Women’s World Cup: England boss Phil Neville says they want to build legacy

England manager Phil Neville said “we can’t hide away from the fact something is happening” with the Lionesses after they reached a second consecutive Women’s World Cup semi-final.

England, who have never won a major women’s tournament, beat Norway 3-0 in Le Havre to move to within 90 minutes of a first Women’s World Cup final.

They will face France or the USA – who play on Friday – in Lyon on Tuesday.

“We want to inspire and to build a legacy,” said Neville.

The popularity of women’s football has dramatically increased in recent years and Neville, who took charge in January 2018, hopes his side can make the most of it.

He said: “We had a camp last year and we set out the objectives for the next 12 months, and all I wanted them to say was ‘win the World Cup’.

“But they were thinking bigger than winning a World Cup, which knocked me in my stride a little bit.

“We want the Lionesses to have a name that people around the world can relate to… badass women. That was our mantra.

“We’re now at the point where we are inspiring, where people are jumping on board… it just feels really good.”

And Neville, who said he asked his players at the end of the game “are you ready to win a World Cup?”, added that no matter how hard he tries, he cannot stop thinking about glory in Lyon on Sunday, 7 July.

“We want to come home with that World Cup,” he said. “I keep thinking to myself, ‘stop saying it’, but we can’t hide away from the fact something’s happening. We cannot wait for Tuesday.”