sport news England's Women's Euro 2022 Group A guide: Squads, fixtures, star players, ... trends now
England head into the ever-approaching Women's Euro 2022 among the favourites to win the tournament but even as early as the group stages there will be hurdles to overcome.
In hosting the tournament for the second time in their history, England weren't required to qualify and were automatically placed into Group A, where they were joined by Austria, Norway and Northern Ireland.
The Lionesses will count themselves fortunate to have avoided the likes of tournament favourites Spain and 2019 World Cup bronze medallists Sweden, while Northern Ireland - the lowest ranked team in the tournament - shouldn't offer too much trouble.
Hosts England will be looking to go all the way at this summer's European Championships
Yet, against Norway and Austria, England will face two of the best players around, with Nicole Billa and Caroline Graham Hansen both looking to guide their sides to the knockouts.
With just 16 teams in the tournament, the level opposition will quickly increase for the two sides from each group who do make it out of their respective quartet. But with Austria and Norway evenly matched, the battle to do so in Group A will be fierce.
Sportsmail takes you through England's Group A opponents below, including how they qualified for the tournament, their history in the competition and who to look out for.
EnglandThere is heavy expectation for England to do well at the impending tournament, not only because they are hosts but also due to the improvements made under manager Sarina Wiegman.
The 52-year-old took charge last year following her success coaching the Netherlands, who she guided to Euro 2017 victory in what was an historic feat for the nation.
Wiegman was named Best FIFA Women's Coach following the triumph, after which she also led the Netherlands to the final of the 2019 Women's World Cup, where they fell short against the United States.
An in-form England are still unbeaten since Sarina Wiegman, 52, took charge last year
Wiegman led the Netherlands to an historic triumph at the 2017 European Championships
England, who are still unbeaten following Wiegman's arrival, won the inaugural Arnold Clark Cup in February and come into the competition in top form, having won all eight of their 2022 World Cup qualifiers to date, scoring 68 goals without reply.
The Lionesses have a number of star players who will look to make an impression, but perhaps it's their all-time top scorer Ellen White - sat on 50 goals - who they will turn to for inspiration.
She is once again back in the picture having missed their penultimate warm-up game against the Netherlands after testing positive for Covid.
England are, of course, the favourites to prevail as Group A winners, but their opener against Austria - which kicks off the tournament - on July 6 will set the tone for the weeks ahead.
Fixtures:
England vs Austria, Old Trafford, July 6, 8pm England vs Norway, The Amex, July 11, 8pm Northern Ireland vs England, St Mary's, July 15, 8pmSquad in full:
Goalkeepers: Mary Earps (Manchester United), Hannah Hampton (Aston Villa), Ellie Roebuck (Manchester City)
Defenders: Millie Bright (Chelsea), Lucy Bronze (Manchester City), Jess Carter (Chelsea), Rachel Daly (Houston), Alex Greenwood (Manchester City), Demi Stokes (Manchester City), Lotte Wubben-Moy (Arsenal)
Midfielders: Fran Kirby (Chelsea), Jill Scott (Manchester City), Georgia Stanway (Bayern Munich), Ella Toone (Manchester United), Keira Walsh (Manchester City), Leah Williamson (Arsenal)
Forwards: Bethany England (Chelsea), Lauren Hemp (Manchester City), Chloe Kelly (Manchester City), Beth Mead (Arsenal), Nikita Parris (Arsenal), Alessia Russo (Manchester United), Ellen White (Manchester City)
Tournament history:
Euro 1984: Runners-up Euro 1987: Fourth place Euro 1989: Did not qualify Euro 1991: Did not qualify Euro 1993: Did not qualify Euro 1995: Semi-finals Euro 1997: Did not qualify Euro 2001: Group stages Euro 2005: Group stages Euro 2009: Runners-up Euro 2013: Group stages Euro 2017: Semi-finals AustriaAustria's success was one of the biggest surprises of the 2017 Euros, where they reached the semi-final having qualified for the tournament for the first time in their history.
They finished as runners-up behind France in their Euro 2022 qualification group, but were granted one of three best runner-up spots and therefore a place in the tournament having racked up 19 points from eight games.
They conceded in only one of those eight games, being in a 3-0 defeat to France, who are among the favourites to win the tournament, with much of their success attributed to star player Nicole Billa.
The 26-year-old scored seven goals in eight games throughout qualifying, and the Hoffenheim forward has been even more clinical in World Cup qualification, where she has scored 10 in seven. She has scored a total of 43 goals in 79 appearances for Austria.
Nicole Billa is comfortably Austria's key player, as she showed throughout qualifying
In charge of getting the best of Billa and her team-mates is manager Irene Fuhrmann
Billa will also come into the tournament with added motivation, after failing to score in any of her five appearances at Euro 2017. Put simply, England can't afford to give her too many opportunities.
In charge of getting the best out of Billa is Irene Fuhrmann, who was the assistant coach when Austria went on their incredible run to the semi-finals.
Fuhrmann became Austria's first female manager when she took over from the long-serving Dominik Thalhamme in 2020, and they've continued to develop into a seriously tricky side since.
They are in the same World Cup qualifying group as England, sat in second behind the Lionesses. The pair have played just the once so far, in England, with the hosts edging it 1-0.
England will certainly be the favourites against Austria, but it's not at all an easy game.
Fixtures:
England vs Austria, Old Trafford, July 6, 8pm Austria vs Northern Ireland, St Mary's, July 11, 5pm Austria vs Norway, The Amex, July 15, 8pmSquad in full:
Goalkeepers: Isabella Kresche (St Polten), Jasmin Pal (FC Koln), Manuela Zinsberger (Arsenal).
Defenders: Celina Degen (FC Koln), Marina Georgieva (Sand), Verena Hanshaw (Eintracht Frankfurt), Katharina Naschenweng (Hoffenheim), Katharina Schiechtl (Werder Bremen), Viktoria Schnaderbeck (unattached), Carina Wenninger (Roma), Laura Wienroither (Arsenal).
Midfielders: Barbara Dunst (Eintracht Frankfurt), Jasmin Eder (St. Polten), Laura Feiersinger (Eintracht Frankfurt), Julia Hickelsberger (Hoffenheim), Marie-Therese Hobinger (Zurich), Maria Plattner (Turbine Potsdam), Sarah Puntigam (FC Koln), Sarah Zadrazil (Bayern Munich).
Forwards: Nicole Billa (Hoffenheim), Stefanie Enzinger (St Polten), Lisa Kolb (Freiburg), Lisa Makas (Austria Wien).
Tournament history:
Euro 1984: Did not qualify Euro 1987: Did not qualify Euro 1989: Did not qualify Euro 1991: Did not qualify Euro 1993: Did not qualify Euro 1995: Did not qualify Euro 1997: Did not qualify Euro 2001: Did not qualify Euro 2005: Did not qualify Euro 2009: Did not qualify Euro 2013: Did not qualify Euro 2017:
