England continues its campaign of the UEFA female nations league on Friday evening when it welcomes Belgium to Ashton Gate.
The lionesses are currently at Portugal level at the top of group 3 after winning a significant 1-0 victory against world champions in Spain at the end of February. Having already fired with Portugal on the first day of the door, England avenged the defeat of the 2023 World Cup with the kind authorization of a single strike by Jess Park.
Meanwhile, Belgium sits at the bottom of the classification after successive defeats, with narrow losses against Spain and Portugal leaving them in a delicate position. They will be desperate to upset the chances of Bristol this week and can be comforting by beating England in their previous campaign in the League of Nations.
England vs Belgium Record head-to-face (last five games)
Current form
England | Belgium |
|---|---|
England 1-0 Spain – 02/26/25 | Belgium 0-1 Portugal – 02/26/25 |
Portugal 1-1 England – 02/21/25 | Spain 3-2 Belgium – 02/21/25 |
England 1-0 Swiss – 03/12/24 | Belgium 2-1 Ukraine – 03/12/24 |
England 0-0 United States-30/11/24 | Ukraine 0-2 Belgium – 12/29/24 |
England 2-1 South Africa – 10/29/24 | Belgium 5-0 Greece – 10/29/24 |
Country | TV channel / Livestream |
|---|---|
United Kingdom | ITV 1, ITVX, STV, STV reader, UTV |
Sarina Wiegman welcomed Beth Mead and Fran Kirby in the England team after the injuries prevented them from joining the national team in February. Manchester City goalkeeper Khiara Keating also returns.
Maisie Symonds obtained a first senior call impressed by Brighton & Hove Albion and those under 23 in England and is joined by a strip of familiar faces.
Symonds will rub shoulders with Park, Keira Walsh and Ella Toone in the midfield, while Lauren James, Alessia Russo and Chloe Kelly were all included in the last third. The trio of Chelsea Millie Bright, Lucy Bronze and Niamh Charles are not surprising and could all begin.
England provided for the VS Belgium program (4-3-3): Effective; Bronze, Williamson, Bright, Charles; Clinton, Walsh, Toone; Kelly, Russo, James.
Laura de Neve d’Aderlecht was initially called to Elisabet Gunnarsdottir, but the central defender has since been replaced by Jasmian Mathys due to an injury.
The Leicester City duo, Janice Cayman and Sari Kees, are both included, the first benefiting from a particularly impressive campaign in the East Midlands, while Amber Tysiak of West Ham United and Justine Vanhaevermaet of Everton are other representatives of the female Super League.
On Friday, Belgium will rely on the prowess of goals of Inter Veteran Tessa Wullaert. She scored her 88th international goal against Spain in February and a splint the last time she played in England.
Belgium planned programming against England (4-3-3): Evrard; Janssens, Tysiak, Kees, Cayman; Abdulai, Vanhaevermaet, Missipo; Janssen, Wullaert, Eurlings.
England will be strong favorites for Friday’s shock, but their recent outings against Belgium suggest that this could be a narrower affair than many are waiting for it. A close 1-0 victory and a 3-2 defeat in the previous campaign of the League of Nations show that Lionesses cannot afford a complacency in Ashton Gate.
However, the Wiegman team will fly high after their impressive victory over Spain the last time and should have too much firepower for Belgium on this occasion.
