Ellen White spoke to FATV ahead of the Three Lions' Cyprus Cup opener against Italy

England v Italy
Cyprus Cup
3.30pm GMT, Wednesday 6 March 2013
Larnaca, Cyprus

by Glenn Lavery

England’s Euro 2013 preparations begin in earnest against Italy on Wednesday and striker Ellen White says the whole squad are relishing their first game of the year.

The Three Lions are in Larnaca ahead of the Cyprus Cup, an annual friendly tournament Hope Powell’s squad have contested for the last five years.

And after training with their club sides in the run-up to the new FA WSL season, White says the players have welcomed a change of scenery.

After watching Real Madrid knock Manchester United out of the Champions League, she told FATV: “It’s good to be in a different environment.

"We’ve been training with our clubs for pre-season [so] it’s nice to come away, have a bit of sun and it’s great to be away with England again.

“It’s a big game against Italy and hopefully we’ll do well. It’s definitely good preparation for the Euros coming up in the summer so we’re all looking forward to it.

“The Cyprus Cup has always been a great cup for us so hopefully we can do well, but we’ll take the first game against Italy and see how we go.”