Women's World Cup predictions: Ella Toone and Alisha Lehmann among players tipping the winners and 'surprise packages'

With the Women's World Cup beginning this morning, players have been giving their predictions ahead of the tournament in Australia and New Zealand.

Who will be the surprise package?

"I think there are a few surprise packages, but I'm going to go with Canada. They won the Olympics, so they know what tournament football is like. They've got a lot of great players, so I'll think they'll do well."

Who will be the top goalscorer?

"I'm going to go with Alessia Russo, not just because she's my best friend, but she's an unbelievable goalscorer and I know what she's like in front of the net. She had a great Euros and scored a lot of goals so hopefully she can score some more."

Who will be the player of the tournament?

"I'm going to go with another team-mate in Keira Walsh. She's underrated and when you play with her, you realise what an amazing player she is and everything she does for the team goes unnoticed."

Who will win the Women's World Cup?

"I think England will win the World Cup because they're an amazing team. They showed at the Euros that they can win a tournament."

Who will be the runners-up?

"The final will be England against the USA because they're always a strong team. They've won World Cups before, so I will say America will be second."

Who will be the surprise package?

"I think the surprise will be Switzerland because we have a lot of potential and we can be better than we've showed yet."

Who will be the top scorer?

"Rachel Daly because she's scored so many goals this season. She broke the records here in England and the WSL, so I think she could do it."

Who will be the player of the tournament?

"I think it will be Lauren James because she is a young player, she has a big talent. For me, she's the best player in the world."

Who will win the Women's World Cup?

"I think England will be the winners. They're on form, they've beaten top teams so far already in their prep - they've beaten the USA and Brazil, so they're my tip to be the winners."

Who will be the runners-up?

"The runners-up could potentially be the USA. It could be an England vs USA final. They're always so confident on the main stage, they're tournament powerhouses and know what it's like to get to the final stages of a World Cup. I wouldn't be surprised if they were in the final again."

Who will be the surprise package?

"I'll go with Australia, purely because they've never got past a quarter-final in most tournaments. But they're a home nation, we've all seen what happened with England, so I'd tip them to maybe go further this year."

Who will be the top goalscorer?

"Top goalscorer for me is another tournament powerhouse in Alex Morgan. She's been firing on all cylinders in the NWSL, she's been scoring goals for fun out there, so she's on form, and that's exactly the kind of player you'd want on form going into a tournament."

Who will be the player of the tournament?

"For me, Keira Walsh hasn't reached her peak yet and she's already one of the best, if not the best, midfielders in the world right now.

"She showcased what she can do at the Euros and, finally, she's got the appreciation on the world stage. I have no doubt she'll do the same at the World Cup this summer."

Who will win the Women's World Cup?

"England. I think the momentum from the Euros, the place that we're in, the players that we've got, if we're ever going to do it, this is the time."

Who will be the runners-up?

"USA. Other than England, they're probably one of the best teams in the world. They've won it previously so I expect them to be there or thereabouts. They're either going to win it or be runners-up, in my opinion."

Who will be the surprise package?

"I don't know if it's a surprise package, but maybe Spain. We talk a lot about them, but they haven't quite hit their levels. But they do have the players to eventually do that."

Who will be the top goalscorer?

"Rachel Daly. If she plays in the No 9 role, she's in fine form and scores goals, I don't see why she couldn't do that on the world stage, if she got the right quality delivered to her."

Who will be the player of the tournament?

"Keira Walsh. In my opinion, she was the player of the tournament at the Euros and didn't get the credit she deserved, so I think putting her on the world stage will give her the chance to do that."

Simone Magill - Northern Ireland and Aston Villa forward

Who will win the Women's World Cup?

"I think England potentially. Off the success of the Euros, I think they had pressure and exceeded that to go on and win. If ever there's a time to go and do it at the World Cup, it would be now."

Who will be the runners-up?

"The USA. They're always in and around it, they've won it however many times. You'd expect them to get really far so I think it'll be them."

Who will be the surprise package?

"I'm going to go with Australia. With them hosting, I think they're going to want to come out and perform."

Who will be the top goalscorer?

"Alex Morgan. She's been scoring at that level and on that stage for some time. She's a big game player and I think she'll be in and around it."

Who will be the player of the tournament?

"I'll say Keira Walsh too, because I think she deserves the recognition. She's such a pivotal player in that team, so it'd be nice to see her rewarded for that too."

What is the World Cup schedule?

The group stage will run over a two-week period finishing on 3 August and see group winners and runners-up progress to the round of 16, which takes place from 5 August to 8 August.

The quarter-finals, which will be held in Wellington, Auckland, Brisbane and Sydney, are scheduled for 11 and 12 August.

The first semi-final will then be played on 15 August in Auckland, with the other semi-final taking place on 16 August at the Accor Stadium in Sydney, which will then host the final on 20 August.

A third-place play-off will be played the day before the final on 19 August in Brisbane.

-sky news