European Champions England ready to take on the world
After the success of England’s women at the 2022 European Championships, all eyes are on what the Lionesses can achieve at this year’s World Cup.
England have headed down to Australia with plenty of expectation on their shoulders but their recent progress under manager Sarina Wiegman means they should be confident for the challenge ahead.
Lionesses did it the hard way to conquer Europe
There will be very few to suggest England were not the deserved winners of Euro 2022 after overcoming some tough opposition on their way to lifting the trophy on home soil. That’s why the Lionesses are rated as the second favourites at 4/1 in the Women’s World Cup betting to claim the title this year. The USA are the only side with shorter odds leading into the tournament at 5/2 for those looking to place a bet on football for the highly-anticipated competition that takes place in host nations Australia and New Zealand. England might well have to overcome the USA if they are to be crowned world champions but their experiences at Euro 2022 should stand them in good stead going forward.
The Lionesses put down a marker in the Euro 2022 group stages with an impressive 8-0 victory over Norway in Brighton. Norway have a strong side and were considered one of the outsiders for the tournament, however, the Scandinavians were blown away on the south coast. A 5-0 win over Northern Ireland followed in the group stages before the all-important knockout games. A quality Spain side were up first but England managed to come out on top with a 2-1 victory in extra time.
Sweden would have hoped to have provided more of a contest in the semi-finals but it was England who romped to a 4-0 victory in Sheffield to book their place in the final and a date at Wembley. A star-studded Germany side were the only team standing in their way but the hosts held their nerve on the big occasion to again win 2-1 after extra-time. Just over a year on, many of those English players are ready to go again and try to bring the World Cup home to England.
Lionesses can build momentum once again
With a group that a strong England squad should be topping, Wiegman’s side should be quietly confident of putting up some big scorelines in the pool stages before the knockout stages Down Under. England find themselves in Group D alongside the likes of China, Denmark and Haiti. The Lionesses, if they were to finish top of the table, would face the runners-up of Group B in their first knockout game.
Group B contains hosts Australia, Canada, Nigeria and the Republic of Ireland. There does look to be a winnable route to at least the quarter-finals and from there, anything can happen in a World Cup. European champions England know what it takes to win a major tournament and this squad looks to have the quality and experience to achieve something special Down Under this summer.
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