Arsenal teammates Leah Williamson and Rafaelle Souza will face off in a highly anticipated match at Wembley Stadium on Thursday night. The two defenders have formed a formidable partnership in the Women’s Super League, but this time they will be on opposing sides as England and Brazil battle it out for the Finalissima title.
Williamson is looking forward to the challenge of playing against Brazil’s individual skill and creativity. She said, “When they have flair to add to the structure it’s hard and it’s something players admire about each other.” Souza also commented on the Lionesses’ strength, saying, “I know it will be physical and we know how good they are with crosses. It is my job to defend those crosses.”
The two have become close friends since Souza joined Arsenal last year, and she even joked that Williamson needs to learn how to do the samba. She added, “Leah is a great player and I’m really glad I play with her [at Arsenal] but not glad I’m playing against her on Thursday because she’s so good. I feel like she’s half-Brazilian because she has the skills. She just needs to learn how to do the samba and she will be fine.”
Brazil are without key players Debinha and Marta for the Finalissima, but manager Pia Sundhage is confident that her “inexperienced team” will be able to handle the pressure. She said, “It will be fantastic to see how they deal with this crowd. We have talked about the ball flying into the box so Rafaelle [Souza] needs to step up.”
England will be without injured Chelsea centre-back Millie Bright, but manager Sarina Wiegman is confident that her team can still perform well. She said, “On one hand it is an opportunity to see where our team is at when she’s not playing. They have a young team that’s less experienced but it is a very good football team. They are powerful and have a lot of athleticism. They play in a recognisable structure. We’re excited to see where we are at against Brazil.”
The highly anticipated match between England and Brazil promises to be an exciting one, as two of the Women’s Super League’s most effective centre-back pairings go head-to-head. Both teams will be eager to prove their worth ahead of the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, and all eyes will be on Wembley as Leah Williamson and Rafaelle Souza battle it out for the Finalissima title.