Sue Smith: Blend of youth and experience gives England a great chance of glory

Former England international Sue Smith has told freesupertips.com that the Lionesses have "a huge opportunity" to claim their first major title when they host the European Championship.

Smith, who won 93 caps for England between 1997 and 2012, says: "When you look at the squad, there's real competition for places and that mix of exciting young players as well as the experience of Jill Scott, Ellen White, Demi Stokes and Lucy Bronze.

"They have a manager in Sarina Wiegman who knows how to win home tournaments – she had that experience with the Netherlands winning Euro 2017 which she can pass on to the players.

"A home tournament can bring pressure. You know you've got the nation behind you, expectation on your shoulders. England need to go on and win it, I think the players know that and they're ready for it."

England kick off their campaign against Austria on Wednesday and Smith expects their second group game against Norway to be a tough contest.

"England's group is quite tricky but they should have more than enough to get through," she says. "Norway have a lot of Women's Super League players and they've got a Ballon d'Or winner in Ada Hegerberg coming back which is a huge boost for them.

"I think Spain are a lot of people's favourites to win the tournament and that's largely down to the success of Barcelona, how they play and how technically gifted they are.

"That Spanish squad is scary. Their midfield is filled with quality and they have so many players who can control a game.

"Spain probably haven't reached the level they want to reach yet but if I had to pick a team other than England, I would go with Sweden.

"They're a settled side who have been together a long time, they all know what is expected of each other, and they are very well organised and very disciplined.

"They got silver at the Olympics last year, losing on penalties in the final. They're going to be really difficult to beat, but they're also going to cause you problems going forward. They're a very fit and athletic side who have a real belief in themselves."

Smith believes England's new captain Leah Williamson and record international goalscorer Ellen White could both have big tournaments at the Euros.

"Leah Williamson is brilliant because nothing seems to faze her," she says. "I think she'll take the pressure in her stride and the other players will look at how she's handling it and that calmness will hopefully pass on throughout the team.

"She's had a great season at Arsenal. She brings a lot of quality to the team both defensively and the way she can start attacks off from deep.

"Ellen White is class to watch as a fan because she's a player who works so hard. She does everything she possibly can to make sure she's the best player she can be.

"She used to work so hard, but she wasn't in the right position at times. That's what she's worked on, her movement in and around the box is brilliant and we know she can finish.

"It helps when you have quality players out wide such as Beth Mead, Lauren Hemp, Nikita Parris and Chloe Kelly. There are so many great wide players who can get a ball into the box."

Apart from England's stars, Smith is looking forward to watching Arsenal's Dutch forward Vivianne Miedema who, like White, is one of the favourites to be top goalscorer at the Euros.

"It's difficult to see past Miedema when you're looking at who will be top scorer," she says. "Her stats in terms of assists and goals are very impressive. She's doing it for both club and country, her movement is excellent and there's a lot of quality players around her.

"She comes alive in the box. We all know she can drop deep and pick out passes in a number-ten role but when she's playing as a number nine she can score all types of goals."

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