England face Belgium in their final Arnold Clark Cup clash this evening (Wednesday) to cap off the round-robin tournament before embarking on the summer's Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Belgium are a familiar foe for Sarina Wiegman’s side after the Lionesses easily dispatched the Red Flames 3-0 in June prior to their Euro 2022 glory. Both Chloe Kelly and Rachel Daly found the back of the net, while Leah Williamson's late effort qualified as a Belgian own-goal through goalkeeper Nicky Evrard.
Ranked 20th in the world by Fifa, Belgium tout plenty of firepower and tight cohesion, which saw the country whose Women’s Super League was comprised at the time of mostly semi-pro teams and players not only scrape through the group stages at Euro 2022 but take Sweden – the highest-ranked team heading into the tournament – to the wire in the knockout round.
While Belgium failed to earn a berth at this summer's World Cup, there are players within the squad England should respect, not least goalkeeper Evrard, whose inspired performance against England last June saw her deal with 25 shots on goal and stymie a ferocious barrage to just three goals.
The display was a glimpse into the heroics Evrard would produce at the tournament, which buoyed Belgium to their quarter-final run.
The 27-year-old now plies her trade with Belgian behemoth OH Leuven, who sit top of the Belgian Super League having conceded just seven goals across 18 league matches.
If Evrard grabbed headlines at last year’s Euros, so did her Leuven teammate Hannah Eurlings. The winger turned 20 in January but is likely to hit a quarter-century of caps during the Arnold Clark Cup. At last summer’s Euros, Eurlings came into the tournament having been described as the next Eden Hazard due to her technical nous, energy and tenacity on and off the ball.
Eurlings has been earmarked as the next big star for Belgium, and the Arnold Clark Cup is potentially poised as the best springboard for the youngster to begin her journey, particularly with the absence of the summer's World Cup on the horizon.
Eurlings' youth will be well complemented by veterans Tessa Wullaert and Janice Cayman, the latter of whom is the most-capped women’s player for Belgium. The attacking midfielder for Olympique Lyonnais has long proved a nuisance for defences and with her experience, she’s a player the Lionesses will need to keep a sharp eye on.
Belgium also boast a few WSL players in their ranks, with Amber Tysiak at West Ham, Justine Vanhaevermaet at Reading and Yana Daniels at Liverpool.
Having already beaten South Korea and Italy in the tournament, the Lionesses take on Belgium at Bristol City's Ashton Gate, knowing a superior goal-difference to their opponents from their previous two matches means a draw will be enough to see them successfully defend their crown.
NEW! Our Year: European Champions 2022 - The Official England Winners Book With a foreword by England manager Sarina Wiegman, this is the only official book of the historic triumph, reliving every kick of a thrilling tournament and telling the stories of the players who made it all happen.
Order now from reachsportshop.com/https://reachsportshop.com/book/our-year-european-champion-2022/
