England ready for BIGGEST ever game vs Germany as skipper Williamson hopes brilliant Euro 2022 is ‘start of something’

ON the eve of the biggest match of her life, it was put to Leah Williamson that the last England captain to win a major trophy is commemorated with a statue outside Wembley Stadium.

But even the late, great Bobby Moore only had a football tournament to win when he led England to World Cup glory against the Germans 56 year ago.

Williamson is adamant — and with some justification — that England’s women have also struck a significant blow for gender equality during their joyride to Sunday’s Euros final against Germany.

Arsenal defender Williamson is only 25, the same age as Moore was in 1966,  but she is an impressive leader and communicator.

And while her prime focus is on defeating Germany — the dominant force in European women’s football for decades — she is strident and passionate in her belief the Lionesses have had a major impact on wider society at this breakthrough tournament.

Williamson said: “I think what we’ve seen in the tournament already is that this hasn’t just been a change for women’s football but for society in general — a change in how we are looked upon.

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“I think that this Euros final is not just the end of the journey but the beginning of one, regardless of the result of the game, and there will be a nice moment for reflection about that.

“My job is to go out for 90 minutes to play and win.

“But I think that when we look back on this tournament as a whole, we have really started something.

“And I think this match is the start of that, I really want it to be the start of something for the future — not just looking back at what’s come before.

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When is the Women’s Euro 2022 final?

• The showpiece event between England and Germany will take place on Sunday, July 31.
• It is scheduled to kick off at 5pm UK time.
• A sold out Wembley Stadium in London is the allocated arena for this huge showing and can hold a staggering 90,000 supporters.
• This match will replace the Community Shield encounter between Liverpool and Man City which is now being played at the King Power Stadium.

How can I watch the Women’s Euro 2022 final?

“I’ve only ever been involved in this  workplace, in football, but I think that in most workplaces across the world, women have a few more battles to face to try  to overcome.

“I think that every success that we have changes perception and judgment, in opening the eyes of someone who now views women as having the potential to be thought of as an equal to her male counterparts.

“I think that makes changes in society and I think that is a powerful message — that we have the power to do anything, even in a male-dominated environment.

“These strides that we take forward can have an impact on society.”

Williamson is determined that the huge interest these Euros have sparked in the women’s game — including the record  9.3million TV audience for Tuesday’s 4-0 semi-final hammering of Sweden — does not prove to be a false dawn.

Ten years ago today, Williamson was a schoolgirl in the Wembley crowd when  Team GB defeated Brazil in the London Olympics — an occasion which was also seen as a watermark for the women’s game.

Yet the Brits were defeated by Canada in the quarter-finals and it took years for  the female game to spark such widespread interest again.

Williamson said: “I was in the crowd that day and it was an amazing opportunity for me, that my parents facilitated.

“They put women’s football in front of my face and convinced me, at least, that it was the norm at the time.

“And I think this final will be another moment like that. It was incredible that that happened but there was a fall-off after that — and we hope that doesn’t happen after this tournament.

“I think the main thing is that everyone who has got on board with us, stays with us.

“We just can’t have a lack of interest focused on us again after everything that we have achieved in these last few weeks.”

Average attendances in the Women’s Super League have struggled to rise above 1,500   — but there is an expectation that those numbers will be swelled after England’s heroics at the Euros.

But if Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman can today mastermind   victory  against a German side renowned for physicality and directness, it would only add to the profile of the English women’s game still further.

Germany have won eight of the 12 previous women’s Euros and, until Gareth Southgate’s side defeated the old enemy in last summer’s men’s Euros, they held a fear factor for the nation.

But that historic rivalry holds no interest for Williamson.

She said: “It’s a great narrative for you media guys — it’s a fairytale fixture with the history behind it.

“But you’d never expect to win a tournament without playing the best team and I think we are the two best teams in this tournament.

“None of us have been in this position before, to walk out on this stage, but we’ve grown game by game.

“The opportunity for growth that this tournament has given makes me confident in believing I can deal with whatever emotions and feelings the occasion brings.”

That other great English centre-back and captain from 1966, renowned for his supreme cool, could not have sounded any more  unflappable.

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk