Mark Sampson’s side signed off their competitive preparations for the tournament on Saturday with a 2-1 victory against Denmark in Copenhagen and will now finish off their build-up with a warm weather training camp in Spain, the manager hailing the display as one ‘full of hard-work, resilience and grit – key qualities for us this summer.’
The manager, of course, has known who will be in his squad for some time having named the 23-strong party travelling to the Netherlands as early as the beginning of April and he took the opportunity to run the rule over the majority of those players in the friendlies against Switzerland and then Denmark.
Alex Greenwood was the only player not to feature in either match as she recovers from an injury problem.
With the FA Women’s Super League having ended on 3 June to allow the maximum preparation time for the championships, this is an England squad that travels to a major tournament with absolutely nothing left to chance.
But the strong nature of the Women’s game in Europe means the Lionesses can still be backed at double-figure odds to lift the trophy in Enschede on 6 August with reigning champions Germany and France battling to be the bookmakers’ favourites.
Opening opponents Scotland will be without star player Kim Little, the Arsenal forward having suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury. They finish off their preparations for the tournament with a friendly against the Republic of Ireland on 7 July.