Lionesses ready to put on the show of their lives for sell-out crowd
Lionesses to be backed by record crowd today Germany provide stiff test after difficult run
On Wembley Way at 3pm yesterday, Jordan Nobbs, Beth Mead, Ellen White and Steph Houghton left one of the artisan coffee trucks, a final glimpse of freedom before going into lockdown ahead of the biggest game – in terms of crowd size, at least – of their lives.
England Women have sold out Wembley – only the second time they have played at the national stadium – for today’s friendly against two-time world champions Germany. In the summer, at the World Cup, their head coach, Phil Neville, gave them the freedom of France to explore: how could there be a media circus, after all, over a group of female footballers?
This is different. They cannot walk down Wembley Way this morning, when the first of the expected 85,000 fans arrive. Neville has warned them. A few feet ahead of Houghton and co were Jill Scott, Demi Stokes and Carly Telford, and who could begrudge them a meander beneath the Wembley arch when their portraits beam back, life-sized, at the tube station?
The banners, also showing Scott, Neville and Houghton, may soon become something of a mainstay at Wembley given that the manager let slip, in his press conference, that he and the Football Association were hoping for “three or four of these big occasions” in the build-up to Tokyo 2020 and Euro 2021.
“I think the biggest thing from a circus-like point of view is that these 85,000 people come back, just like they did in the World Cup,” said Neville.
“I want to do this yearly. I know that’s what the FA are working towards. To do that, we have to put on a spectacle. When players, people, fans are inspired, they’re inspired by what happens on the field.”
England’s most-capped player, Fara Williams, will be involved, leading one of the pre-match team talks. Joining her on the sidelines is Toni Duggan, who had to withdraw from the squad with a lower back injury. Otherwise, England have a clean bill of health.
But England need more than a bumper crowd and an empty treatment room given the scrutiny they have been under during the fivegame post-world Cup winless run, only recently ended with a 1-0 victory over Portugal.
“As the manager of this team, we need to produce a performance to reach the heights we did in the summer,” said Neville.
“The biggest thing I’ve learnt is that in the first camp after a major tournament, there probably shouldn’t be any games for us. We should probably look at players’ wellbeing better. They’re still really inexperienced at how to be an elite athlete. Fine when you go to your club and train for an hour and a half, but the extra 22 hours in a day is what’s going to make you that best player in the world.
“When you come back from a major tournament, you are fatigued emotionally and physically.”
Neville attributed the slump to the lack of competitive games – as hosts, England have already qualified for Euro 2021.
Germany, who have scored 31 times in their past four games, provide the sternest test in the postworld Cup schedule. “They’ve got probably three or four different systems they could play at any given time,” warned Neville.
“They are in a state of transition but they still maintain their spot: second in the world. You will see a team that will be disciplined, a team that won’t be scared of the occasion and we will have to play probably as good as we’ve ever played under me to get that win.”