England Lionnesses were ''beaten by the better team''

The England Lionesses were ''beaten by the better team'' in Orlando in the SheBelieves Cup 2018 final. The team lost out to USA 1-0, after an expensive own-goal mistake by England goalkeeper Karen Bardsley. This marks the third occasion that the USA have triumphed in three years.

Speaking to 'SkySports', England Women's coach Phil Neville said that the team struggled to compete but the latter part of the second-half performance was encouraging. "There is no doubt we were beaten by the better team. I think the positive we can take is from that last 20 to 25 minutes," said the former Manchester United player. Neville also said that it had been his most enjoyable game to date ''because I learnt a lot about my players. It was a top end game against the best team in the world.''

The recently appointed head coach was praised by his team, Bardsley believes that ''the Lionesses are moving in the right direction under new manager Neville.'' The England team are focusing on emerging talent, bringing young players into the international scene. Bardsley added that "the young players did phenomenally well and we're really proud of the progress that we're making and the football that we're trying to play."

For Ellen White, a Birmingham City forward, she acknowledges that England need to have a more clinical approach when it comes to facing teams such as the USA. "We've performed well over these three games but it's those fine margins of getting the goal or being clinical in front of goal and beating these teams," she said. "That is what we ultimately want to do to become first in the world. It's a hard one to take but that's what happens in football sometimes."