England started their Arnold Clark Cup campaign with a 1-1 draw against Canada in Middlesbrough on Thursday.
The game saw right-back Lucy Bronze come off the bench in the 65th minute for her first England appearance of new boss Sarina Wiegman’s reign. The England star had knee surgery last summer and subsequently missed the first half of the Barclays FA Women’s Super League season, as well as the first three England camps under new head coach Sarina Wiegman.
Ahead of the Canada match, the defender spoke to the media and reflected on being back in the squad.
“I played a whole year being injured but I just had to carry on, not be at my best and not perform at my best,” Bronze said. “Both physically and mentally, it was quite draining. As much as it was disappointing to miss out on England games, it was disappointing to not be able to help my club team.
“It was something for my own self that I needed do and have the operation. Now I’m just slowly building back up and performances are coming and match fitness is coming. Hopefully, I can get back to the very best of my performances in the next few months.”
In The Telegraph, Bronze discussed how England physio Alisha Tang was instrumental in her recovery. When asked by FAWSL Full-Time what it was like to be back around Tang at camp, Bronze sung the physio’s praises, saying that her help and advice was ‘priceless’.
“[Tang] is an integral part of our team,” she said. “She’s that good at her job that she pops in and sees me in Manchester to check up on me because she’s very diligent in the work that she does.
“[Tang and the medical staff] probably know my knees and body better than I do sometimes.”
The defender was also asked about Leah Williamson being given the England captaincy and whether she had thought about being captain herself. Bronze responded by saying that Wiegman ‘just wants me to focus on me’ and that she needs to get ‘caught up to speed with the way England play’.
She also said “Leah has obviously captained the team a lot recently. She’s done a really good job. She’s a young leader in the team but she has set a good example for a lot of the players. We know that we’re at the stage where we have loads of leaders in the team. There’s a lot of people that can help lead the team in different ways.
“I think that’s the way we want to see it going forward but ultimately, Leah’s the one who is wearing the armband on the pitch and she’s going to be our leader in this tournament.”
The Arnold Clark Cup represents an important part of England’s preparation for the UEFA Women’s EURO 2022. Their second game is this afternoon when they take on Spain at Carrow Road in Norwich.