Alessia Russo has said she believes England "deserve" to win the World Cup and that Thomas Tuchel's squad is "stacked" enough to go the distance at the tournament.
England have a guaranteed spot in the round of 32 following a 4-2 win over Croatia and hard-fought draw with Ghana, but look to top Group L on Saturday night with a win against group minnows, and already eliminated side, Panama.
When asked if she thinks it is 'coming home' this year, Russo told ESPN: "I hope so. I think that... England have such a stacked team. They're amazing. I think they deserve a trophy. They've been closed for a few years now and yeah, I'd love them to do it."
Russo, a World Cup finalist in 2023, knows all to well the pressure that comes with representing England on the world stage.
"Hopefully they just enjoy the tournament pressure free," Russo told ESPN. "I think English people love to put pressure on England teams, but I just hope they enjoy it."
The Lionesses are facing their own battles to qualify for the Women's World Cup in 2027 after they fell to a damning 4-0 loss to world champions Spain which forced them out of the automatic qualification spot.
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They will face Greece in the opening round of qualifiers in the October-November and November-December international windows.
"I know that all of our girls are desperate to play in another World Cup in Brazil, a massive football nation as well. So we need to win those two games and then we can really look forward to it," Russo said.
