England midfielder Georgia Stanway is ready to do “two jobs” in the absence of Keira Walsh for Tuesday’s crunch clash with China.
Walsh is out of the Lionesses’ final World Cup group game in Adelaide after injuring her knee during Friday’s win over Denmark. England need just a point against China to guarantee top spot in Group D and qualify for the last 16.
Stanway is expected to fill in for Walsh on Tuesday and she is ready to combine that with her usual box-to-box role.
“I’ve just created a little bit of a leadership role with the way that I’m playing,” she said. “I feel a lot of confidence in my own game and I’ve been consistent off the back of the Euros so I’m just trying to keep that momentum.
“I feel I’ve proven my leadership in the way that I play and lead by example. I’m not afraid to communicate as well, so I’ll try and do the two jobs.
“I think for me it’s just covering that discipline element in the game, knowing I don’t always have to be running to help with the attack. It’s just knowing I need to protect the back four, too.”
Stanway enjoys a close relationship with Walsh, as the pair played together at Manchester City, and she has been picking her brains.
Walsh has stayed with the England squad in Australia after avoiding an ACL injury, with head coach Sarina Wiegman on Monday refusing to say if she could play again at this World Cup.
“I speak to Keira 24/7,” said Stanway. “To be honest it’s about 10 minutes of football-related stuff and the rest is just rubbish.
“I’m sure she will be giving me some tips and I’m sure the message will be to perform in the game. She’s got trust in whoever is going to be on the pitch. That position comes naturally to me because I’ve played it a little bit at club level.
“I’ve played alongside Keira, who is the best teacher without knowing it. Going into tomorrow, it’s about communicating in the middle of the pitch.
“The connections we’ve had between me, Keira and Tooney (Ella Toone) has been easy and really synchronised. Tomorrow we’ll pose a different challenge.”
Stanway’s job against China is complicated by the fact that she is only one yellow card away from an automatic one-match suspension.
“I have to make sure I’m covering the back four and I’m disciplined,” she said. "I just need to stay on my feet and make sure there’s players in front of me.”
