England manager Mark Sampson backed Manchester City to become the first English team to win the Champions League since Arsenal in 2007, as they prepare for tomorrow’s quarter-final.

Sampson is currently preparing for the European Championships in the Netherlands this summer, where he hopes to win the tournament, but believes England will have champions before then.

Nick Cushing’s side play Danish side Fortuna Hjorring in the first leg and Sampson feels that domestic teams have to start reaching the latter stages of major European tournaments.

“We need it,” Sampson said.

“I do feel that the English clubs have probably underachieved in the Champions League for a number of years, and with our status in the international game and in European football we need our domestic clubs to be getting to semi-finals and finals and maybe winning the trophy.”

City eased to the Women’s Super League title last season without losing a game but have underachieved at the next level, though they are still a relatively new team.

Arsenal defeated Swedish side Umea IK a decade ago but since then no English team has manage to make the finals.

This year’s final will be played in Cardiff on June 1 and, should City progress to the semi-finals, Sampson sees no reason why the best-funded team in women’s football can’t go all the way.

“If Manchester City can get to that semi-final, they can say they’ve established themselves as one of the big clubs in Europe, and as we all know when it gets to that semi-final stage details are so small, marginal differences, and you can go all the way or you can get knocked out.

“I’m sure Nick and their team have got a lot of belief they can win that tournament and in my mind there’s no reason why they can’t.”

City boast some of England’s top players in captain Steph Houghton, Lucy Bronze, Jill Scott and Toni Duggan and with the addition of Fifa player of the year Carli Lloyd, Sampson sees no reason why they can’t match European heavyweights Wolfsburg or Lyon.

“I look at the quality of their players and the quality of the coach and the attitude of the team and now the addition of Carli,” Sampson said.

“There’s no reason why they can’t go and win that tournament this year which would be a huge feather in the cap of the country and Man City in a European Championship year.”