Erik's two reasons for supporting the Lionesses
Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has said he will be supporting England in the FIFA Women’s World Cup final on Sunday.
The Lionesses are set to take on Spain in the all-European showdown at 11:00 BST on Sunday, as the month-long tournament, staged in Australia and New Zealand, comes to a close.
The chance of glory for England comes with the prospect of making history in several different ways, including becoming only the second nation - after Germany in 2003 and 2007 - to win the FIFA Women's World Cup as reigning European champions.
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Three Reds are in the Lionesses squad: goalkeeper Mary Earps, United skipper Katie Zelem, and midfielder Ella Toone, who scored in last summer’s Euro 2022 final victory at Wembley, over Germany.
Toone was also on the scoresheet for England in the 3-1 semi-final win over co-hosts Australia earlier this week to set up the showpiece against Spain, with former Red Ona Batlle in contention to line up for the opposition.
Like United under Ten Hag, the Lionesses are led by another Dutch tactician in Sarina Wiegman – the mastermind behind the Lionesses’ Euros win last summer, who also took her native Netherlands to the final of the previous Women’s World Cup in 2019.
Earps, Zelem and Toone have all played their part in another sensational tournament run under Wiegman’s stewardship, and Ten Hag enthused about our Reds’ involvement in his briefing with the media, ahead of our men’s team’s trip to Tottenham Hotspur this weekend.
“Oh, it's great,” said the United boss, when asked what his message was for our Lionesses heading into this weekend’s final, during the first part of his pre-Tottenham press conference.
“First, a Dutch manager [Sarina Wiegman] doing a great job for England. She’s doing a great job for England, so I'm very proud of her, coming from the Dutch school.
“But of course, I am a supporter and a fan of the England women's team and I really cross my fingers and hope that they return with the World Cup.”
United Women will kick off our 2023/24 WSL campaign on 1 October, when we travel to Aston Villa. Get your season ticket for the new term here!