Bronze plays down individual impact after Team GB’s flying Olympics start

Lucy Bronze claims she has yet to reach her gold standard – despite being Team GB's queen of assists at Tokyo 2020.

There has been a pleasing symmetry about the adventures of Britain's football sisterhood in Japan to date: Played two, won two, clean sheets two, goals scored three (all from Ellen White), assists three (all from Bronze).

And as they bid to complete a 100 per cent record in their group against Canada on Tuesday, the Manchester City defender hinted that she has yet to reach full throttle.

Of only three clean sheets in the whole Olympic women's football tournament after two rounds of fixtures, Team GB had kept two of them.

Bronze, efficient at one end of the pitch and a dynamic attacking outlet at the other, has executed both parts of her job expertly, but she insisted: “I'm not here to win any individual awards – I'm here to win a gold medal.

“I don't know if I would class two games as a good run of form, but our coaches have reiterated that the only pressure is what we put on ourselves.

“The aim is still to top our group, build momentum and not to focus too much on the noise around us.”

Coach Hege Riise described the quality of Bronze's delivery from the right flank as “world-class” after another bullseye of technique and accuracy provided White's winner against host nation Japan in Sapporo on Saturday night.

Wild weather, an expected raft of changes and moving on from Sapporo to Kashima will all provide the Brits with a new set of tests against the Canadians, who knocked Team GB out in the quarter-finals at London 2012.

But Riise has been impressed with Bronze's eye for picking out team-mates in the box while Lauren Hemp – whose pace on the left flank has been eye-catching – has yet to fulfil her promise with end product.

The Team GB coach said: “Of course she (Bronze) is a great player and she is integral to the way we attack.

“We have a great opportunity to win the group, there's a real desire to do that and our main focus is on the game with Canada.

“Although the first thing on our mind is to attack, this team has so much pride in its defensive organisation.”

Wales skipper Sophie Ingle is expected to become Team GB's third different captain in as many games after England's Steph Houghton led the 2-0 win against Chile and Kim Little of Scotland took the armband against Japan.

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