12 Sep 2007
VIDEO: Karen Carney interview

20-year-old Karen Carney says that England have nothing to fear when they take on Germany in Shanghai.

England v Germany
World Cup 2007, Group A
1pm (BST), Friday 14 September 2007
Hongkou Stadium, Shanghai
Watch it live on BBC Two

Karen Carney believes that England's opening performance in the World Cup means they should have little to fear when they take on Germany on Friday.

Having dominated the game with Japan in Shanghai, the Three Lions thrillingly turned the game around with nine minutes left only for Japan to snatch a late equaliser, and now they face Germany who opened with a comfortable 11-0 win over Argentina.

But Carney insists nothing will hold them back when they return to the Hongkou Stadium: "We've got nothing to fear from the Germans, we're going to go in and give it everything.

"We had a good result against them in the China Cup in January, I'm not scared and I don't think anyone else is. We just can't wait.

"Our fitness levels were good against Japan, the fact we scored two goals in the last ten minutes shows we are fit and strong."

Carney was also positive about making her World Cup debut, something she will remember for the rest of her career.

She told TheFA.com: "It was wicked, I thoroughly enjoyed it, it was a really thrilling game to play in.

"There were so many emotions, so many highs and lows, and I think it was a shame we finished on a little bit of a low as we were winning with moments to go.

"We had a gameplan and we stuck to it, and I think it worked to be fair. We created so many chances that we could have scored a lot more than two, and we've never played in a World Cup before apart from Mary. So for us to create so much in the opening game is great for confidence."

Carney was not alone in being surprised by Kelly Smith's celebration, particularly given a conversation they had prior to the game.

"She said to me before the game 'Where are you going to celebrate?' and I told her I would run to my family and the England lot. She said she was going to run to her dad, but when she scored she ran in the opposite direction - I said 'Where are you going?'

"That's what you expect from Kelly, that's why she's one of the best. Give her two sniffs on goal and she'll get you two goals - that's what you expect from a top quality player that she is. She worked really hard last night and she deserved both of her goals."