AFTER thrashing three of the bottom ranked sides in world soccer, the Lionesses face far sterner opponents within the Arnold Clark Cup.
None come a lot greater than Canada, Germany and Spain, with the latter two sides among the many favourites to win the Ladies’s Euros this summer season.
The event has been billed as a pre-Euros warm-up for Sarina Wiegman’s aces to see how they fare towards three of the world’s high 10 sides.
And the Lionesses boss will use it to map her plan for European Championship glory for England on dwelling soil.
The final time the nationwide facet reached a serious event closing was the Euros in Finland 13 years in the past.
That 12 months Hope Powell’s aces had been trounced 6-2 by then six-time event champs Germany.
And from Powell’s beginning 11 in that recreation solely Jill Scott, 35, stays in a squad now skippered by Leah Wiliamson.
The Lionesses’ first match within the Arnold Clark Cup, happening in England from February 17 -23, will see them tackle Canada on Thursday evening.
That 7:30pm conflict on the Riverside Stadium comes after Germany’s duel with Spain on the floor at 2:30pm.
England then play Spain at Carrow Highway and adopted by Germany at Molineux.
Forward of their clashes here’s a have a look at a number of the event’s abilities and the latest type of England and their rivals.
England’s type underneath Sarina Wiegman
The Lionesses have loved a six-game successful streak because the Netherlands-born head coach, 52, took over as supervisor final September.
They’ve netted 53 instances maintaining clear sheets in all their matches
Outcomes embrace an 8-0 drubbing of North Macedonia and 10-0 hammerings of Luxembourg and Latvia – three groups ranked outdoors the highest 100 on the planet.
Germany, Spain and an Olympic Gold medal winners Canada shall be far completely different prospects
Just like the Lionesses the trio are at present listed amongst Fifa’s high ten groups with Germany and Canada ranked the third and sixth finest sides in world soccer.
Whereas England have blitzed a number of the world’s least skilled sides, their latest outcomes towards high ten groups have been a barely completely different story.
Earlier than Wiegman’s arrival the Lionesses endured losses to Spain, France, and Canada over the house of 13 months.
The final high ten crew they confronted was Bev Priestman’s Canadian aces in April at Stoke’s Britannia Stadium.
And whereas England loved the majority of possession, they fell to a 2-0 loss with their second objective coming off the again of an error from stopper Karen Bardsley.
Participant to look at: Lauren Hemp
The Manchester Metropolis winger, 21, has impressed for membership and nation over the previous two seasons netting 11 targets in 26 WSL begins.
Her blistering tempo and highly effective drives down the wing have made her a formidable opponent for rivals in England’s high tier.
And the Norfolk-born participant has flourished since her restoration from a hamstring harm that stored her out of motion from mid-September till November 2020.
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The ahead, who has 12 worldwide caps, has netted 4 targets since making her Lionesses debut in a pleasant defeat of Portugal in October 2019.
Final time period Hemp received a second successive PFA Younger Participant of the Yr award after serving to Metropolis take the WSL title race to the wire.
Canada
Canada loved Olympic glory final August triumphing within the ladies’s soccer event on the Tokyo video games.
Since October 2020 the crew has been coached by Bev Priestman, 35, who took up her function after a two-year spell as England assistant underneath Phil Neville.
Following back-to-back bronze medals in 2012 and 2016, the crew clinched gold on the Tokyo Olympics after successful a penalty shootout win towards Sweden.
They usually defeated four-time World Cup winners USA within the contest’s semis.
Canada have misplaced simply 4 of their final 17 worldwide fixtures going again to February 2021 registering seven wins.
Victories embrace a 2-0 pleasant defeat of the Lionesses again in April final 12 months.
WSL stars of their squad embrace Manchester Metropolis’s Janine Beckie, 27, Chelsea ace Jessie Fleming, 23, Studying’s Deanne Rose, 22, and Shelina Zadorsky, 29, of Tottenham.
Nonetheless West Ham’s Adriana Leon, 29, is amongst their absentees with the ahead at present recovering from an harm.
Canada’s most prolific striker is Christine Sinclair, 38, whose objective tally on the worldwide stage exceeds Cristiano Ronaldo’s.
The veteran ahead, who has netted in FIVE World Cups, is the all-time main scorer within the ladies’s worldwide recreation with a whopping 188 targets in ten years.
Following the demise of Sinclair’s mom Sandi, who handed away after her battle with a number of sclerosis, Canada will compete for the Arnold Clark Cup with out their skipper.
Participant to look at: Nichelle Prince
Described as a ‘nightmare for opponents’ by Priestman, Prince, 26, was heading in the right direction in Canada’s 2-0 defeat of England on the Britannia Stadium final April.
In 2020 the Houston Sprint ahead helped the US membership to a Nationwide Ladies’s Soccer League Problem Cup win.
Final 12 months Prince, who has netted 12 targets in 72 senior appearances for Canada, signed a multi-year deal to stay with Houston till 2024.
Of the ahead’s efforts for Canada, Priestman mentioned: “Nichelle is a little bit of a nightmare to take care of for anyone who comes up towards her.
“She will play wherever throughout the entrance three, which is huge while you’re in event soccer.
“She’s a important participant for us and was important in getting us on the rostrum in Tokyo.”
Spain
Jorge Vilda’s squad consists of 10 gamers from Barcelona, included abilities that shredded Chelsea’s defence in final season’s Champions League closing.
The crew, at present ranked because the ninth finest facet on the planet, are thought-about darkish horses for the Euros crown.
Their squad for the Arnold Clark Cup additionally consists of Manchester United full-back Ona Batlle.
The 22-year-old has notched up one objective and one help in 13 high tier begins for the Crimson Devils this time period.
And the crew’s most capped participant – with a complete of 93 – is 2021 Ladies’s Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas.
England have received two of the final 5 clashes between the edges together with a Euros 2017 group stage match with Fran Kirby heading in the right direction within the 2-0 victory.
Nonetheless, the latest duel between the rivals led to a 1-0 victory for Spain within the SheBelieves Cup in March 2020.
Participant to look at: Alexia Putellas
At the moment thought to be probably the greatest gamers on the planet, Putellas, 28, has advanced right into a formidable attacking midfielder in Spain’s top-flight.
The participant, who started her senior profession at Espanyol in 2010, pulled the strings throughout Barcelona’s 4-0 demolition of Chelsea final Could.
And the Catalan giants went on to assert their first Champions League crown.
Final September Putellas scored one of many quickest hat-tricks in Barca’s historical past.
The midfield dynamo netted three targets in simply FOUR minutes in an 8-0 hammering of Valencia.
Germany
Like their male counterparts Germany have been amongst England’s hardest opponents and are probably the most profitable crew in Euros historical past.
Three of the final 5 worldwide friendlies between the edges have resulted in wins for Germany with the latest being a 2-1 victory at Wembley in November 2019.
Nonetheless, England had been victorious within the final aggressive duel between the rivals which was a 2015 World Cup group stage conflict.
Again then a Lionesses beginning 11, that includes Jill Scott, Lucy Bronze and Alex Greenwood, sealed a 1-0 victory.
Germany, who’ve received the Euros EIGHT instances, reached the quarter-finals of the 2017 contest earlier than being knocked out by Denmark.
The crew, whose WSL aces embrace Chelsea’s Ann-Katrin Berger, 31, and Aston Villa’s Ramona Petzelberger, 29, have received their final six World Cup qualifiers conceding thrice and scoring 32 targets.
Nonetheless, Berger’s Blues team-mate Melanie Leupolz, 27, is amongst a number of high-profile gamers absent from Martina Voss-Tecklenburg’s squad.
The midfielder is at present contending with lengthy Covid in accordance with Chelsea chief Emma Hayes.
Participant to look at: Jule Model
Model, 19, was among the many gamers who gave Arsenal a torrid time throughout their hefty 4-1 Champions League group stage loss to Hoffenheim in December.
The Germany starlet, who netted the opening objective in that recreation, sealed a switch to Wolfsburg signing a three-year take care of the Ladies’s Bundesliga giants earlier this 12 months.
Considered one among her nation’s most promising younger footballers, Model made her senior debut for Germany in a pleasant defeat of Australia final April.
The versatile midfielder has netted 4 targets in 10 appearances for her nation since then.
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Arnold Clark Cup Fixtures
February 17 – Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough
2:30 pm – Germany vs Spain – ITV4
7:30 pm – England vs Canada – ITV4
February 20 – Carrow Highway, Norwich
3:15 pm – England vs Spain – ITV
8:15 pm – Canada vs Germany – ITV4
February 23 – Molineux, Wolverhampton
2:30 pm – Spain vs Canada – ITV4
7:30 pm – England vs Germany – ITV4