Football legend Anita Asante has listed her top five players, male and female, to represent England on the international stage.

Asante spoke to GiveMeSport Women at WeLoveSport’s watch-along of England’s Euro 2022 encounter against Norway.

The Lionesses romped to an 8-0 victory, the biggest ever result in the history of the European Championship.

England’s current stars at Euro 2022

England are well on their way to Euro 2022 glory following their emphatic win against Norway. The Lionesses have already qualified for the quarter-finals, and will almost certainly finish top of Group A.

Along with Beth Mead’s hat-trick, there were also goals for Lauren Hemp, Georgia Stanway, Alessia Russo and a double for Ellen White.

Asante listed Mead and Hemp as pivotal for England if they are to go on and win Euro 2022, but also lauded the defence.

"Leadership at the back – Mille Bright, Leah Williamson, Alex Greenwood, we’re going to be relying on them," she said.

"I think we're going to be relying on Kiera Walsh as well – she's going to be pivotal in that defensive midfield role. We might see Leah there to make sure the team is secure in both directions."

Away from England, Asante has also been impressed with Iceland’s Sveindís Jónsdóttir and Karólína Vilhjálmsdóttir, Portugal’s Jessica Silva, and France’s Grace Geyoro and Salma Bacha.

Asante, who played for teams such as Chelsea, Arsenal and Aston Villa during an illustrious career, also earned 71 caps for England and was selected to represent Britain at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Euro 2022 is already breaking attendance records, and Asante believes it can be a gamechanger for women’s football in England.

But fans are not just flocking to stadiums to attend matches – they are also watching games at pubs, attending events such at the WeLoveSport watch-along. For Asante, this is a significant development.

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“It's massive because it's about what spaces you occupy, and how culture can impact sport and vice versa,” she said.

“I feel like a lot of women, perhaps haven't always felt that the pub environment is always the most welcoming.

“And when you have an opportunity, like a major sporting event, it's an opportunity to bring lots of people together from all different communities with one enjoyment – the game of football.

“It's a great thing to see that this is a culture that we can build related to the women's game, and hopefully we'll just continue to grow both for the domestic game as well as the international game.”

Stars such as Mead are now on their way to becoming some of England’s all-time greats. But Asante wanted to give credit to those who have come before.

Paul Gascoigne

"I always enjoyed watching him play. I never seen an English player play with so much flair in my life. It just brings such good memories when I think about the way he played, how good he was 1v1, and the excitement he brought to the game of football."

Kelly Smith

"I have to say Kelly Smith and I got lucky enough to play with her. An unbelievable leader in terms of the way she played on the field. Lots of finesse, she made the game look easy.

"She made unreal decisions, and had amazing vision. Her passing, but also her ability to score magical goals and do things that no one dare think about."

Steven Gerrard

"I'm a massive Liverpool fan. So it would be remiss if I didn't mention Steven Gerrard. He's just an all rounder I think.

"Box-to–box midfielder, with unreal technique and vision. He’s scored some incredible goals in his career, and I just always admired his ability to read the game, and score really crucial goals for club and country."

Fara Williams

"I have to say Fara Williams, I managed to play a lot of games with her for Engalnd, alongside her in the midfield.

"I remember distinctly being a young Arsenal player, watching her play for the Academy, and being like 'who is this girl, she’s unreal'.

"Her ability with both feet is brilliant, she’s got such good tecnique, ball distribution, vision. Her goals, her assists. She’s a proper footballer, she loves the game. She’s almost coaching her teammates, she’s got such good knowledge.

"Fara’s the most capped England player – that says it all. That shows what kind of talent she is."

Rio Ferdinand

"He was a ball-playing centre-back. Had the ability to drive into midfield areas with the ball under pressure, great vision, great ability to read the game and position himself in the right place. He’s just a great all round defender for club and country."

Watch Euro 2022 at your local Stonegate pub with We Love Sport.