England to face Portugal in final pre-Women’s World Cup duel on home soil before clash with Canada in Australia
ENGLAND will take on fellow World Cup rivals Portugal in their final game on home soil before the tournament.
The July 1 duel takes place 13 days before a sterner behind-closed-doors-test in Australia against Olympic gold winners Canada.
Last year’s Euros winners will then face Haiti in a World Cup Group D opener on July 22
England’s duel with Portugal, to be aired live on ITV1, will kick-off at 3:15pm at the Stadium MK.
There were question marks around the Lionesses' clash with Portugal as the timing for the start of their warm-up camp had not been finalised.
This follows the European Clubs Association (ECA) stating players should only be available ten days before the World Cup.
But in May the ECA proposed an alternative release timeframe of June 23-29.
And some WSL clubs were initially not planning to make players available until June 23 at the earliest.
However the FA have confirmed players will be released by their clubs for the start of the international camp on June 19.
Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman said: "I am really pleased to have a competitive game for our last home fixture.
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"We had two big games in April against Brazil and Australia where we learned so much.
"This will be another challenging match against a team that have performed well and are going to their first World Cup."
The last clash between England and Portugal, who were knocked out at the group stage of last year’s Euros, ended in a 1-0 Lionesses win in October.
Back then Beth Mead netted the only goal of the game for the side who were then managed by Phil Neville.
England’s opponents have won two of their last four international fixtures this year which include a 1-1 home draw with Wales.
Other results include a 5-0 drubbing of World Cup co-hosts New Zealand in February with Sporting Lisbon striker Ana Capeta netting a brace.
Wiegman added: "Portugal will also want to show they can be a threat to teams in Australia, and they have very technical players with good ability.
"For us, it will be important to come together again as a team after the end of the club season and feel the support of our fans."
The Lionesses' final match before they begin their quest for World Cup glory will see them face Canada.
The Tokyo Olympic Gold medallists are seen as one of the tournament’s favourites having won six of their last 10 games.
Victories under Bev Priestman, who this week named a 25-strong provisional squad, include two September defeats of Australia.
The Durham-born manager, who was working as theLionesses assistant from 2018 to 2020, has named seven WSL players in her side.
Chelsea’s Kadeisha Buchanan and Jessie Fleming have been called up along with Reading forward Deanne Rose and Arsenal goalkeeper Sabrina D’Angelo.
Tottenham captain Shelina Zadorsky has also been named along with Man United’s Jayde Riviere and Adriana Leon.
The Canada chief said: "Picking this roster brought some incredibly difficult decisions and conversations, which I think speaks volumes to how competitive and exciting the group is."
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Priestman is set to name her final 23-strong squad on July 9 five days before her team’s pre-World Cup duel with England.
She added: "In the final twenty-three player roster, I know we will have a fantastic blend of experienced players along with World Cup debutants who are big part of the future of this programme."