Striker shows Neville she can fly the flag for her country
England will join national squad ready for her call-up, writes Molly McElwee at the City Ground
As the rest of the England squad were settling in at their Gatwick Airport hotel yesterday afternoon, ahead of their flight to Orlando for the SheBelieves Cup today, Beth England was continuing to make her overwhelming case for a spot in Phil Neville’s starting XI.
Eight minutes into Chelsea’s first ever Continental Cup final, England already had her name on the scoreboard. As she has been so often this season, she was in the right spot at the right time, and able to put a clean shot in the back of the net after a scramble in the box.
The 92nd minute was a similar story as she lunged to nudge in the dramatic winner for Chelsea’s first title in the competition. They were her 20th and 21st goals in all competitions this season, one that must be making the 25-year-old feel somewhat vindicated.
When the England team were splayed out on the pitch at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais after being ejected from their World Cup semifinal by the USA, the Chelsea forward was sat at home watching. Even 12 league goals had not bagged her a spot in the squad, let alone her first cap.
Earlier this week Chelsea manager Emma Hayes had highlighted just how far the striker has come. From starting her career at Doncaster Belles to being sent out on loan from Chelsea to Liverpool in 2017 for a season, England edged her way up to her current place in the line-up at arguably the top side in the country. “Beth needed that loan,” Hayes said. “Has she had to earn my trust? A million per cent.”
The question is whether that trust has also transmitted to national team manager Neville. Watching the 5ft 5in England muscle her way into the box at the City Ground yesterday, winning headers over defenders that dwarf her, the fight in her is evident.
With Ellen White and her bronze boot at the World Cup, the England squad are not short of quality up front. But England is stealing the show at Chelsea in a front line that includes the best striker in the game, Sam Kerr, and has scored twice for the national team in five matches since her August debut.
Neville’s team will attempt to avenge their World Cup woes on Thursday, in their first meeting with the USA since that semi-final loss. Sat on that transatlantic flight, one would think England will feel safe in the knowledge she has done everything in her power to be Neville’s first choice.