Hampton's tribute to grandpa who died before Euros
"Two days before the biggest tournament of my life, you left," she wrote on Instagram."You taught me so much, not just about football, but about life. About staying grounded, working hard, being resilient and doing things the right way."It breaks my heart that you didn't get to see me walk out for our country at my first major tournament... something you dreamed of for me, something we talked about so many times. But I know, deep down, you were still there. I felt you with me. In the tunnel. On the pitch. In the tough moments. I heard you in my head when I needed strength."I hope I made you proud, Grandpa. I carried you through every minute. And I always will. I did it. WE DID IT."
Hampton's route to the top has been littered with obstacles.The Chelsea goalkeeper was born with a serious eye condition and told by doctors she should not play football.Hampton has undergone multiple operations to correct her vision but it is still not perfect and she continues to have depth perception issues.After defying the odds to get into the professional game, her international career hit a rocky patch after England won Euro 2022 on home soil.Hampton served as back-up to Mary Earps, but was dropped in the aftermath with reports suggesting it was due to her behaviour.Boss Sarina Wiegman brought her back into the fold in March 2023, having said Hampton had "sorted out personal issues".But Earps remained the No1 and Hampton was once again left without any game time after being named in the squad for the 2024 World Cup. A move to Chelsea in 2023 helped get her career back on track and she won the domestic treble with her club last season to show she can deliver in big moments.
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'I just had a difficult moment. And when you have a difficult moment here, at a club like this, it can be compounded. 'And I completely understand at times the frustration of the fans because the expectations of me are so high. 'My expectations of myself are so high, which is why probably those moments felt a lot worse. But, listen, they make you stronger.' The 32-year-old Englishman needed time, space and, by his own admission, a complete mental reset. 'I had a good training camp in the summer. I looked at a few things that I felt I'd slipped into a couple of bad habits. Whenever there's those question marks over you, I want to define my time here. I love it here. I want to be here. So that can hurt you. 'So, for me, it (being dropped) was, I suppose, a bit of a kick up the backside. Not like I needed it, but if there was any motivation I needed, that was added extra. 'I know and believe I can be a huge part of this club's history and success, and I still intend to do that.' Butland has no shortage of trusted confidants to lean on but his dip in form was essentially a matter he had to tackle head on himself. 'There's a variety of things,' he added. 'Sometimes it's just a case of you've got to break down a few walls yourself as far as reminding yourself of things, just training hard, reinforcing things.' He knew that all eyes were on him as Russell Martin took the team for the first time in a competitive game last week against Panathinaikos. Were it not for the keeper's interventions in the first leg of the Champions League qualifier, Rangers could have been three goals down by the time Findlay Curtis produced some heroics of his own at the other end. A handsome 2-0 victory, with the second goal coming from debutant Djeidi Gassama, would not have been achieved without Butland rolling back the years. It had been some time since he'd heard his name praised in song by those congregated behind his goal. 'That's what I hope they remember. I certainly feel like that guy,' he recalled. 'I feel really refreshed, feel good, feel really positive about the season ahead. 'I had a really good summer, a lot of time to think about stuff, work on stuff, just to remind myself that I'm a good goalkeeper and I believe that I'm a top goalkeeper. 'Sometimes you can forget that when things get tough and you start to overthink. But I'm feeling in a great place, really looking forward to the season.' Come what may, it's now his intention to stay in the moment. What's gone is gone. He can only shape the immediate future. Whatever the external pressure ahead of the first leg, he was no more relieved to make that first big save from Filip Duricic than any other in his time at Ibrox. 'That's the way I'm thinking,' added Butland. 'I wasn't looking for a big game. It was just a case of: 'Let's just play the game, let's just try and make good decisions'. 'Despite all the things that we've been trying to work on as a team, just remember that I'm a goalkeeper first and foremost and try and do that bit. 'Just let the game come to you, which I did. Yeah, you're able to get involved and help out in a few moments. 'There were some other huge blocks in there from the boys. We kept it at nil-nil for a while until Findlay got the breakthrough.' It would have been the simplest of matches for Martin to analyse. Aside from Butland's saves, pretty much everything Rangers did in the first half was sloppy. Yet they were unrecognisable after the interval. 'The best bit about half-time was the fact that all the issues that we had, we created them ourselves,' Butland recalled. 'We weren't quite doing the things that we've worked so hard on. When it comes to a big game like this, with 50,000 fans, the Champions League, first game of the season, it's very easy to revert back to type at times and not quite do the things that were being asked. 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'And that just leaves you as players to do your own thing, just to fit into the system, to test yourself in the way that the manager's challenged us. 'The message is there. I think you'll have seen a lot of it last week, but you'll start to see some new patterns, some of the ways that we want to play. 'And that only comes if everybody's on it and everyone's in trust and in tandem with each other.' A two-goal lead from the first leg puts Rangers in a position which is enviable yet by no means impregnable. Panathinaikos have no choice but to come out with all guns blazing on Wednesday. Martin must decide if he's going to fight fire with fire or batten down the hatches. Irrespective of the approach, Rangers' interest in the competition will largely come down to heart and nerve. 'A lot of tactics go out the window,' said Butland. 'You've got to play the game, you've got to use your experience, you've got to manage the game, you've got to take the sting out of it, you've got to know when to get the ball back in play quickly and when to kill the game and play it smart. 'All of that's going to come into it because this is not a league format, this is a knockout. We know what this means and what we need to do. It will be really important that we get a result there and get through this time.'
