Marie Laure Delie (#18) scores for France in a FIFA Women's World Cup game against Mexico on June 17, 2015 in Ottawa, Canada. (Photo: FIFA via Getty Images)
OTTAWA, Canada – France raced out to a lead on 35 seconds en route to a 5-0 win over Mexico in the last Group F match for each in the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup at Landsdowne Stadium on Wednesday.
That result, combined with England’s 2-1 victory over Colombia, left the pair of European sides even atop the table on six points, but the French finished first based on goal difference. Last-place Mexico (0-1-2, 1 point) was eliminated with one point.
“Allowing a goal in the opening minute made our job a lot harder, and France is a great team,” Mexico coach Leonardo Cuellar said. “They showed it and they are advancing as a result.”
Marie-Laurie Delie headed in a deflected goal-line cross by Elodie Thomis to put the French on the front foot soon after the opening whistle. Les Bleues made it 2-0 when a Camille Abily corner kick from the left side went in off the leg of Mexico’s Jennifer Ruiz in the ninth minute.
Abily then played to Thomis, who crossed to Eugenie Le Sommer and the forward knocked the ball in from inside the six-yard box to give France a 3-0 lead after 13 minutes.
“It was a complicated ask for us to defeat the French, but we didn’t give ourselves a chance in the match by conceding that opening goal,” Cuellar said.
Le Sommer added her second on a rebound to send France into halftime with a 4-0 lead.
Mexico’s best scoring chance came in the second half, but Veronica Perez fired her long-range shot high and wide of the target.
Amandine Henry finished the scoring with one of the best goals of the tournament, a blast from 30 yards into the upper right corner of the net 10 minutes from full time.
“We believed we could go farther, and we knew we had to find a way to meet our objective, the Round of 16, and we didn’t,” Cuellar finished. “There are no excuses.”