LONDON (AFP) - England women's manager Phil Neville has urged the Premier League's biggest clubs to "blow the rest of Europe away" by opening their grounds to host women's matches in the manner Atletico Madrid and Juventus have in recent weeks.
Over 60,000 spectators saw England international Toni Duggan score in Barcelona's 2-0 win over Atletico in March to set a new world record for a women's club match.
That beat a European record of 48,000 set in February when Athletic Bilbao hosted Atletico at San Mames, one of the venues for the mens Euro 2020 tournament.
Just short of 40,000 fans also set an Italian record for Juventus' 1-0 win over Fiorentina in March, attendances bolstered by free or cheap tickets.
Neville believes there is even more support for the women's game in England on a consistent basis and called on the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea to follow suit to build momentum ahead of the women's World Cup in France this summer.
"Looking at the attendances in our league yesterday (Sunday), I actually think that is better than the attendances for a one-off game in Spain, Portugal or Italy," said Neville ahead of World Cup warm-up friendlies against Canada and Spain.
"What I would say is some of the teams in England, the big teams in England, have got to open their big stadiums and fill it.
"Let's blow the rest of Europe away because I think our game in this country is in a far better place than in Spain, Italy or Portugal."
Neville's former club Manchester United look set to be promoted to the English Women's Super League (WSL) in their first season since the formation of their female team, Arsenal lead Manchester City in a tight WSL title race, while Chelsea face European champions Lyon in the semi-final of the Champions League later this month.
"Now we've got to say Man Utd if they win the league, or Arsenal throw open your stadium. A Champions League game at Chelsea, why not play it at Stamford Bridge?
"Get 30 or 40,000 in. Our players, the WSL is at the level now where clubs have got to open their stadiums.
"Let's fill it and blow away the rest of Europe. That's my feelings having watched (Athletic) Bilbao, Juventus. They've done it but let us do it two or three times between now and the rest of the season."
Chelsea's Champions League quarter-final victory over Paris Saint-Germain was overshadowed by crowd trouble as police seized weapons and drugs from travelling French fans before the first leg in London.
However, Neville insisted that game showed that women's football can now generate the passionate atmosphere associated with men's games at the highest level.
"I don't want any of that rubbish, but it is a sign people are not just turning up for a women's game to sample the chips and bring the kids, they are coming because they want their team to win badly."
Football: Scottish title-chasing Rangers sign Jermain Defoe on loan from Bournemouth Rangers, managed by former England midfielder Steven Gerrard, signed former England striker Jermain Defoe in a
Jermain Defoe: Rangers set to sign Bournemouth striker, 36
Manchester United will be without Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard for Monday's FA Cup clash at Chelsea with both sidelined for up to three weeks after picking up injuries during Tuesday's
Man Utd's Martial, Lingard to Miss Chelsea, Liverpool Matches
Football: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer gives stars 'licence to express', says Dwight Yorke Solskjaer has restored United's culture and identity, says former treble teammate Schmeichel
Peter Schmeichel Is Interested In Being Manchester United's
Injuries open way for Sanchez and Lukaku to shine for United . 26th February 2019 Football, Sport. By AFP "They've been part of our training for a long time now," said Solskjaer.
Injuries open way for Sanchez and Lukaku to shine for United
en.rfi.fr/wire/20190226-injuries-open-way-sanchez-and-lukaku-shine-united
Injuries open way for Sanchez and Lukaku to shine for United. is confident Sanchez and Lukaku have the quality to impress if given a sustained run in the team. Sorry but the period of time
Injuries open way for Sanchez and Lukaku to shine for United
Willian eager to stay at Chelsea despite exit rumours AFP January 12, 2019, 8:26 PM UTC Willian has been repeatedly linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge
Willian eager to stay at Chelsea despite exit rumours - World
Klopp cool on Mo's dry spell, Football News & Top Stories
Jan Poulsen occupies the position of Chief Executive Officer for thinkstep AG and Sales Director at Lyngsoe Systems A. In the past Mr. Poulsen was President of Luca, Inc. He received an undergraduate degree from the University of Aarhus.
Wow air issue 1 13 by WOW_air - Issuu
Hello Web Admin, I noticed that your On-Page SEO is is missing a few factors, for one you do not use all three H tags in your post, also I notice that you are not using bold or italics properly in your SEO optimization.
Corpus of articles from the English newspaper 'The Financial
Home » News » Sports » Modric criticises Ballon d'Or gala snub by Messi, Ronaldo. Modric criticises Ballon d'Or gala snub by Messi, Ronaldo. as well as to football and the fans. However
Modric criticises Ballon d'Or gala snub by Messi, Ronaldo
Premier League EPL: Newcastle plunge 10-man Huddersfield closer to the drop. With a third straight home win under Rafa Benitez, Newcastle have moved up to 14th spot in the league standings.
Newcastle plunge 10-man Huddersfield closer to the drop
Football news - Wolves deepen Cardiff's relegation plight with 2-0 win. By Reuters. 02/03/2019 at 17:34 Updated 02/03/2019 at 19:01.
Wolves deepen Cardiff's relegation plight with 2-0 win - The
Harry Kane 'proud' of England response to race jibes Racist chanting was directed at several black England players, during Monday's Euro 2020 qualifier in Montenegro. Share Via Email
Kane 'proud' of England response to race jibes - sports.yahoo.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment