England stand on the precipice of greatness as the Lionesses prepare to take on Spain in their first ever Women's World Cup final on Sunday.
England to win @ 9/5
Over 2.5 goals @ 6/4
Lauren Hemp to score anytime @ 7/2
Odds displayed were correct at the time of writing and subject to fluctuation.
History will be made on Sunday as one of Spain or England will win the Women's World Cup for the very first time.
The match at Stadium Australia in Sydney will be the first ever Women's World Cup final to feature neither Germany nor the USA and, in that respect, it represents a changing of the guard.
Spain have quashed concerns about a rift between the team and manager Jorge Vilda, coming through their group before enjoying wins over Switzerland, the Netherlands and Sweden in the knockout stages.
But awaiting them in the final is an England team who only last year won Euro 2022 on their own patch, and the Lionesses look hungry for more.
What | Spain Women v England Women |
Where | Stadium Australia, Sydney |
When | 11:00am, Sunday 20th August 2023 |
How to watch | BBC One / ITV1 |
Odds | Spain Women 7/4, Draw 2/1, England Women 9/5 |
In terms of performances, England have been anything but convincing throughout this Women's World Cup but the bottom line is they have got the job done.
Their campaign began with 1-0 wins over Haiti and Denmark before they exploded into life in a 6-1 drubbing of China.
But there were once again question marks around Sarina Wiegman's side following their 0-0 draw with Nigeria in the last 16.
They edged past the African nation 4-2 on penalties in the end and there was a touch of fortune about the team's 2-1 win against Colombia in the quarter-finals.
In the semi-finals, though, England took things to the next level with a 3-1 win against Australia and they have grown into the tournament.
The Lionesses have still lost just the one match under Wiegman since she took charge in September 2021 and they will have key creative outlet Lauren James back for this final.
They have experience of getting over the line in a major final and are worth a bet at 9/5 to get the job done in 90 minutes.
This year's Women's World Cup has generally been a low-scoring tournament but the final between Spain and England could buck that trend.
These sides have scored a combined 30 goals between them in the tournament and it is hard to envisage this being gritty and low-scoring.
Spain will once again look to monopolise possession and in Jennifer Hermoso and Aitana Bonmati, they have the players to hurt England, who have themselves improved in the final third recently.
James is back for England and can contribute to a high-scoring match with over 2.5 goals a decent pick at 6/4.
England are starting to click up top and three of their last four matches at this Women's World Cup have featured at least three goals.
Having James available again for this Women's World Cup final is a huge plus for England boss Wiegman but she may not slot the forward straight into the starting lineup against La Roja.
Instead, England fans can expect to see Ella Toone deployed in the number ten role with Alessia Russo and Lauren Hemp leading the attack.
And Hemp could be worth keeping an eye on in particular.
Hemp has been lively at this year's Women's World Cup, bagging three goals and one assist in her six matches and she can boast a shot accuracy of 83 per cent - that is higher than James, Bonmati and Hermoso.
She is a worthwhile selection at 7/2 to score at any time in the final.
England to win @ 9/5
Over 2.5 goals @ 6/4
Lauren Hemp to score anytime @ 7/2
Odds displayed were correct at the time of writing and subject to fluctuation.
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