England boss Sarina Wiegman revealed she has yet to pin down her starting XI but has a fully-fit squad to choose from ahead of the Lionesses’ Euro 2022 opener against Austria.
The hosts open the tournament at Old Trafford on Wednesday against the same opposition they defeated 1-0 in November, with Ellen White scoring the winner.
Wiegman had several availability concerns coming into the tournament with White testing positive for Covid-19 and star defender Lucy Bronze missing the final warm-up win over Switzerland through illness, but now must make tough calls on who to leave out.
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She said: “Everyone can train, everyone is on the pitch. That’s the most important thing, to have the best players available.
“That’s really good and I’m really happy with it but we have hard choices to make.
“It’s not finalised yet, we always do that after the last training session. It’s hard - we’ve shown we have a very good squad with good depth. We are just really ready to go.
“We started our preparation in September and we have just worked from week to week."
Well over 70,000 fans are expected for the competition’s curtain-raiser with Wiegman’s captain Leah Williamson admitting there will be nerves while welcoming expectation.
Williamson said: “The team's in a great place. This last training session now will be putting it all together but I think we're all ready for it.
“We're not robots. There will be nerves. We're aware of the expectation. Within the camp it's about the excitement and enjoying it.
“This is my job. If I wasn't ready for tomorrow and wasn't excited for tomorrow then why would I do it?
“We've put in the work over the last few weeks and ticked the boxes we needed to. We know what it is and what to expect. We're ready for it.
"Everybody has their own things in place to deal with it. Pressure is a privilege and we are embracing it. It comes with the job but it doesn't mean we can't enjoy it at the same time."
Arsenal’s Williamson has taken the armband from the injured Steph Houghton and will be hoping her side - who are unbeaten in 14 - can capitalise on the vocal home support, which will include her nearest and dearest as she leads the Lionesses out in their quest for a first major tournament win.
The 25-year-old added: “I'm sure tomorrow when I look back it will be a moment I will remember forever.
"I think the only thing that could top being on the pitch would be sitting with [friends and family]. I think they will be really excited. It's a very proud moment and I will try to enjoy it as much as I can.
"The good luck messages are obviously pouring in now. It's nice. It's an event for them. I'm sure they will have good fun.”
Tickets are on sale now for fans to experience a history-making tournament that aims to unite football and communities and amplify the growth of the women’s game. www.uefa.com/womenseuro/ticketing
