Latest news with #Lionesses
Daily Mail
17 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Aggie Beever-Jones can become the poster girl for England's next generation, writes TARA ANSON-WALSH
There's a new kit, a 'new England' and now a new star on the scene. At 21, Aggie Beever-Jones has been waiting in the wings, overshadowed as fellow young Lionesses Grace Clinton and Michelle Agyemang made the headlines. At 19, Agyemang even marked her debut last month with a goal just 41 seconds after coming on. But on Friday night everything changed. An injury to Alessia Russo opened the door and Beever-Jones seized the opportunity, delivering a dazzling first-half hat-trick on her first England appearance at Wembley. A performance that was not only emphatic but the culmination of everything she's worked for. 'As cliche as it sounds, Sarina (Wiegman) said, 'It's a new kit, new England today. Go out there and put a graft in',' Beever-Jones said after the match. Beever-Jones made a statement in England's 6-0 thrashing of Portugal - she's good enough to become the poster girl for the next generation She did more than graft — she announced herself on just her third start in an England shirt, making it impossible for Wiegman to leave her out of her plans. Her performance on Friday will come as no surprise to Chelsea fans who have been clamouring to see more of the Cobham graduate, knowing she had grown up near the training ground in Surrey. After two seasons on loan at Bristol City then at Everton, Beever-Jones returned to Emma Hayes' Chelsea side last season where she impressed despite her minutes being carefully managed. This season under Sonia Bompastor, Beever-Jones has gone from strength to strength. Capable of playing across the forward line, she has been the French coach's Swiss army knife as injuries to Sam Kerr, Lauren James and Mayra Ramirez threatened to blunt Chelsea's attack. There have been two stand-out moments in the last few weeks, which both came against Liverpool. The first was a meeting in the FA Cup semi-final, where Chelsea were being held to a frustrating draw when Beever-Jones popped up in added time to head home the winning goal and book their spot at Wembley. Then, in the last game of the league season, with nerves radiating around the team as, again, Chelsea were being held to a draw and their invincible season lay at risk, in the 91st minute Beever-Jones picked up the ball from deep. She dribbled at speed into the Liverpool penalty area before slotting in at the near post to confirm a WSL points record for the Blues. A player for the key moments, on Friday Beever-Jones came to Wiegman's rescue with a hat-trick when the Dutch coach needed to silence the critics more than ever. Characteristically prescient, Hayes said of the forward last year: 'Aggie Beever-Jones — don't forget that name. She's going to be a legend not just for Chelsea but for England.' There certainly won't be anyone forgetting her name now.
Daily Mail
18 hours ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
How the England Lionesses' turbulent week ended in triumph... and raised hope of more Euro glory this summer, writes TARA ANSON-WALSH
As major tournament preparations go, England 's build-up to this summer's European Championship has been anything but conventional. To say the last week has been a turbulent one for England head coach Sarina Wiegman would be an understatement. Aside from the news dominating the headlines — the sudden retirement of fan-favourite Mary Earps — Wiegman was dealt another blow with the withdrawal of Millie Bright from the squad. The centre-back, who captained England to the World Cup final in Australia two years ago, described on a podcast how she was 'mentally and physically' at her limits. Speaking to former Lioness Rachel Daly, Bright said: 'That is a really hard decision but I think you know better than anyone — sometimes you just have to take that time for yourself. You need to value your mental health and body, and just say that no, right now is not the time for you.' Pressed on whether she can expect the Chelsea captain — who partners Leah Williamson at the heart of the defence — back for the Euros, Wiegman said: 'We'll stay in contact and I hope she feels better soon, but I don't know that at the moment.' The absence of Earps and Bright from the dressing room leaves a leadership vacuum and there are doubts over other key Lionesses. Lauren James is yet to return after pulling up with a hamstring injury a month ago, while Georgia Stanway, who hadn't played since last December, remains a balancing act. The midfielder came on for the last 15 minutes against Portugal on Friday, but it remains to be seen how her knee responds. Ella Toone and Alessia Russo missed the game with calf injuries, though Wiegman said these were 'not long-term' issues. The Dutch coach dislikes anyone on the outside getting wind of an upset within her walls but she could not silence the noise surrounding Earps's shock withdrawal, no matter how skilfully she batted off questions about her team's unity by reiterating 'we must move on'. While Portugal have routinely fallen short on the international stage, they are a team who have often been a thorn in England's side — eking out draws in their last two meetings in the build-up to the 2023 World Cup and more recently in the Nations League. So the Lionesses' six-goal victory — with only two games to go before they begin their Euros defence — served as a powerful statement of intent. With Wiegman due to name her Euros squad on Thursday, the players' focus quickly returned to how they would best book a seat on the plane to Switzerland. Youngsters Grace Clinton, Jess Park, and Aggie Beever-Jones capitalised on the extended absences of some of Wiegman's stalwarts. While it was 21-year-old Beever-Jones' hat-trick that stole the show, Clinton, 22, and Park, 23, showed again that they belong in this team. Clinton, the Manchester United central midfielder, worked relentlessly between the boxes and proved useful defensive cover. Manchester City's Park showed her physicality at No 10, fending off Dolores Silva before picking out the perfect pass for Beth Mead to run on to and score England's fourth. Responding to a question about how the off-pitch drama may have affected the team's mentality, Clinton appeared unfazed, saying: 'The off-pitch stuff is sad and sometimes people feel it more than others. We are all professionals here and when we do step on the pitch, we all know we've got a job to do and it's good that we've done it tonight.' Four different goalscorers and a hat-trick on her Wembley debut for Beever-Jones was certainly one way of changing the narrative. Up next are world champions Spain, where a victory will put an end to any concerns that these Lionesses have let the last week get to their heads before another monumental summer.
Daily Mirror
19 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Lionesses star thought 'when am I getting back' during long injury journey
Sarina Wiegman's England side will begin their Euros defence in July and there were times when Lauren Hemp wondered when she'd be able to return after a long lay-off Lionesses star Lauren Hemp has admitted there were times during her long injury lay-off when she wasn't sure when she'd next get to pull on an England shirt. Manchester City winger Hemp underwent surgery on a knee injury in November, keeping her out of her country's first four UEFA Nations League games, but she returned with an assist on Friday in a thumping 6-0 victory over Portugal. Club and international team-mate Alex Greenwood also made a Lionesses comeback on Friday after several months out, and the pair are back at the perfect time with Sarina Wiegman 's team defending their Euros title in Switzerland in July. 'Obviously we've come back on the pitch together for City and we're back now today, back in an England shirt, and it's nice to share these moments with Alex because we've been there with each other through the whole thing,' Hemp said. 'It's been a long journey, and earlier there's been times where I've thought 'when am I actually getting back on the pitch?' after a few setbacks. But no, it's a great feeling to get back in an England shirt and get back to doing what I love doing, and hopefully there's still more to come.' England raced into a 5-0 lead, with Aggie Beever-Jones becoming just the third player to score a hat-trick for the national team at Wembley, and the young Chelsea striker came in for praise from her team-mate. 'Oh yeah, unbelievable,' Hemp added. 'She scores goals like that all the time in training, and every single time she shot it turned to a goal. We're so proud of Aggie, you can see from our celebrations how happy we are for each other when we score, and it's a great person for that to happen to and we're all very proud of her.' England face Spain on Tuesday, knowing a win will see them top their Nations League group, and the squad for the Euros will be announced just two days after that. And, with a Euros group containing France, the Netherlands and Wales, the holders will be up against it from the start. 'Obviously we're going to the Euros to to a job and we're feeling confident, we're feeling ready, and obviously we're taking each game as it comes but we're working hard to be the best we can for the summer,' Hemp said. The fans were incredible again tonight so we're hoping to bring a lot of them to Switzerland, 'The confidence is high. Obviously we've got a lot of respect for Spain and we've had so many great games against them, so we're going to make sure we're ready and rested for that game and we're going to make sure we start that game as we did this one.' Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
The Sun
a day ago
- General
- The Sun
Lauren Hemp insists England ‘have respect' for Spain but will be ready for tough pre-Euros test against world champions
LAUREN HEMP reckons England are ready to go toe-to-toe with Spain after their six-goal Nations League pummelling of Portugal. Following her international comeback yesterday evening the fit-again forward admitted she missed playing in front of Lionesses fans. 4 4 4 Before her side's pivotal pre- Euros duel with Spain the Lioness, 24, made a successful return to England action for the first time since last October. Their 6-0 humbling of Portugal involved four different players scoring for the reigning European champions. They include Chelsea's Aggie Beever-Jones who registered her first international hat-trick Defeat of their Nations League group A3 rivals would put England in the contest's finals. It would also fire a warning to their foes' at this year's Euros, with World Cup winners Spain likely to be one of the biggest threats. Before their Tuesday duel in Barcelona, Hemp said: "The confidence (in the squad) is high. "We've got a lot of respect for Spain and we've had so many great games against them. "We're going to make sure we're ready and rested for that game and we'll make sure we start that match as we did this one (against Portugal)." Hemp's England shift at Wembley last night was her first in seven months and follows her recovery from a knee injury. Her last Lioness game before then was a 2-1 friendly defeat of South Africa last October. A match that was followed by Hemp undergoing a knee op a month later that would leave her sidelined until her Man City return in April. In front of a 48,531-strong crowd, it looked as if she had never been away as she, Beever-Jones and Beth Mead terrorised Portugal's woeful defence. Hemp added: "It's been a long journey and there have been times when I've thought, 'when am I actually getting back on the pitch' after having a few setbacks. "But it's great to be back in an England shirt and doing what I love doing. Hopefully there is still more to come.' "It's been a long seven months but coming back felt great. "The fans are great and they're always great and I've missed that as well with not being in the mix for a little while (due to injury)." Defeat of Spain would see England register their second victory over the World Cup winners in the Nations League this year. The last duel between the sides resulted in 1-0 win for Sarina Wiegman's players at Wembley in February. On whether victory would serve as a warning to the Lionesses Euros' rivals, Hemp said: 'There's still a little while to go. "It's important that we still put in the performances leading up to the Euros. "But at the moment we feel we're in a great place." With Beever-Jones notching her first senior England hat-trick and Mead and Chloe Kelly scoring, Sarina Wiegman feels she has a Euros selection headache with her forwards. On June 5 the England boss, 55, will announce who has made it into her 23-player squad for the tournament that starts on July 2 in Switzerland. Wiegman has backed Lauren James to battle her way into contention with the Chelsea forward's recovery from a hamstring injury progressing. She said: "We have so many options up front in the England squad right now. 4 "What we also hope for is LJ (Lauren James) coming back too. She's still in rehab and doing good. "I hope every striker will be fit including those who we have now in the squad with LJ added to that. "Then it's going to be really hard for me to make decisions for the Euros squad."
Glasgow Times
a day ago
- Sport
- Glasgow Times
Sarina Wiegman still weighing up options before naming England's Euros squad
Chelsea forward Aggie Beever-Jones certainly made a case for inclusion on Friday night, when she became just the second Lioness to score a hat-trick at Wembley in England's 6-0 Nations League dismantling of Portugal. Wiegman agreed she and her team needed to consider a number of factors – including fitness and relationships – when choosing which 23 players would defend England's title in Switzerland. Time to relive all six goals! 😍 — Lionesses (@Lionesses) May 30, 2025 'Of course you want these connections,' said Wiegman. 'Some players play more together than others. You have your opponents and of course, we still have players that are building too, so can they go to the level they had before they had injuries? 'I don't know yet. We're still trying out things and finding the balance.' England must beat World Cup holders Spain in their final Nations League group-stage meeting on Tuesday to clinch top of their group and advance to the autumn knockouts, which will determine the 2025 winners. It is also a final opportunity for players who might feel they are on the fringe to fight for their spot in Switzerland. Clinching at least second spot in Group Three through the Portugal triumph means England avoid a more complicated play-off situation and secure a more-favourable qualifying pathway for the 2027 Women's World Cup in Brazil. Lauren Hemp made her first England appearance since October on Friday (Adam Davy/PA) Long-term injured trio Alex Greenwood, Georgia Stanway and Lauren Hemp all returned to the pitch against Portugal, the latter starting and looking in form on Friday night. 'They've worked so hard to get where they are right now and that's what they showed,' added Wiegman. 'If you haven't put all the work in it to this point, then you cannot have a good performance, so I'm really happy with that. 'Of course we need to keep building, the Euros are really coming close and at the same time, we want to perform in the Nations League, so we are trying to find that balance.' One of the biggest questions ahead of Thursday's announcement is whether or not Chelsea forward Lauren James – who scored three goals and added three assists at the 2023 World Cup – will have recovered enough from the hamstring injury she sustained in April. Wiegman hopes James will be fit in time for the tournament (Zed Jameson/PA) Arsenal striker Alessia Russo was forced to sit out Friday night's encounter with a calf issue, but Wiegman said before the contest that she hoped the Women's Super League joint-Golden Boot winner would be available to face Spain. 'We have so many options up front in the squad right now,' Wiegman added. 'And what we also hope for is that LJ (James) is coming back too. 'She's already up and doing good, so trying to build her too, seeing what the competition of course will be. 'I hope every striker will be fit that we have now in the squad and LJ added to that, it's going to be really hard for me to make decisions for the Euros squad.'
