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Phil Neville demands more from England Women despite win

England kick off their World Cup against Scotland on June 9

Phil Neville wasn't overly pleased with England's performance despite the win over Denmark
Image: Phil Neville wasn't overly pleased with England's performance despite the win over Denmark

Phil Neville is demanding more from his England Women side despite their 2-0 win over Denmark Women in a World Cup warm-up friendly on Saturday.

Goals from Nikita Parris and Jill Scott gave England victory, but they were under par for much of the game in Walsall, with the World Cup just weeks away.

They have one more friendly game against New Zealand on June 1 before their tournament kicks off against Scotland on June 9, but manager Neville wasn't overly satisfied with the performance, but partly blamed the pitch at the Banks's Stadium.

He told Sky Sports News: "We didn't play with any rhythm. The pitch didn't help, it was heavy, I wanted us to play with more speed and control the game better.

Nikita Parris celebrates giving England the lead on the stroke of half time
Image: Nikita Parris celebrates giving England the lead on the stroke of half time

"I think if we'd been really, really good we'd have won four or five nil. I want us to play better. I told them at half-time that it's nowhere near the level we should be playing at.

"Winning for us is everything, it breeds confidence and belief. We beat a really good team today, in the Euro finals two years ago, a strong, physical team with a good system, and we beat them probably playing at 70 per cent, so I'm really pleased."

Scott, 32, will be heading into her fourth tournament with England, but Neville insists she should be playing until she's 40, such is her quality.

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"Jill is phenomenal. She thrives off being captain, she's got to play football until she's 40, forget about retiring after this World Cup.

Jill Scott heads home England's second against Denmark
Image: Jill Scott heads home England's second against Denmark

"She's fitter than everybody else, stronger than everybody else, she doesn't need sports science, any kind of weights or recover, she's just that player who goes out and plays with determination and heart."

Goalscorer Parris, who moved to Lyon from Manchester City in the week, revealed that Neville had strong words with the team at half-time, shortly after they took the lead in Walsall.

"We went in at half-time, we did get a b********g, and it really shot a rocket up our backsides, which we needed! And we came out 2-0 winners so although it wasn't our best performance, we got the win."

What's next?

England's final warm-up game is against New Zealand on June 1 at the Amex in Brighton, before the World Cup begins on June 7. England's first group game is against Scotland on June 9.

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