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Lionesses in bid to reach their first ever World Cup final

16/08/2023

David Beckham, Jill Scott and Rishi Sunak lead good luck messages to the Lionesses as millions ditch work to watch the crunch semi-final vs Matlidas on ‘WfH Wednesday’… but the Aussie press say it’s ‘eleven poms against a nation’ after spygate drama

England’s semi-final match against Australia will kick off at 11am British time

David Beckham, Jill Scott and Rishi Sunak have lead the good luck messages to the Lionesses as millions are set to ditch work and watch the crunch semi-final.

The Lionesses are set to face Australia in a bid to reach their first ever Women’s World Cup final.

England’s match in Sydney will kick off at 11am British time, which will be 8pm in Australia.

Brits across the country will be eagerly watching the match against the Matildas on what has been dubbed ‘WfH Wednesday’.

However, the Australian press has said it’s just ‘eleven poms against a nation’ after spygate drama saw an Aussie paper fly a helicopter over England’s training session.

David Beckham was among those sending good luck messages to the Lionesses today

Jill Scott also sent a message of good luck to the England team in Sydney today

England supporters outside Sydney Opera House before the World Cup semi-final match today

Brits across the country will be eagerly watching the match against the Matildas on what has been dubbed ‘WfH Wednesday’. Pictured: The Lionesses in training

England boss Sarina Wiegman believes simply nullifying the threat posed by Australia striker Sam Kerr will not be enough to see the Lionesses through to a first-ever World Cup final.

The European champions will play at Sydney’s sold-out Stadium Australia, where the majority of the 75,000 in attendance will be backing the co-hosts.

Australia captain Sam Kerr is her country’s leading goal-scorer of either gender, but has not yet started a match in the global showpiece after injuring her calf pre-tournament, making her much-anticipated return as a substitute in Australia’s 2-0 last-16 victory over Denmark.

England’s Lionesses were seen this morning out for a stroll ahead of their historic game

They were spotted walking through Sydney’s Hyde Park with their manager

England boss Sarina Wiegman believes simply nullifying the threat posed by Australia striker Sam Kerr will not be enough to see the Lionesses through to a first-ever World Cup final

The European champions will play at Sydney’s sold-out Stadium Australia, where the majority of the 75,000 in attendance will be backing the co-hosts

The winner of Wednesday night’s contest will take on Spain for the trophy, after they beat Sweden 2-1 on Tuesday to book their trip to the final

Though the Chelsea forward is, at least in Australia, the poster-woman for this tournament, Wiegman insisted: ‘Australia is not just Sam Kerr. Yes, we have a plan [if she starts]. She can play and she can start on the bench, so that’s the situation. Of course she is a threat, she’s a very good player, so a lot of respect [to her].

‘But there is more than Sam Kerr, because at the end it is always a team performance. When the team does really well an individual can do even better. That’s the same for Australia and it’s the same for England.

‘There is a lot of pressure on her because everyone expects things from her. I think Australia have grown in the tournament too, they had some difficult situations they had to come back from and they did really well. We expect a very strong Australia tomorrow.’

The winner of Wednesday night’s contest will take on Spain for the trophy, after they beat Sweden 2-1 on Tuesday to book their trip to the final.

England boss Sarina Wiegman is preparing for the possibility of Kerr starting or beginning the semi-final on the bench (Zac Goodwin/PA)

Kerr’s calf was arguably the most talked-about calf in Australian history when it was announced she would miss the first two matches of the Matildas’ World Cup campaign, and speculation has swirled about her fitness ever since.

The 29-year-old declared she would be available for Australia’s final group stage contest against Canada but remained on the bench, before appearing to a raucous reception for the first time in the 80th minute against Denmark.

She featured more in her side’s quarter-final against France, coming on for Emily van Egmond in the 55th minute and scoring one of the penalties that would see Australia win a 7-6 shootout and advance to the final four for the first time.

England captain Millie Bright, Kerr’s club team-mate at Women’s Super League champions Chelsea, echoed her manager’s assessment, adding: ‘I think everyone knows [Sam] pretty well. On the worldwide stage, I think she’s made a name for herself.

England captain Bright and Australia captain Kerr are team-mates at Chelsea (Yui Mok/PA)

‘It’s pretty hard not to know Sam and her abilities, but like Sarina said there’s other players in the team. I think we’re prepared to play against Australia as a team.’

Those other players have stepped up considerably in their skipper’s absence. Mary Fowler and Hayley Raso – who has netted three times this tournament – are emerging alongside Kerr as new household names Down Under.

It remains to be seen if Kerr will make her first World Cup start against England, or if Australia head coach Tony Gustavsson will once again use her as a talismanic threat off the bench – either way, Wiegman insists England have a plan.

Gustavsson perhaps hinted at the latter in his press conference on the eve of their historic encounter, where one side will become a World Cup finalist for the first time,

The Swedish boss said: ‘We’ll look at all of this trying to start as strong as possible, but finish even stronger. Meaning, what kind of starting line-up do we want to have, what finishing 11 do we want to have?

‘What kind of tools and game-changing do we think we need in a game like this? Type of players, whether it’s speed or aerial presence. There will be some tough decisions to be made because a lot of players deserve to start, but a lot of players also deserve to finish the game and win it for us.’

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