaard sealed the victory for Denmark with a goal in stoppage time.
On the other hand, Haiti, ranked 55th in the world, concluded their first-ever World Cup campaign without a win in three games.
(With Reuters inputs)
