After scandals, sackings sexist rows - England's women get back to the football

There was a moment last summer when England’s women footballers looked as though were on their way to becoming European champions and the nation was captivated by their brilliance.

It came an hour into their quarter-final against France in the small Dutch town of Deventer, as Lucy Bronze, pressing high up the pitch, stole the ball, surged forward, and slipped through a perfect pass to Jodie Taylor.

Taylor, the tournament’s top goalscorer, gathered it, composed herself and placed a shot expertly, just out of reach of the goalkeeper fingers, the ball nestling in the far bottom corner.

It encapsulated the skill, strength and spirit in a squad who looked sure to become the first senior English team to win a major tournament since 1966: sadly, it proved the high-water mark.

A crushing defeat to Holland in the semi-finals preceded the eruption of the Eni Aluko race row which led to the sacking of manager Mark Sampson, who was found, following a third inquiry, to have used discriminatory language towards the striker and her Chelsea teammate Drew Spence.

For months, women’s football has been talked about for reasons which have had little to do with football. Even the appointment of Sampson's replacement, Phil Neville, was bogged down in controversy by the unearthing of sexist tweets typed several years earlier.

But if women’s football has, for too long, been tainted by things men have said, rather than performances, this week could shift the dial again as England prepare for the start of the SheBelieves Cup, which pitches them against three of the best teams in the world -  the hosts USA, Germany and France.

“I think all the players are sick and tired of the controversies and scandals that have plagued the England team since the Euros,” said former England goalkeeper and captain, Rachel Brown-Finnis. “They are sick of talking about it, thinking about it and just want to get on with playing football again.

“That is what they are good at, that is what they were being praised for last summer, but so much of that has been forgotten. There has been a lot negative energy spent and I know it has really frustrated the players.

“Women’s football has attracted lots of attention since the summer, and I suppose you could say that is evidence of the higher profile it has, but it is the wrong sort of attention. I think everybody has had enough now. Very little has been said about the achievements of the players.

The SheBelieves Cup may be a 'friendly' tournament, but it is probably as hard to win as a World Cup. Indeed, although the likes of Canada, Japan and Holland will also come into equation, the teams involved could easily be the semi-final line up in France next summer.

“It feels like the start of a new era for the squad,” said striker Ellen White, whose last-minute winner gave England victory over the USA in the same tournament a year ago. “We were devastated not to win the Euros and I honestly thought, with the players we had and the staff we had, that we would become European champions.

“It was very had to accept, but that has gone and this feels like the start of something exciting. We have a new manager and we are building towards the World Cup. This is a fantastic tournament to be involved in and to be playing three of the best teams in the world is an opportunity for us to really put a marker down.”

For Neville, though, it is a baptism of fire. He claimed on Tuesday that some people were "willing me to fail", and while that is open to debate, Neville is certainly under scrutiny. Parachuted in by the Football Association, the former Manchester United and Everton defender is a high-profile name, but he has no track record in women’s football and has never held a managerial position before.

While others have questioned the thinking behind his appointment, Brown-Finnis argued the fact he has added both Mo Marley, who stepped in as interim manager when Samspon was sacked, and the former England captain, Casey Stoney, to his coaching staff, means his lack of experience in women’s football will not matter.

“His coaching staff will be very important,” she explained. “You could not have asked for two more experienced people in there and that makes up for his own lack of knowledge.

“For me, I have no problem with the appointment. He has vast experience, he knows what is needed to win and what it takes to be successful. To have worked with someone like Sir Alex Ferguson for all those years at Manchester United, it is a huge plus point.

“The level England are at now, they don’t need to make vast improvements. They already know they are one of the best teams in the world.

“What they need to find that little extra edge, how to play under pressure and deal with expectations. It’s the little things, the marginal gains, that he can help them with. He will earn everyone’s respect very quickly.”