England must beat Spain in tonight’s final round of SheBelieves Cup fixtures if they are to stand a chance of retaining the title they won last year.
The Lionesses are currently three points behind leaders and hosts USA, who need just a point against Japan to win the competition.
Phil Neville’s side will go into the game knowing they have to win by four or more goals, but even then they have to rely on USA losing.
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Speaking to the BBC, manager Neville insists confidence in his camp has grown since they beat Japan 1-0 on Sunday, but is wary of the threat Spain pose.
“Ultimately, it was only Japan,” he said.
“The Spain test will be like playing against one of the top five teams in the world, which will give us a better gauge than the Japan game.”
Spain also beat Japan, 3-1, and held out against USA until the 87th minute, when Julie Ertz snatched a late victory.
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“We know we had to win (against Japan). We know Spain are going to be a tough test – they played great against the USA.” said England midfielder Jill Scott.
“The times that we have beat Spain, they have still dominated possession but we tend to hit them on the counter.
Our #SheBelievesCup continues.
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) March 11, 2020
This time, it’s 🇪🇸 – and we’re hungry for another win. pic.twitter.com/g7SibfllqV
“We will be aiming to go into this game to build that momentum and hopefully still give us a shout of the trophy at the end of it.”
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England kick off in Dallas at 9.15pm BST, while USA get underway at midnight.
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