JORGE VILDA reckons Spain could be facing the greatest Lionesses side when the European giants face-off in the Arnold Clark Cup.
The duel at Carrow Road will be first the time England go head-to-head with their rivals since Sarina Wiegman’s reign began in September.
And both teams are targeting victory on Sunday afternoon following score draws with Germany and Canada.
Vilda, 40, said: “This is perhaps the best England team ever. They’ve got plenty of youth in the side.
“They’ve got players all over the pitch who can make a difference, particularly on the left wing, an excellent striker and great players in Leah Williamson and Lucy Bronze.
“It’s a team that will put us under pressure early with the high press.
“And when we get the ball in their half, they’re a team that offer quite adept at defending deeply to fluff out the opposition’s threats.
“Overall, I expect to the game to be played at a very high pace, great intensity, just like the kind that you would say in the Women’s Super League.”
Spain, who are the eighth best side in the world, have racked up two wins from their last four games against their hosts since Vilda’s appointment as manager in 2015.
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And the team have won six of the six World Cup qualifiers they played last year including an 8-0 thrashing of Scotland in November.
Vilda’s squad contains 10 Barcelona aces, including players from the starting 11 that swept Chelsea aside in last term’s Champions League final
And the Spain boss sees their duel in front of Lionesses fans as the perfect preparation for the tough test they will face with England hosting the Euros this summer.
Like their rivals Spain are yet to triumph in a major tournament with the semi-finals of the 1997 European Championship being the furthest they ever reached.
Vilda added: “We love to play in this kind of atmosphere against great opponents.
“Also with the Euros being in England, it’s great preparation for that tournament because we know exactly what it will be like playing in those stadiums in those conditions.
“In terms of what we might be afraid of in this England team – we’re not particularly scared of anything.
“We know what their strengths are – we know they’ve got a lot of them – but we also know their weaknesses.”
Spain’s starting eleven is likely to feature Alexia Puttellas, 28, who won the Ballon d’Or in 2021 after a number of standout performances last season.
I believe we have improved a lot since the 2020 SheBelieves Cup. We are a better team now.
Alexia Puttellas
The Barcelona midfielder scored the winner when her national side beat the Lionesses 1-0 in a SheBelieves Cup match in March 2020.
Puttellas acknowledged Spain’s results against their hosts have not always been favourable with England winning the last time the teams clashed in a major tournament.
Back in 2017 the Lionesses beat their opponents 2-0 in a Euros group stage encounter with Fran Kirby and Jodie Taylor on target.
But the LaLiga Women’s star, who has 94 international caps, is hopeful of a different result this time round.
Puttellas said: “It will be a high-quality contest and we’ll need to be at the top of our game to win.
“England are going to come with a game plan and be quite resolute and difficult to break down and tough to beat.
“We haven’t always beaten them when we’ve played them. We haven’t had that luck all the time.
“I believe we have improved a lot since the 2020 SheBelieves Cup. We are a better team now.”
Arnold Clark Cup Fixtures
February 20 – Carrow Road, Norwich
3:15 pm – England vs Spain – ITV
8:15 pm – Canada vs Germany – ITV4
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
