David Beckham and Marcus Rashford among stars congratulating Lionesses on 4-0 win against Sweden

Former Manchester United and England footballer David Beckham has praised the Lionesses for reaching the Euro final - and thanked them for "inspiring" his daughter.

The Lionesses beat Sweden 4-0 at Sheffield’s Bramall Lane, with goals from former Manchester City player Lucy Bronze and Manchester United's Alessia Russo.

The Lionesses will face either Germany or France on Sunday, depending on which team wins the second semi-final game on Wednesday.

It will be England Women's first appearance in a final since Euro 2009 - and, if they win, their first ever major trophy.

Former England men’s captain Beckham congratulated the Lionesses and thanked them for "inspiring" his daughter Harper.

In a video message to the Lionesses on Instagram, Beckham said it had been "incredible" to see the performances so far and wished the team good luck in the semi-final.

He said: "In a video message released before the semi-final, Beckham said: "Hey, Lionesses, it's David here.

"I just wanted to send you a message, firstly to say congratulations on an incredible tournament so far, it's been so uplifting, it's been so exciting, and it's been so inspiring.

"And for me personally, you know I have a daughter, so for her to be inspired by you girls and your performances has been incredible."

He continued: "But it's not just the girls that are getting inspired, the boys are getting inspired as well by this and we all know that when big tournaments come around our country and our fans get behind us like no other. It really has uplifted the whole country."

After the win, the former footballer then posted a photograph of the Lionesses on his Instagram story with a caption "What a night, congratulations to the girls."

Manchester United and England player Marcus Rashford also praised the women's success on Twitter.

The Lionesses will take on either Germany or France in the final, depending on which team wins the second semi-final at Stadium MK in Milton Keynes on Wednesday night (July 27).

The pre-match action and the game will be broadcast live from 4pm on BBC One.

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