Lucy Bronze believes England can finally win a Women’s World Cup semi-final as they prepare for their third attempt, against Australia on Wednesday.
- England into Women’s World Cup semi-finals
- Have lost both of their previous matches in last four
- Bronze confident they can win this one
WHAT HAPPENED? The Lionesses are into the last four of the tournament for a third time in succession after beating Colombia in Sydney on Saturday – but they have never been beyond this stage. Bronze, who has been part of all three teams to get this far, believes she and her team can get over the line this time, though, and reach a maiden Women’s World Cup final.
WHAT THEY SAID: “We got past that hurdle last year in the Euros. We finally made it to the final and got past that dreaded [result of] always getting beaten in the semi-finals, so we’ve got that in the locker,” Bronze told reporters on Saturday. “Many players in the squad were part of that so we know how difficult it is to get this far and also how to get to the final and how to win games.
“If we hadn’t have got to the semi-final, I would have said that we would have underperformed. A lot of people said that England were the team that were going to flop a little bit. Our performances haven’t been our best granted, but the results have been there and we’ve got the semi-final which is what this England team is known for doing.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: England will take on co-hosts Australia in that semi-final, with the atmosphere sure to be overwhelmingly in favour of their opponents. The Matildas are into the last four of the Women’s World Cup for the first time in their history after beating France in an incredible penalty shootout in Brisbane.
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WHAT NEXT? England’s focus will now be on preparing for that semi-final, which will be played at Stadium Australia in Sydney on Wednesday.
