Rio Ferdinand reveals how England captain Steph Houghton can do a David Beckham at Women's EURO 2022

Rio Ferdinand reckons Lionesses captain fantastic Steph Houghton can do a David Beckham and stave off injury worries to star at EURO 2022.

Achilles issues have struck 121-cap stalwart Houghton at the worst possible time, keeping her out of five England internationals and threatening her hopes of glory on home soil.

Ferdinand watched Manchester United team-mates Beckham and Wayne Rooney battle through injuries to play key roles at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups.

The iconic central defender is backing Houghton to turn it around in time for the major tournament that opens at Old Trafford on July 6.

“From my own experience with England, we’ve brought our top players back before,” said Ferdinand.

“David Beckham, Wayne Rooney – big important players who have had injuries going into tournaments. There are pros and cons and ultimately it’s all about her fitness.

“If the manager deems her fit enough and mentally in the right place, that experience will be vital.”

Interest in women’s football is booming with a season-high Super League crowd of 20,241 watching Manchester United beat Everton at Old Trafford.

With 100 days to go until England play Austria in the curtain-raiser, tickets are now on sale and more than 350,000 seats were sold in the pre-sale period alone.

“We’ve already broken records and we are looking to break even more this summer,” he said.

“The tournament is vitally important. We’ve seen in the past how tournaments bring families and nations together, so we’re here to push and amplify the women’s game.”

Sarina Wiegman’s England will be fancied to go deep in the tournament but the explosion of the club game in Spain makes them early favourites, led by Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas.

Former winners Germany, Spain