England and Arsenal forward Beth Mead has said she and her girlfriend, Dutch footballer Vivianne Miedema, are both “very competitive”, as they prepare to face each other at the Women’s Euros in Switzerland.
The tournament kicks off on Wednesday (2 July), with the Lionesses’ first game on Friday (5 July) when they face France in Zurich. Also with England in Group D are Wales and the Netherlands. Mead told the BBC that having to face Miedema was “inevitable”.
The couple have been in a relationship since 2022. “We’re both very, very competitive and professional,” Mead went on to say. “We’re both excited for the tournament and to be able to play in it again.”
Mead and fellow striker Miedema keep in contact, but “when it gets closer to our games, we don’t talk football whatsoever. Obviously, we want each other to do well but not against each other”.
Reigning champions England face the Netherlands on 9 July, and Wales four days later. But they will be without goalkeeper Mary Earps and midfielder Fran Kirby, who announced their retirement from the international game, and defender Millie Bright who made herself unavailable for selection at the beginning of June, citing burnout.
“Obviously the team’s changed quite a bit,” Mead said. “We’ve had retirements, we’ve had different players come in, young players coming to their first tournament, but I think we’ve got a very good blend at the moment.
“We’re going there to win. We know we’ve got a target on our back [and] we’ve got to consistently perform at our highest level which we know we’ve very much capable of doing.”
If England win their group, they will play the runner-up of Group C in the quarter-finals: Germany, Poland, Denmark or Sweden.
The semi-finals will take place in Zurich and Geneva on 22 and 23 July, and the final is set for 27 July in Basel.
Live coverage of the Euros is being shared by BBC and ITV in the UK.
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