England's substitutes become tight-knit group at Euro 2025
Defending champions face off with Sweden
ZURICH: Forward Chloe Kelly, who came off the bench to score a 110th-minute winner in the Euro 2022 final, said England's substitutes had become a tight-knit group at this year's tournament with their own WhatsApp group and goal celebration. With the defending champions playing Sweden in the Euro 2025 quarter-finals on Thursday, Kelly, whose shirt-waving celebration was the defining image of the last final, described the camaraderie among England's super subs. Beth Mead and Aggie Beever-Jones scored as substitutes in England's 6-1 thrashing of Wales, and both made a beeline for the bench, snapping their fingers.
'A little group of us have a group chat, the finishers as you called it, and the positive 'clicks' we called it on the bench,' Kelly said at England's training base in Zurich. 'You've probably seen we all click (our fingers), and everyone's like, 'What are they doing?' 'We said if one of us comes on and scores, let's do that as our celebration,' she added. 'We work really hard on the training pitch and in the gym. Probably this sometimes goes unnoticed, but it's about sticking together, being at our best for when called upon, and training hard to get the best out of each other.'
The image of the 27-year-old Arsenal forward whirling her shirt above her head after her goal at Wembley is among the most renowned in European women's football. Kelly knows that there are football fans with tattoos of that image. The notoriety she has received since then took some adjusting to, she said. 'But I'm just me, a girl from West London enjoying football, and that's what I'll continue to be throughout my career,' she said. 'I just love the game of football, and hopefully we can have many special memories as England together.'
Kelly still watches the video of that goal, a tap-in from close range, on YouTube. 'I think it's just a special memory for me, one that I watch quite often if I ever need a little smile,' Kelly said. 'It's an incredible memory for me and my family. My mum sends it to me quite often as well. So it's nice to have such a special memory at an incredible stadium like Wembley.' There was concern earlier this year that Kelly might not make Sarina Wiegman's Euros squad because she was barely playing at Manchester City. She publicly expressed a desire to move ahead of January's transfer window, and Arsenal signed her first on a loan spell and then a free transfer after her City contract expired. — Reuters
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