It’s any young footballer’s dream to play for their childhood club but to play in front of fans at the main stadium is something else.
Furthermore, to look ahead to playing there again months later for your country in front of a sold-out crowd, is something that you might never have ever dreamed of. In the case of Manchester United’s Ella Toone, the dream she never had is turning into a reality.
FAWSL Full-Time caught up with the player to get her thoughts ahead of England’s opening UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 match against Austria at Manchester United’s Old Trafford this evening.
“For me personally, it’s massive,” said Toone. “Growing up, supporting Manchester United and having the opportunity to play for the club at Old Trafford was so special and a moment that I’ll never forget. Now, stepping out for England at our home EUROs, opening the tournament at Old Trafford is going to be amazing.
“I think for me, it’s just excitement. I’m just so proud to be able to go there and represent England at a major tournament at my home stadium. I just can’t wait and I’ll enjoy every moment of it.”
The Lionesses could be forgiven for having a few nerves walking out at ‘The Theatre of Dreams’ this evening but Toone believes that the team will thrive from the occasion.
She said “I think all the girls are just excited to get going now. When we step out onto the pitch in front of that massive crowd, there might be a few nerves but I always think we play every single day, we do what we love so we will thrive off the nerves if there are any. For me right now, I just can’t wait.”
Toone, who was initially with Manchester United in her youth, came back to her childhood club in 2018. She admits to not always being the confident, goofy 22-year-old that you see on the Lionesses media channels today; she used to struggle with interviews and talking to unfamiliar faces.
“I still am quite shy when I don’t know people,” said the Lionesses forward. “It takes me a while to come out of my shell. Being around older girls and the likes of Jill Scott, they just want you to be you so it really helps. I think throughout my career, I’ve got much better at things like this because it’s part and parcel of football. I think I’ve
realised that I just want to get my personality out there a bit more and inspire the next generation of young girls and boys, I want them to know that they can just be themselves.
“At Manchester City, it was amazing and I think it improved me as a person and a player but going back to Manchester United and having that belief from Casey (Stoney), I think really helped me as a person and a player. Her belief on the pitch just made me want to go out there and enjoy football and show what I could do.
“By her giving that belief in me, it made me believe in myself a lot more and gave me that confidence to just go out there and perform. It obviously helped coming back home and being around people who really believed in me and wanted me to do well. That step in my journey was a tough one but probably the best one I made.”
With Sarina Wiegman having a wealth of talent to choose from during the upcoming tournament, Toone has done all she can to impress her coach leading up to the EUROs.
“Sometimes, I do sit back and reflect,” said the Mancunian. “Obviously, I never expected to go to the Olympics so that for me was massive and gave me that belief and confidence. Then, I had a great year at the club, I just realised that you’ve got to go out there and enjoy your football and that’s what I did, and the goals came, the assists came.”
Last season, Toone grabbed herself seven goals and eight assists in Manchester United’s impressive league campaign and she hopes to help her nation go as far as possible this month.
She added “Sarina gave me a lot of chances to play and to start games for England, I managed to score a few goals as well. I think the dream for me and since the tournament came about, was always to be a part of this squad. I knew that I had to have a good season because of the talent in the squad and the talent in England. To have been selected for this tournament is massive for me and I just want to go out there and enjoy every minute of it.”
England’s opening UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 fixture against Austria at Old Trafford kicks-off at 8pm.
By Megan Garbutt
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