PLAYING at a World Cup is the pinnacle for any footballer and it’s no different for Wales striker Kayleigh Green, so often her country’s goal hero during the 2019 qualifying campaign.

At the age of 30, Green knows time isn’t on her side and an opportunity like the one she has of reaching next year’s finals in France is unlikely to come around for her again.

But if the Brighton forward can take the form she has shown so far in the group stages into tomorrow night’s encounter with England then her dream may well come true.

Green has had a habit of popping up with important goals for Jayne Ludlow’s side since netting the winner against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Zenica last November.

She repeated the feat when the same opponents travelled to Swansea in June and five days later Green struck twice in the 3-0 defeat of Russia at Spytty Park.

Newport will again provide the setting for the visit of Phil Neville’s England, with victory for Wales on the Rodney Parade turf (kick-off 7.45pm) sealing their World Cup berth as group winners.

“I’m actually quite calm, which is scary,” said Green. “This is probably the most calm I’ve ever been for any game in this campaign.

“I’m looking forward to the game and the adrenaline will kick in on Friday but now I’m calm – it’s unbelievable.

“I’m slightly worried because I’m never like this, but I think that’s what it is like around the camp at the moment, it is quite calm.

“We are confident and I think that’s why it’s quite relaxed.

“It has been like that throughout the whole campaign. There’s a great vibe around the girls.

“When you’ve got some of your best friends in the camp it’s great. We do everything together and there isn’t one person who is shying away.

“And if somebody is having problems you fix it together, and that’s what’s important about us.”

Despite Wales being top of the group, many will feel they are still the underdogs going into the match, but Green doesn’t necessarily agree with that.

“A couple of months ago I probably would have said we were the underdogs,” she added.

“But we’ve competed in this campaign and it’s going to be whoever turns up on the day and does things right.

“Hopefully that will be us and we’ll take the three points and go to France.

“As a kid growing up, playing at a World Cup is something you always dream about, it is something you always want.

“But I haven’t thought that far, I genuinely haven’t, I’m just trying to take it one day at a time.

“It would be the biggest moment of my life – that’s why I probably haven’t thought about it.

“I’m a little older so potentially having that at the end of my career would be phenomenal.”

Neville has labelled the game a “grudge match” in the build-up, although it’s a tag the Wales camp has been keen to play down, Green included.

“It is Wales and England, I understand that, but we’ve still got to go out there and do a job, regardless of who we are playing,” she said.

“We need to be hard to break down and compact, just like we have been.

“As long as we are confident, which we are, compact and hard to break down, which we’ve already shown, there’s no reason why we can’t take the three points.”