So who are England? A cheat code to some of the superstar Lionesses (Part One)

“A Lioness does not need to roar to keep the crowd in awe”

African proverb 

The Republic of Ireland women’s team are set to face their toughest test yet on April 9th when they line out against a pride of Lionesses who will be fiercely protective of their European title following a biting World Cup final loss last summer.

Ireland began their EURO 2024 qualifying campaign last Friday with a 1-0 defeat to France (see here) – up next they welcome to the Aviva England the European champions and winners of the Women’s Finalissima (beating Brazil the reigning Copa América Femenina winners). 

England began their campaign with a 1-1 draw in Wembley against Sweden on Friday.

While Eileen Gleeson’s girls in green will be far from intimidated as they prepare for their first meeting at women’s senior level with England in 37 years, those who follow women’s football understand the daunting task that faces the home side, with one glance at the Lionesses Euro 2025 Qualifying Squad revealing a peppering of WSL stars.

For those who don’t follow the Women’s Super League across the water (you’re missing out), most of the names selected by the direct and astute Sarina Wiegman will be unfamiliar.

So sit back, relax, and let extratime.com get you up to speed with part one in a series of bite sized guides to the Lionesses.

Name Lauren James

Nickname LJ

Position Forward/right winger 

Foot Right

Sarina’s take:

“She is a big, big talent. She is very powerful on the ball, tight on the ball and she has the speed.” Sarina Wiegman, ITV sport 

Irish take: 

"She's too good. She makes it look so easy. There was one game, this was a few years back, when she was at Man Utd and I was actually at Birmingham then.

I remember she was dribbling and she was quite close to me and I thought 'got you', and thought I'd give her a wee nudge - nothing, she kept going. Then I thought I better give her a wee kick - she booted on again, I fell and she ran away with the ball.” 

Ruesha Littlejohn, Life’s a Pitch

Key facts: 

Lauren James

 - English of Jamaican descent

- 22 years old

- made senior debut on the 3 September 2022 in the 79th minute during England's 2023 World Cup qualification match against Austria.

- began playing with the Blues when she was six years of age

- was scouted by Arsenal aged 13, where she was deemed too good to train with the girls 

- is the second youngest debutante for Arsenal Women (aged 16 in 2017)  

- impressed for Manchester United in the WSL following their promotion in April 2019

- excelled in the Championship (blitzed four past Crystal Palace in a United 7-0 thrashing) in 2019

- signed for Chelsea in 2021 and recently put pen to paper on an extended contract that keeps her in West London until 2027 

Key achievements:

● PFA Young Player of the Year 2023

● Best player Arnold Clark Cup 2023

● Young Player of the Year 2023 (Women’s Football Awards)

● Winning the Finalissima with England in April 2023

● Winning the WSL with Chelsea three years in a row

● FA Cup double winner with Chelsea

Strengths:

[stats from Pure Stats]

● Dynamite on the ball, wins games single handed for both the Lionesses and Chelsea 

● Scores from angles mathematicians have yet to discover 

● Footwork is unmatched across the WSL

● Can be effective in multiple positions - has featured on the right wing, left wing, as a 10, and also as a centre-forward.

● ‘For the 2022/23 season, the forward stood in the 95th, 82nd, and 89th percentile when compared to other WSL attacking midfielders and wingers for short, medium, and long pass completion rate, and also in the 89th percentile for pass percentage overall.’

Weaknesses:

● Temperament: Can be petulant, has hit the headlines for brattish behaviour on both the global world stage (she was brandished the red card in England's last 16 World Cup draw against Nigeria for a dangerous stomp) and in the WSL (four months later nonetheless) when the Blues faced Arsenal - a real live wire that could spark at any moment, leaving Wiegmans side vulnerable with ten on the field 

● Defensive ability: For all of James’ attacking acumen, she ranks in the ‘24th percentile for tackles and interceptions combined in the WSL for the 22/23 season, tackling 18.2% of the dribblers she comes up against, putting her in the bottom 2% of attacking midfielders and wingers. From another frame she places in the 63rd percentile for shots blocked and 56th for passes blocked.’

● Accuracy: Lauren James attempts 3.09 shots per 90. Nevertheless, she only manages to fire 0.9 shots on target per 90, meaning that her conversion rate sits at only 29.3%. She averages 10% less shots on target than her teammate, Sam Kerr. 

Teammates take: 

“Everyone knows the quality that LJ has got, technically, on the ball she’s probably one of the best there is. It’s fun for me to play with her because I know she’s always going to get the ball in the right place that’s how much we back her – she is unbelievable.”  Lucy Bronze (Lionesses)

Name Grace Clinton

Age: 21

Position: Midfielder 

Foot: Right

Sarinas’s take:

“She plays like a natural. She wants to have the ball. She picks up the things we talk about very quickly and that’s what you see on the pitch too” Sarina Wiegman

Clinton’s take on her own game:

“I’m most confident in midfield, in that No 10 or No 8 role. It’s really nice because I’m a player who just wants to get on the ball and then if I don’t get on the ball, I’d say I’m quite an aggressive player to try and win it back. So being on the ball in midfield where you can do most of the harm is where I want to be.” The Guardian 

Teammates take:

“She’s a great player with a lot of talent and is very good on the ball. To link up with her – we’ve never done that before, we’ve never played together – felt so natural.”  Ella Toone, The Guardian (Lionesses)

Key Facts:

- born and raised in Liverpool

- made her debut for Willie Kirks Everton aged just 16 during the 2020/21 pre-season campaign.

- signed by Manchester United in 2022

- played a vital role on loan to Bristol City in their 22/23 Championship season, which ultimately led to the Robins promotion to the WSL

- sent on loan to Spurs for the 23/24 season where she has shined, impressing not only the fans and pundits but Sarina Wiegman and her WSL counterparts 

- made her debut for the Lionesses in an international friendly match against Austria in February of this year and scored

- two senior caps for England at the time of writing  

Key achievements:

- WSL Goal of the Month shortlist

- Young Player of The Year  (Bristol City)

Strengths:

Stats sourced from FOTMOB on the 22/23 WSL season

- Aggression: Aggressive both on and off the ball: fouls won 30 with 77.7% of tackles won 

- Long shot accuracy that will keep Courtney Brosnan on her toes 

- Long ball vision - 77.7% pass accuracy

- Poses an Aerial threat 

- Versatile: has played in holding midfield, box to box, number 9 and 10 roles in her career and now slots into the deeper number 8 role for England

- Despite having only played three games for England including last Friday’s draw with Sweden, she has connected extremely well with the squad who have clearly taken a shine to the young talent - a happy player is a dangerous one!

- Cardio/fitness: (travelled 14k in distance against Manchester City in the 2024 FA Cup Quarter Final and was still running like her life depended on it right to the 120 minute mark)

Weaknesses:

- Crosses: 15.4% accuracy 

- Retention of ball: dispossessed 50 times across the span of the season 

Grace’s future prospects:

“She will be the next superstar in this country if you ask me. I think she’s brilliant and has the potential to be so good.” Robert Vilahamn (Spurs Manager)

Courtney Brosnan on Mary Earps: ‘I think she’s a great player and these past two years she’s been amazing for England winning the EUROs’ - https://t.co/94rjArr8tjhttps://t.co/RscnUhq3zA

— extratime.com (@ExtratimeNews) April 4, 2024