England Women 0-2 Sweden Women: Lionesses suffer defeat as Steph Houghton hits milestone
It was a disappointing day for Phil Neville's side as the Lionesses' captain received her 100th international cap
Sunday 11 November 2018 16:17, UK
England Women slumped to their first home defeat of Phil Neville's reign with a disappointing 2-0 loss to Sweden at Rotherham United's New York Stadium.
On a day of celebration as captain Steph Houghton received her 100th cap, the Lionesses found themselves behind as early as the 19th minute when Sofia Jakobsson punished slack England defending.
The visitors also hit the post before doubling their advantage in the 33rd minute as the Lionesses once again failed to clear their lines, allowing Anna Anvegard to rifle home from close range.
Although a friendly encounter, it leaves boss Neville with plenty to think about ahead of next summer's Women's World Cup to be held in France.
Before the encounter there would have been plenty of optimism surrounding the Lionesses' chances of going one better than the semi-final showing in Canada back in 2015.
But worryingly the Lionesses found themselves second best for the majority of this encounter; Jakobsson taking full advantage of too much time on the edge of the box to bend a strike into the corner of Carly Telford's net.
England continued to offer very little in the final third in the opening 45 minutes while Sweden looked ominous in attack - Caroline Seger heading against the woodwork from a deep, right-wing corner just past the half-hour mark.
Yet a minute later the visitors were 2-0 up, as England once again failed to clear their lines with Anna Anvegard hooking the ball in from close range.
There were shoots of recovery from the home side in the second period as Izzy Christiansen should have done better with a header and Nikita Parris had a penalty claim waved away.
But in truth, the damage had already been done in what was a rather disappointing way to sign off what has otherwise been an excellent 2018 for Phil Neville's team.
What's Next
This was England's last game before the draw for the 2019 Women's World Cup, which takes place on December 8 in Paris.
The tournament will be held in France between June 7 and July 7 2019, with boss Phil Neville hoping to go further than the Lionesses managed last time out, when they finished third in Canada in 2015.
