Latest news with #AlexGreenwood
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
England Lionesses legends predict next $1 million women's transfer
England icons Steph Houghton, Jill Scott and Ellen White have predicted who they think the next $1 million women's transfer will be. Earlier this year, Naomi Girma made history as she became the game's first-ever $1 million transfer. The USWNT defender made the blockbuster move from San Diego Wave to Chelsea, shattering the previous world record signing of Racheal Kundananji to Bay FC. Advertisement Such a milestone has been a long time coming in women's football, and we can only expect to see transfer fees continue to rise. After Girma's record-breaking move, who will be the next seven-figure signing? England legends predict next $1m transfer The former Lionesses have had their say on who could be the next $1 million signing in the women's game. All four England trailblazers will be representing their country at this year's Soccer Aid for UNICEF. Scott and White will return to the pitch for the second year running, while Houghton is preparing for her debut against the World XI. Speaking to LiveScore as they prepare for the match in June, the Lionesses legends pitched their predictions. Alex Greenwood Embed from Getty Images Advertisement 'My next $1 million player, if they were to leave Manchester City, would be Alex Greenwood,' says the defender's former domestic and international teammate Jill Scott. Greenwood has taken on the role as Man City captain and is looking to add to her growing medal count. The versatile defender won the treble with Olympique Lyonnais in 2020 and made history as she spearheaded Manchester United to the Women's Championship title in the team's first season following their revival. Greenwood was also part of England's historic Euro 2022 triumph. Aitana Bonmatí Embed from Getty Images Throwing her pick into the mix and preparing for her Soccer Aid debut, legendary former England captain Steph Houghton selected Barcelona icon Aitana Bonmatí. Advertisement 'If she was ever to move, I think her worth in terms of women's football and what she brings to pitch, she could be the next superstar.' Bonmatí continues to stun the world with her performances for both Barcelona and Spain. After playing an instrumental role in milestone occasions, including Spain's World Cup triumph and Barcelona becoming the first Spanish side to win the Women's Champions League, Bonmatí is a two-time Ballon d'Or Féminin winner. Sophia Wilson Embed from Getty Images Ellen White became the first woman to score on the Soccer Aid stage last year, marking a debut to remember. She'll be looking to bag another this summer as England defend their crown. Advertisement 'Naomi Girma is a defender, so I'm going to stick with a striker and go with Sophia Smith from America,' White said. Sophia Wilson, formerly Smith, is widely regarded as one of the NWSL's most dynamic and impactful players. The Portland Thorns forward is an Olympic gold medalist and an NWSL Golden Boot winner. She signed a new deal with the Thorns in March 2024, becoming the highest-paid NWSL player. While Wilson is currently out on maternity leave, her impressive list of accolades alone proves her immense value to the sport. It's no wonder she has been backed to follow her compatriot Girma as the next $1 million women's transfer. Soccer Aid for UNICEF takes place on Sunday 15th June at Old Trafford. Adult tickets start from £20 and juniors from £10: Related articles from Her Football Hub:
Telegraph
30-05-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Live England Women vs Portugal: Latest Lionesses updates from Nations League
Surprised with a few of Sarina Wiegman's selections tonight. Esme Morgan is preferred at centre back to Alex Greenwood, who is understood to be fit after returning from injury at the end of the domestic season. Jess Carter starts at left back over Niamh Charles, who was hooked at half-time during England's defeat in Belgium. Both Morgan and Carter came off the bench at half-time and kept a clean sheet in the second half so perhaps they have been rewarded for that. But it seems puzzling that neither Greenwood or Maya Le Tissier, who had such a good season for Manchester United, can get a look in.
Daily Mirror
18-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
'I date Lioness Alex Greenwood and played in Prem but had to retire at 29'
Lionesses star Alex Greenwood's footballer boyfriend Jack O'Connell saw his own career wrecked by injury, having once been in the thoughts of England manager Gareth Southgate The boyfriend of England women's star Alex Greenwood was on the verge of international honours himself before injury cruelly cut short his career. Greenwood is a Lionesses legend after being part of the squad that memorably won Euro 2022 and one of the players of the tournament at the 2023 World Cup as England reached the final, where they were beaten by Spain. The Merseyside-born defender has been in a relationship with Jack O'Connell since the pair met at sixth-form college. Both went on to become footballers, with O'Connell coming through the Blackburn Rovers academy and having a string of loan spells in the lower leagues. The centre-back joined Brentford permanently in 2015, but his stay in west London was brief. It was at Sheffield United where he truly made his name, helping the Blades soar from League One to the Premier League. His form was so impressive that then-England boss Gareth Southgate held discussions with Blades manager Chris Wilder after an impressive debut season in the top-flight. However, his career was ruined by injury and after several attempted comebacks, he made the heartbreaking decision to call time on his career at the age of just 29 in 2023. In an emotional message on social media, he wrote: 'This is a very difficult announcement for me to make, although Sheffield United fans will already know that for the past three seasons, I have been fighting to save my professional football career. 'Today, I am announcing my retirement from football. I have put my heart and soul into this recovery since my knee problems began in June 2020, but this is a battle I cannot win.' He also paid tribute to his partner Greenwood, adding: 'Walking away from football will leave a void in my life - but I have made my peace with it. And I am grateful for the matches I played, the moments I lived out on the pitch, and to my team-mates - many of whom will be friends for life. It was all a dream come true. "For now, some thanks. First, to partner Alex, who has given me support through my lowest moments. She is a supremely talented footballer and it has been a great consolation to be able to watch her career go from strength to strength. I am her biggest fan.' O'Connor, now 31, travelled to Australia to support his partner and the Lionesses at the World Cup. He told Sky Sports at the time: '[I'm] really proud of her. I've been there from the very start. I used to go and watch Alex when she was 16. It's unbelievable how far it's grown now. 'I'm her biggest critic as well. The standard that she sets herself, she has more to come. I get goosebumps when I think about it but I think she's one of the best centre-halves in the world and she still has gears to go through.' O'Connell, regarded as a modern Blades legend, didn't get a chance to say a proper goodbye as his final game was played behind closed doors during the pandemic. However, he recently made a one-game comeback in honour of another Blades favourite forced into retirement by injury when he took part in Chris Basham's testimonial in front of 17,000 fans at Bramall Lane. Ahead of the game, Basham paid tribute to O'Connell. He told the Sheffield Star: 'I think it will be nice for him to go back and get that feeling, and show gratitude from his point of view as well. 'It's hard at the time, because you're leaving the game and your emotions are also a little higher. Then, once things have settled down, you realise what you've done and what you've done for the club. It means much more now, seeing flashbacks and things like that.' O'Connell will be looking forward to cheering on Greenwood at Euro 2025 in Switzerland this summer. Before then, the Lionesses round off their Nations League group schedule with games against Portugal at home and Spain away on May 30 and June 3 respectively.
The Sun
13-05-2025
- Sport
- The Sun
Sarina Wiegman hoping for ‘headaches and big decisions' from return of England stars Hemp, Greenwood and Stanway
SARINA WIEGMAN hopes to have an England selection headache from Lauren Hemp, Georgia Stanway and Alex Greenwood returning to fitness. The Lioness boss, 55, reckons Hemp has built enough credit to be in contention despite the forward yet to play a full 90 minutes this year. 4 4 4 The squad returns of Hemp, 24, Stanway, 26, and Greenwood, 31, comes at a pivotal time with the start of England's Euros title defence less than two months away. Before then the team will take on Portugal in the Nations League at Wembley on May 30. And they also face a stern test against World Cup holders Spain in Barcelona on June 3. Wiegman's fit again trio had contended with knee injuries with Hemp and defender Greenwood making their returns to match action for Manchester City earlier this month. Bayern Munich midfielder Stanway is the only member of the three yet to return to club duty since recovering from a lateral ligament tear sustained in January. Wiegman said: "Georgia is in training. She still needs to build. "What we know is she can come into camp and continue building with us. "Hopefully towards the Euros she can be healthy and can handle the training loads to recover. "She has to be healthy and recover from training sessions then we can see where she's at. "She has to be performing at the highest level – at her highest level – to compete for the position just like everyone else." Hemp's squad return comes 16 days after her first game for Man City this year. The 61-capped Lioness played in a competitive game for the first time this year on April 27 with a cameo appearance in City's 1-0 defeat of Leicester. While Hemp did not play a full match for City in the second half of the season, she could potentially be in line for game time at the World Sevens tournament if selected to play. Man City are one of two WSL sides competing in the seven-a-side contest taking place in Estoril, Portugal from May 21-23. On whether it is a concerned that Hemp has so far not played a 90-minute this year, Wiegman added: 'Of course it is. "But we still have two months – almost. We have to keep building on that and manage it well to keep them fit. "We want to keep building and see what she is able to do. "She has to perform at her highest level too, but she has shown so many things before her injury that she has built some credit. "When everyone is fit we have big decisions to make because we have many options up front and within the team in other lines we have options too. "I hope everyone does really well and it's really nice to have this opportunity to train before the Nations League. "I hope I'll get a lot of headaches because that means everyone is performing at the highest level and we'll have decisions to make." Wiegman, 55, is waiting to see how far Lauren James, 23, can go in her fitness race, before the Euros with the forward battling to recover from injury. I know Lauren is absolutely working really hard to get there. Let's see how far she gets. Sarina Wiegman on Lauren James' push to return to fitness before the 2025 Women's Euros In their upcoming clashes with Portugal and Spain the team will be without the services of James who was among England's standout performers at the 2023 World Cup. The Chelsea star came off during England's 5-0 Nations League trouncing of Belgium due to a hamstring concern. Wiegman said: "She's a special player who has moments in the game where she can be decisive. "Let's see how far she gets and what she can bring us. I know she's absolutely working really hard to get there." Wiegman's latest squad selection has included Arsenal's Michelle Agyemang, 19, keeping her place and a first senior call-up for Tottenham defender Ella Morris. Agyemang's return follows her netting a stunning goal on her senior international debut volleying home during the Lionesses' 3-2 away loss to Belgium While the England boss hopes the striker can become a little bit calmer in duels, she believes Agyemang has much potential. Wiegman said: "Michelle is a very high-potential talent. "She is very powerful and as we have seen, she can score goals. 4 "In duels she needs to calm down a little and we've spoken about that already. "Hopefully she can manage a bit when we play in the duels. "You don't want to almost destroy your opponent."
The Star
13-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Soccer-Greenwood, Stanway, Hemp back with England women ahead of Euro title defence
Soccer Football - UEFA Women's Nations League - Group A - England v Belgium - King Power Stadium, Leicester, Britain - October 27, 2023 England's Alex Greenwood REUTERS/Molly Darlington MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) -Alex Greenwood, Georgia Stanway and Lauren Hemp returned to the England women's squad for upcoming Nations League games against Portugal and Spain, good news for the Lionesses seven weeks before the European Championship kicks off. Chelsea forward Lauren James remains sidelined with a hamstring injury in a blow to manager Sarina Wiegman's preparations for England's defence of their Euro title. Both Greenwood, a defender for Manchester City, and Bayern Munich midfielder Stanway had been considered question marks for the Euros after undergoing knee surgery, Greenwood in December and Stanway in January. Manchester City winger Hemp was sidelined for five months with a knee injury. "These are another two important games for us in a big year," said Wiegman, in announcing her 27-player squad on Tuesday. "Naturally we are preparing for the summer ahead. We saw in February that both Portugal and Spain will provide a big challenge and that excites us. These are the levels we need to compete against to make sure we are the best possible version of ourselves on 5 July when our Euro begins. "At the same time, it is important that we focus first on what is right in front of us and ending the Nations League campaign in the best possible way." Wins against Portugal on May 30 at Wembley and against Spain on June 3 in Barcelona would guarantee England a place in the Nations League knockout phase beginning in October. England drew 1-1 with Portugal in February, and defeated Spain 1-0 six days later. Squad: Goalkeepers: Mary Earps, Hannah Hampton, Khiara Keating, Anna Moorhouse. Defenders: Millie Bright, Lucy Bronze, Jess Carter, Niamh Charles, Alex Greenwood, Maya Le Tissier, Esme Morgan, Ella Morris, Leah Williamson. Midfielders: Grace Clinton, Missy Bo Kearns, Fran Kirby, Jess Park, Georgia Stanway, Ella Toone, Keira Walsh. Forwards: Michelle Agyemang, Aggie Beever-Jones, Lauren Hemp, Chloe Kelly, Beth Mead, Nikita Parris, Alessia Russo. (Reporting by Lori EwingEditing by Christian Radnedge)
