ngland will play China today looking to confirm their status as Group D winners ahead of the Women’s World Cup knockout stage.
The Asian champions will pose a threat to Sarina Wiegman’s side with their own spot in the last-16 still not confirmed.
The final game in Group D is something of a clash of the titans, with both sides being their continent’s respective champions.
Here are the key details of the Lionesses next World Cup match.
When is England’s next match?
The Lionesses will play China at 12 today, Tuesday August 1 — at the same time as their Group D rivals Denmark and Haiti.
England’s match will be shown on ITV. The game will be played at Hindmarsh Football Stadium in Adelaide, Australia.
Places in the knock-out stages are still up for grabs with the second round beginning on Saturday, August 5.
FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 | Best Images
Who will England play?
China, the Steel Roses, are captained by Wu Haiyan and led by manager Shui Qingxia.
The team qualified with ease for the tournament, having previously become surprise winners of the Asian Cup.
The side is ranked 14th in the world by Fifa but came unstuck in their opening match against Denmark, losing 1-0 after conceding a 90th-minute goal.
“Europe is at the forefront of women’s football’s development. There is a significant gap between us and European teams,” Shui said before the tournament.
China’s Wang Shuang in action against Denmark’s Karen Holmgaard
/ Luisa Gonzalez / Reuters
Despite this pessimism, China do have weapons, most notably Wang Shuang, who is seen as the team’s creative force. Attacking midfielder Zhang Linyan is also another player on the rise who England will need to watch out for.
China started the tournament with the goal of reaching the quarter-final stage.
How will England fare against China?
England won their last encounter against China but that game was back in 2015.
The Lionesses have played China five times in official games, winning one, losing three, and drawing once.
England manager Sarina Wiegman said: “China are always hard to figure out because they’ve had very good games over the years, and then sometimes they drop their level a little bit.
“They have a new coach since the Olympics so, when I played them in the Olympics with the Netherlands, I think they were really in transition then where they had lots of young players.
China captain Wu Haiyan in a training session
/ Luisa Gonzalez / Reuters
“They didn’t play many matches internationally after the Olympics but they won the Asian Cup in February 2022, a year-and-a-half ago.
“They played Spain and Sweden in Sprint and lost those games, but they have a mix of experienced players and some younger players.
“It’s always hard to predict before the tournament how good they are. What we always know is that they try to have a long training camp before they go into a tournament. But they don’t give away lots of information.”
Who is in England’s World Cup squad?
The goalkeepers are Mary Earps (Manchester United), Hannah Hampton (Aston Villa), and Ellie Roebuck (Manchester City).
Defenders are Millie Bright (Chelsea), Lucy Bronze (Barcelona), Jess Carter (Chelsea), Niamh Charles (Chelsea), Alex Greenwood (Manchester City), Esme Morgan (Manchester City), and Lotte Wubben-Moy (Arsenal).
Midfielders are Laura Coombs (Manchester City), Jordan Nobbs (Aston Villa), Georgia Stanway (Bayern Munich), Ella Toone (Manchester United), Keira Walsh (Barcelona), and Katie Zelem (Manchester United).
Forwards are Rachel Daly (Aston Villa), Bethany England (Tottenham Hotspur), Lauren Hemp (Manchester City), Lauren James (Chelsea), Chloe Kelly (Manchester City), Katie Robinson (Brighton & Hove Albion), Alessia Russo (Manchester United).
