England Women v Haiti Women predictions and odds: Lionesses set for winning start in Brisbane

Where to watch

England Women v Haiti Women
ITV1, 10.30am Saturday

Denmark Women v China Women
BBC Two, 1pm Saturday

Best bets

England to win & under 4.5 goals v Haiti
2pts 20-21 BoyleSports

Under 2.5 goals in China v Denmark
1pt 20-23 Betfair

Women's World Cup Saturday predictions

Defending European champions England get their Women's World Cup campaign underway against debutants Haiti on Saturday and anything but a comfortable win in Brisbane would be a surprise.

The Lionesses have evolved into serious title contenders under Sarina Wiegman, who had led the team to a 30-match unbeaten run before a friendly defeat to Australia back in April.

Not everything has been rosy in the England camp of late, though, with disputes between the team and the FA over performance-related bonuses, while the Lionesses head into this tournament without crucial players Beth Mead, Leah Williamson and Fran Kirby.

Mille Bright is expected to return from a knock to start against Haiti but this is not the same England team who tore up the Euros last year and in their last two internationals they lost to the Aussies and drew 0-0 with Portugal.

That was not ideal preparation and it remains to see how far the team can go in their World Cup bid but Haiti, who are 53rd in the world, should not represent a major stumbling block.

In Melchie Dumornay, who just signed for Lyon, they have an exciting teenage forward, while their inter-confederation playoff wins over Senegal and Chile should not go unnoticed.

But it is likely to be a backs-to-the-wall performance from the debutants, who look set for defeat but can keep the scoreline respectable against an England team who seem unsure of their best attacking combination in the absence of Mead.

Group D's other fixture looks more competitive and Denmark's clash with China in Perth could be cagey.

Only one place separates the teams in the world rankings and this is largely considered a shootout for second spot in the section with England expected to come out on top and Haiti likely to end up bottom.

China can draw confidence from the fact they are Asian Cup champions and have made it out of the group stage in all of their previous Women's World Cup campaigns, including in France four years ago.

But they scored just the one goal in the 2019 Women's World Cup and also failed to score in friendlies with European opponents Ireland, Switzerland and Spain this year, so under 2.5 goals could be a wise selection.

Early on Sunday morning, 2019 semi-finalists Sweden are up against Women's Africa Cup of Nations winners South Africa while Portugal's first World Cup fixture is against the Netherlands, who were runners-up four years ago.

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