Women's World Cup 2023: England's Alessia Russo on advice from 'idol' David Beckham

Alessia Russo has scored erstwhile successful 4 games astatine the Women's World Cup

England striker Alessia Russo has taken proposal from her "idol" David Beckham to clasp her archetypal Women's World Cup experience.

It is the Arsenal striker's 2nd large tournament, but she lone made substitute appearances astatine Euro 2022.

"It was a wholly World Cup-focused conversation," said Russo.

Russo said erstwhile men's England skipper Beckham had spoken to her astir what helium did connected the transportation "but [also] however helium felt successful moments of a World Cup".

"He said they were the biggest highlights of his vocation - moments that evidently helium volition ne'er forget. He said that his champion and biggest memories were successful an England shirt," she added.

"It is thing that you tin truly subordinate to. Stepping into my archetypal World Cup is thing I've dreamt of ever since I tin remember."

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Russo swapped shirts and exchanged numbers with Beckham anterior to flying retired to Australia and was told she is his 12-year-old daughter, Harper's favourite player.

"He has been 1 of my idols ever since I was a small girl," added Russo.

"It is 1 of my biggest highlights disconnected the transportation to beryllium and person a mean speech with idiosyncratic who you would ticker connected the satellite signifier erstwhile you were a young girl.

"He said we should ne'er suffer show of what we are doing arsenic a team. I deliberation sometimes we are ever successful the infinitesimal and each we spot and vie for each time is [stuff on] the transportation and successful training.

"But there's an interaction distant from that and that's truly peculiar to hear. Hearing that Harper is simply a immense instrumentality is nice."

'There is ever value connected your shoulders'

Russo made a sanction for herself astatine Euro 2022 arsenic a "super-sub" for present retired striker Ellen White, scoring 4 goals disconnected the bench, including an infamous backheel successful the semi-final.

However, goals person been hard to travel by for England astatine the World Cup, with the squad signaling 1-0 wins implicit Haiti and Denmark successful the radical stages, earlier needing a punishment shootout to determine a goalless 120 minutes with Nigeria successful the past 16.

A 6-1 thrashing of China was the item of England's tourney truthful acold with Russo grabbing her lone extremity aft conscionable 4 minutes of that match.

"I'm a striker, I similar to effort and make and assistance arsenic overmuch arsenic possible, but sometimes you tin person different impacts successful games," said Russo.

"It was evidently bully to people successful a World Cup and person that feeling but it's each astir winning and progressing successful this tournament.

"You tin spot the games are truthful tight. It's conscionable fractions that triumph you the games, truthful yes it was great, but arsenic agelong arsenic we win.

"There is ever value connected your shoulders erstwhile you play for your country. It is antithetic [than playing for a club], but your occupation is the aforesaid and your absorption is the same."

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