Things went well at Juventus on the pitch but the last six months in particular have been difficult off of itThis weekend I will play my last game for Juventus, bringing to an end a year and a half of great success and lots of learning. When I arrived in the summer of 2018 I was attracted by a big club still in its infancy as a womens team, and a big project on and off the pitch that I could be a part of. On the pitch, we achieved a lot of rapid success: a league title, the domestic cup and the Supercoppa. Off the pitch, I think it is fair to say things have been a little more...
Increased investment from top clubs into their womens setups, TV rights and major sponsorships deals are adding to rapid growth off the fieldThe fact the Womens Super League salary cap is set to be reviewed, according to the FAs director of the professional womens game, Kelly Simmons, is a significant step in the development of a professional womens league. Were open to looking at it if the clubs think it is restrictive, said Simmons. Well have that chat with the new WSL board at some point. Its important were driving on- and off-field investment as were building the game.She added: Its just about trying to get the right balance, the right number, to ensure that everything off the pitch enables...
The Lionesses have had a wake-up call since the highs of the World Cup and their lack of consistency has to be a concernPhil Neville’s grave was being dug, but up popped Leah Williamson to throw some dirt back in the hole. Her 86th-minute winner in Ceske Budejovice handed the Lionesses’ manager a lifeline after a laboured performance against a team ranked 21 places below them. Weaknesses that have been evident all year were laid bare amid the flurry of winter’s first snow.Another sluggish start and lapses in concentration could not be obscured by England’s three goals and the relief afterwards among the players and Neville was clear, having finished the year with a win that stopped their poor run...
Late Germany goal stings England but no one experiencing this record attendance can doubt the Lionesses’ support keeps marching forwardSomething strange happened as England’s players trudged off the Wembley pitch after their worrying Women’s World Cup hangover continued with a late kick in the teeth. The crowd rose up to cheer. Pretty much all 77,768 of them – the biggest home attendance for the national team.A 2-1 defeat to Germany was not what the supporters – or England’s manager, Phil Neville – had come for. But this match, the Lionesses first at Wembley since 2014, was as much about winning hearts and minds. And even on an icebox of a day, in which the damp seeped into every bone and...
It was supposed to be a one-off for London 2012 but the team will be back at Tokyo 2020. Some Scotland players are eager to be involved but only the English are really happyIt was an afterthought as England’s campaign ended at the Women’s World Cup this summer, but reaching the last four opened a door widely assumed to have closed for good seven years ago. England cannot play in the Olympic Games but their success in France means Team GB, coached by Phil Neville, will appear in Tokyo. A concept branded unsatisfactory by three of the four constituent parts will trigger further debate as the Games draw closer.The competitive anomaly is highlighted by the fact Scotland were one of...