Gemma Davison said England are ready for the blanket defence Bosnia & Herzegovina are likely to deploy in Tuesday’s Euro 2017 qualifier in Zenica.
The Lionesses face a side ranked 62nd in the world, a side they only managed to beat 1-0 at home in November mainly down to extreme weather conditions and the fact the visitors set themselves up in two banks of five.
But after Davison’s introduction from the bench helped rescue a 1-1 draw with Belgium on Friday night, the Chelsea forward is confident her team-mates will break Bosnia down more often than they did in Bristol last year.
Bosnia v England
UEFA Women's Euro 2017
Group 7 qualifier
3pm BST, Tuesday 12 April
in Zenica, Bosnia & Herzegovina
She said: “It is frustrating when teams play like that but you've got to look at it as a challenge.
“You want teams to come out and play but you have to deal with it when they don't.
“We have to keep the ball moving at pace and I'm pretty sure if we do that we'll be fine. If they do the same again, we definitely need to move the ball quicker, skip links and use the width.
“We should be moving the ball quickly whenever we can in games. With the quality we've got we can open up the spaces and we've got the players who can do damage.”
Davison is one of those players who can hurt Bosnia in the final third.
The 28-year-old was named Vauxhall Player of the Match the last time the two sides met, a reward for her typically tricky wing play, and she showed signs of that class in her 12-minute cameo on Friday.
The former Arsenal and Liverpool star wasn’t a member of the bronze medal-winning squad in Canada last year, but she takes heart from the fact England are now recognised as a big scalp for every other nation.
Davison said: “It is a motivation and it drives you on so much more. You feel respected because teams want to beat you.
“I played in a very successful Arsenal team who were always the team to beat and we are starting to see that with England now.
“We will use it as a motivation but as a compliment as well.”
She continued: “We showed how good we are at the World Cup. There are so many players in this squad who have won trophies with their clubs and been part of successful clubs and now we want that to happen with England.”
Davison made her debut in 2009 against Iceland but has only earned eight more caps since.
However, after being an integral member of two FA WSL 1 title-winning squads, with Liverpool and then Chelsea, she is now ready to transfer her domestic form onto the international stage on a regular basis.
She added: “That's the ambition. I've never hidden the fact that I want to play for England.
“I had a really successful season last year, I really found a consistency at Chelsea and I'm ready to bring that for England.
“I've got to show what I can do every time I'm given a chance.”
