sport news Euro 2022: England's Lionesses are primed for pressure cooker Euro opener ... trends now

England manager Sarina Wiegman and captain Leah Williamson insisted they are ready for the pressure ahead of their opening game at the European Championship.

The Lionesses take on Austria in front of a record, sold-out 74,000 crowd at Old Trafford on Wednesday evening, with the hope that they can lay down a marker for the rest of the tournament.

They are unbeaten since Wiegman took over in September, with 12 wins from 14 games and 84 goals scored, and warmed up for this tournament with a 3-0 win over Belgium, a 5-1 thrashing of the Netherlands and a 4-0 thumping over Switzerland.

Wiegman led the Dutch to victory on home turf in 2017 and, five years on, her task is to repeat that feat with England.

'It's really incredible, it's really exciting,' said Wiegman. 'You can feel that everyone is really ready, we just want to go.

'Everything is bigger, the expectation is higher and the level of the game is higher. It's hard to compare (to 2017) but the players are more experienced.

'I want to share experiences with the players but in this group we also have players that have experienced many great games at the highest level.

'The game has developed so quickly that many countries are favourites for this tournament, because the level is so high. It's really hard to predict. Lots of countries are in a good position, so are we. But in tournaments, strange things can happen.'

Williamson played just six minutes at the 2019 World Cup but, at the tender age of 25, she has the responsibility of leading her country out at a home tournament. It is a task she feels more than ready for.

'I'm very proud, I am sure tomorrow when I look back, it will be a moment I'll remember for ever,' she said.

'The team is

read more from dailymail.....