England manager Sarina Wigman confirmed Hannah Hampton could return for the second leg of the October friendly at Pride Park on Tuesday.
The 24-year-old goalkeeper missed Saturday’s 2-1 defeat against Brazil at the Etihad Stadium due to an elbow injury, leaving Chiara Keating to earn her first cap for England.
It was the Lionesses’ first defeat at home since losing 4-3 to Germany at Wembley Stadium in October 2024, and they will be looking for revenge against 2023 World Cup semi-finalists Australia at a packed Pride Park.
Wiegman maintained that Hampton could rejoin the team on Tuesday if he makes it through Monday’s final practice unscathed.
“She’s progressing really well and meeting all the conditions so far. We have another training session today and we have to get through that, but things are looking very good,” she said.
“We have one more day and we have a good session for her today and if things go well she will be available tomorrow.
“She’s a good goalkeeper. A goalkeeper’s first job is to work with the team to keep the ball out of the net.
“She uses her feet well, she’s good at long-distance kicks, she’s good in the possession game, and that’s her super strength.”
England have come from behind in each of their last four games, including come-from-behind wins over Sweden, Italy and Spain at this summer’s Euros, and will face Brazil on Saturday.
England conceded two goals in the first 18 minutes of their home game against Brazil on Saturday following their Euro 2025 defeat.
The Lionesses have been criticized for their slow start, but Wiegman disagrees, admitting they are relishing the challenge posed by top nations such as Brazil and Australia.
He added: “We had a good start against Spain and could have taken a 1-0. Against Italy we could have taken a 1-0. Against Sweden we didn’t get off to a very good start. Against France we got off to a really good start and scored the goal.”
“So I don’t agree that we always start slow, we’re just behind.
“I agree. We didn’t have a good enough start on Saturday. We needed to be more physical. We talked about it and the players felt the same way. So we’ll do everything we can to get a better start tomorrow.”
“I’m excited to go again tomorrow. We’ll have a chance soon. We want to play against the top countries, because they will challenge us. Being challenged shows us what we need to improve on.”
The last time the two sides met was in the 2023 World Cup semi-finals, when England defeated their home hopes in Sydney with a 3-1 result to book their place in the final.
Ella Toon was one of the scorers on the day and she believes Australia will get revenge on Tuesday.
She said: “For Australia, we broke a lot of their hearts at the World Cup so it will feel like a revenge match for them.
“We are England. We want to win every game. These games are friendlies, but there are no friendlies in football.
“It’s tough when you lose a game, but there’s a game right around the corner to correct things, so we’re going to go out there and put in a great performance and hopefully get the win.”
