England should be entering this year’s Women’s Euros in a buoyant mood.
They have reached two finals in their last two tournament outings under Sarina Wiegman and remain among the favourites to lift what would be their second European Championships.
Moreover, a 7-0 thrashing of Jamaica on Sunday was near-ideal preparation for the tournament opener six days later, though some uncertainty lingers.
A slew of unavailable stalwarts, injury issues, and losses to Belgium and Spain in recent months have dampened enthusiasm heading into Switzerland.
Fran Kirby and Mary Earps called time on their respective international careers while Millie Bright withdrew, saying she was not able to "give 100%" this summer.
With a combined 218 caps, the trio’s experience will be a huge miss for the Lionesses in their title defence. All three players started England’s famous 2-1 win over Germany to claim the nation’s first major honours in 2022 and have, amid rising stars, still been regular names in the setup.
So, in the absence of three titans of the last decade or so, how will England fare?
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Hampton’s time to shine
Coming off the back of a domestic treble winning season with Chelsea, Hannah Hampton was always likely to be Wiegman’s choice for number one.
But having ‘Mary Queen of Stops’ as a deputy would have bolstered competition knowhow and likely would have been a strong leader, even if forced to watch from the bench.
"I'm disappointed and I'm sad … because I want her in my team," Wiegman said about her retirement.
Whatever the reason behind Earps’ decision, this leaves Hampton being supported by Khiara Keating and Anna Moorhouse - both of whom, despite playing for Manchester City and Orlando Pride respectively, are uncapped keepers.
Often dubbed the 'loneliest position in football', experience can count for a lot as a goalkeeper, especially on the biggest occasions.
In an interview with FourFourTwo, Italian titan Gianluigi Buffon said that "maybe up until you’re 28, 29, 30, it's about your physicality, your agility, but after that things change a little and your experience as a keeper begins to kick in.
"You know how to approach the important games, the sort of thing you only know from experience. And to have that kind of experience, I think you need to be over 30."
At 32, Earps certainly had the experience factor over Hampton, with her legendary performances in 2022 and 2023 helping power the Lionesses to European silverware and the cusp of global glory.
Hampton may have been thrust into the limelight in the past two years, but the 24-year-old is number one on merit.
She has had near-ideal preparation, being part of a Chelsea side that won a domestic treble, while only conceding 13 goals all season in the Women’s Super League and sharing the Golden Glove with Phallon Tullis-Joyce.
Most importantly for England, Hampton has also established herself as a vocal leader in the backline.
"Last season [23/24] I was probably a bit scared to be telling the likes of Millie [Bright] to watch over her shoulder, I didn’t think she would want a kid telling her where to go!" she told the Chelsea website.
"This year it’s been quite good having a stronger bond with the experienced players in the squad and realising they want me to be leading from the back and telling them what to do in certain times of the game."
Translating that onto the Euros stage will be something she will have to learn on the job, especially given the likes of Marie-Antoinette Katoto, Sandy Baltimore and Kadidiatou Diani will be bearing down on goal in the group opener.
Like in West London, Hampton will have similarly astute players in front of her again, though her aforementioned teammate Bright will not be among them.
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A not-so Bright summer
Bright’s withdrawal may be the biggest loss to Wiegman this summer. Unlike Earps and Kirby, she was in line to start alongside captain Leah Williamson at centre-back as she did in 2022 but has opted to take an 'extended period of recovery'.
She would have been a part of a strong Chelsea contingent in this year’s squad. Hampton, Lucy Bronze, Niamh Charles, Keira Walsh, Lauren James and Aggie Beever-Jones will have to rep the Blues in her stead.
Though her absence is not something the six of them have had to consider often. The 31-year-old only missed four games in Chelsea's conquest of the English women’s game last season.
Alex Greenwood is set to be Wiegman’s primary choice as a replacement, but is a different profile at centre-back. Bright offers much more physically, winning 2.20 aerial duels per 90 compared to Greenwood’s 1.11, as well as 1.66 tackles per game to 1.57.
Granted, Greenwood has had a lengthy spell out recently with a MCL injury, but herein lies another potential issue. The Manchester City captain did struggle upon returning from her layoff at the tail end of the WSL season.
Her consistency over the years, nearly two months of rest and a few decent warmup matches under her belt means that she should enter the Euros in fine enough fettle, but it is still a slight concern.
Potential reinforcements come in the shape of Lotte Wubben-Moy, Esme Morgan and Maya Le Tissier, who all do not have the same level of on-pitch experience for England.
Had the Lionesses been drawn into a less strong group then they could have handed minutes to them, but instead France, the Netherlands and Wales await.
This could still be possible on match day three against Wales if qualification to the knockouts has already been wrapped up, though, as she also did in the friendly against the Reggae Girlz, Wiegman has swayed against fielding rotated teams during final group games before.
In the case of central defence, the next crop of talent will have to wait a little longer.
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The ‘Mini Messi’ void
Kirby’s retirement is perhaps the one that will not cause as many immediate issues, given she was largely on the periphery of the first team in recent years due to recurrent injuries and the emergence of others in her position.
Although her plan was always to call it a day after these Euros, Kirby brought forth the decision after Wiegman admitted she would not be selected for the squad unless there were injuries.
"I think mentally being at the age I am at and being here for 11 years, you get to a point, you know, enough is enough," she told ESPN.
"You need to look after yourself and maybe prioritise my body and prolong my career."
England’s forward line will be more youthful than it was in 2022, with an average age of 24.2 years compared to the 26.6 years from the previous Euros, but even the youngest players have international credentials.
Beaver-Jones has hit four goals for her country already this year, including a hat-trick against Portugal, and Michelle Agyemang, the only teenager in the squad, scored a sublime volley 41 seconds into her England debut against Belgium.
The likes of Lauren Hemp, Beth Mead, Chloe Kelly and Alessia Russo offer sufficient tournament experience, with the latter three coming off the back of a sensational Champions League victory with Arsenal.
Of course, as a number 10, Kirby’s direct replacements will be more in the form of Toone and Jess Park, but the Brighton midfielder’s influence on the entire frontline, as both an expert creator and finisher in addition to her presence as such a significant name in the modern game.
"Fran was someone I always looked up to, being a number 10," Toone said in the wake of her retirement. "And I wanted to be just like her."
Eleven years of service has brought Kirby 77 caps, 19 goals and being a key member of the most successful era of English women’s football.
An injury-riddled career could have even delivered more as she missed out on the Finalissima and World Cup run in 2023, but fortunately she had an issue-free Euros campaign the year prior, where she continued to demonstrate her value by starting every game.
Kirby’s omission presents a new challenge for the likes of Toone, Russo and Hemp, who, although in their mid-twenties, are now senior figures in the squad.
Their previous involvement in going deep into tournaments, particularly in their case the 2023 World Cup, will be invaluable. As Lauren James showed at that same competition with her red card against Nigeria, even the most in-form players are not immune to losing their cool.
James herself will be battling back from an injury that forced her out of the last few months of Chelsea’s season, as well as maybe exorcising ghosts from that night in Brisbane.
Having Kirby as an option in Switzerland may have given a bit more assurance if Wiegman wants to slow the game down or introduce someone with more competition savviness to get over the line.
But the England boss’ choice not to select her appears to be a conscious one, especially given how open Kirby was recently about wanting to be on the plane.
"I'd set my whole year to be ready for the Euros. You know, every single day it was, okay, how can I get to a Euros? How can I be there?
"Because I knew, speaking to people who know me very well and myself, I knew that it was going to be my last tournament."
As it has come to pass, Wiegman, like most top coaches, already has one eye on the future of the Lionesses.
It is not entirely a surprise given the Dutchwoman’s contract expires after the 2027 World Cup, where Agyemang and Beaver-Jones will likely play bigger roles.
There is no doubt the squad selected have all the capabilities required to go all the way again, but this could also be a sea change for the side. One that asks a new generation of leaders to step up.
