16 August 2023 , 06:57
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England face Australia in Sydney in a titanic World Cup semi-final - and only one win away from making history.
In their last two semi-finals - in 2015 and 2019 - the Lionesses have come close only to fall at the final hurdle. But after winning the European Championship last summer, Sarina Wiegman has given this team the confidence to know they can get the job done as the tournament reaches a thrilling climax.
Standing in their way are co-hosts Australia, after their dramatic penalty shootout quarter-final victory over France on Saturday. And Tony Gustavsson's Matildas also could be handed a major boost for the last four showdown.
Sam Kerr is set for a return to the starting line-up with Gustavsson confirming at Tuesday's press conference he had no major injury concerns and a full 23-player squad to choose from.
It is a luxury not afforded to Lionesses' boss Wiegman. Lauren James remains suspended after her red card against Nigeria in the last 16.
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James will return should England reach the final and would be available for the third place play-off in Brisbane should they lose. That means, as she did against Colombia, Ella Toone is in pole position for a starting berth.
But the issue for Toone is her form. She looked physically drained early on against the Colombians and struggled to influence the game with her trademark deep-lying runs into the box.
Alessia Russo will keep her place after scoring the winner in the last round (Mark Metcalfe - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)There is also the question of how England best cope with Australia's midfield pair Katrina Gorry and Kyra Cooney-Cross. The duo are capable of covering a huge amount of turf and physically will fancy their chances of imposing themselves on Keira Walsh and Georgia Stanway.
The engine room battle could be where the tie is won and lost. So Wiegman may be tempted to withdraw Toone in favour of a more traditional central midfielder, such as Katie Zelem or Laura Coombs.
But Toone played deeper in England's opening game against Haiti, and even if she does tweak things slightly Wiegman is likely to retain faith in her. In Toone's favour she has a track record of making an impact on the biggest stage. The Man United winner opened the scoring in the Euro 2022 final and netted in the Finalissima win back in April.
It is unlikely England will switch from the back three we have seen in the past three games. The trio of Alex Greenwood, Millie Bright and Jess Carter all excelled against Colombia and will give England a solid platform from which to build a result.
Upfront Alessia Russo and Lauren Hemp both had mixed group stages. But after scoring against Colombia, the duo appear to be coming good at the right time.
For that reason Wiegman will resist the urge to bring in Chloe Kelly or Beth England, however expect to see both in the second half if England are chasing the game. For now though, I expect the Dutch boss will name an unchanged team for one of the biggest games in the Lionesses' history.
Jack Lacey-Hatton's England team to face Australia (3-4-1-2): Mary Earps, Jess Carter, Millie Bright, Alex Greenwood, Lucy Bronze, Rachel Daly, Keira Walsh, Georgia Stanway, Ella Toone, Lauren Hemp, Alessia Russo.
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