England’s women face another intriguing litmus test of their World Cup potential when they face a physically powerful Australia in a friendly at Craven Cottage on Tuesday night.

Phil Neville describes Alen Stajcic’s Matildas as “dark horses” for France 2019 and suspects they will provide tougher opponents than the Brazil team his side defeated 1-0 at Meadow Lane on Saturday.

Much hinges on whether Neville’s players can impose their new-look build-from-the-back passing game on Australia. Although England have improved since 2015, when the side finished third at the last World Cup in Canada, despite having only one player in the world’s top 40 – Karen Carney – there is some way to go.

“I used to think I was a technical player until I came up against the best in the world,” said Fara Williams, England’s most capped player, who is likely to start on the bench on Tuesday night. “As a nation we’re still quite far behind technically but we’re getting better and Phil’s trying to get us on the ball more. He wants us to play out from the back and be braver on the ball but he’s still implementing that.”

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With key individuals including the playmaker Fran Kirby, right-back Lucy Bronze and midfielder Jordan Nobbs now at ease in the most exalted company, England’s evolution is exciting. Even so, it will be interesting to see whether Neville ultimately finds he needs to modify his determination to “live or die playing my style” into something closer to the tactically astute pragmatism of his predecessor, Mark Sampson. There is, after all, a bigger picture to consider.

“We did unbelievably well to finish third at the last World Cup in Canada,” said Neville. “But now we have to start getting to finals and winning because that’s the only way we’re going to inspire the next generation. That’s our challenge because I think this is probably our moment really, the moment where the women’s game can explode in England. I say to everyone at the FA that the only way it can explode in this country is if an England team is successful – and that means winning a major tournament.”

Australia arrive in London from France where they lost a friendly against next summer’s World Cup hosts 2-0 but Neville is not underestimating a side who have travelled without their star forward, Sam Kerr, who is being rested.

“I’m a bit disappointed Sam Kerr’s not here,” said England’s coach, who will be without Jill Scott after the midfielder returned to Manchester City nursing an ankle injury. “But I also understand the reasoning. Jodie Taylor [England’s striker] is injured but we’d already decided to give Jodie a rest this autumn in order to make sure she’s physically right for next summer.

“Even without Sam Kerr Australia have some really good players. Physical strength is their biggest quality; I think they could be World Cup dark horses.”