England 5-0 Belgium: Lionesses run riot in commanding display in the Nations League

The Lionesses struck 5 past Belgium successful a dominant, thrilling show astatine Ashton Gate to stamp their spot astatine the apical of their Nations League table.

England enactment connected 1 of their astir decisive displays successful the post-2023 World Cup epoch with their 1-0 triumph against the reigning satellite champions Spain successful February.

The hope, then, was that they would beryllium capable to footwear connected from this. With little than 3 months to spell until the Euros, it was becoming not conscionable desired, but necessary.

Ranked 20th successful the world, Belgium has proven nary pushover for the Lionesses successful the past, but contiguous England played them retired of the park, registering 20 shots successful full to their four, and dominating 67 percent of the possession.

There was a carnival ambiance starring up to kick-off. As is often the lawsuit erstwhile the prima comes retired successful the UK, radical were making the implicit astir of it.

Fans successful England shirts were flooding Bristol’s Temple Meads presumption from the aboriginal afternoon, passing done the picturesque metropolis streets and relaxing by the canals, enjoying the warmest time of the twelvemonth truthful far.

The precocious spirits followed them into the ground, which had sold retired for the game. If determination was ever a lawsuit to beryllium made for the Lionesses to permission Wembley down and circuit the country, past this was the cleanable example.

And the Lionesses made definite to springiness their enthusiastic assemblage a amusement successful the archetypal half, with Lucy Bronze putting Sarina Wiegman’s broadside successful beforehand successful the 20th minute.

Lauren James and Alessia Russo had some travel adjacent moments prior, but it was the scrappier of the 3 that yet recovered the backmost of the net.

James enactment successful a delightful, bending transverse into the punishment area, and Bronze was the archetypal to conscionable it, her header taking a nasty deflection disconnected a Belgium player’s head, which took PSV’s goalkeeper Nicky Evrard by surprise, marking the right-back’s 17th extremity successful 130 appearances for the nationalist team.

If ever determination was a enactment dilemma successful Sarina Wiegman’s caput arsenic to who to commencement betwixt Chloe Kelly and Beth Mead, past her caput was made up for her, with it being announced earlier kick-off that Kelly – who has been looking progressively similar her aged aforesaid since joining Arsenal connected deadline time – would beryllium ruled retired for some fixtures.

A disappointing crook of events for a subordinate whose England vocation had been looking backmost connected way aft a hard commencement to the season.

But Mead much than made the astir of the opportunity, looking characteristically lively connected the close helping and coming adjacent conscionable earlier half-time. Her shot, saved by Evrard, went retired for a corner, and Millie Bright was waiting astatine the backmost station for a cleanable poacher’s goal, extending the Lionesses’ pb earlier the break.

Belgium had their champion spell not agelong aft the resumption, coming adjacent with a beardown cross-goal effort that was lone lacking idiosyncratic to conscionable it.

Lauren James, who is inactive warring her mode backmost to afloat fitness, was taken disconnected for her Chelsea teammate Aggie Beever-Jones astatine half-time. The 21-year-old striker – who was playing to the near of Alessia Russo – took the crippled adjacent further distant from the visitors successful the 67th infinitesimal aft Mead enactment it connected a sheet for her.

Jess Park, who had lone been connected the transportation for 7 minutes, made it four, with a assured decorativeness aft stealing the shot heavy successful the Belgium half, earlier Keira Walsh added her sanction to the extremity expanse successful the 88th infinitesimal for bully measure.

After 82 caps, this was Walsh's archetypal elder extremity for the Lionesses.

England question to Leuven for the reverse fixture connected Tuesday evening and it volition beryllium rapidly backmost to the drafting committee for the Belgians.