Heading into this international window, England head coach Sarina Wiegman had one big selection decision to make: who would be starting in goal.
Mary Earps had started all of England’s games under Wiegman so far and been solid when called upon, while Ellie Roebuck, England’s No 1 before injury, was working her way back to full fitness and into the Lionesses’ camp again.
There were seemingly two keepers to choose from and it was likely that whoever put in the better performances would be favourite to start at the Euros in July.
So it was very surprising when Wiegman threw a spanner in the works by giving a senior debut to Aston Villa’s Hannah Hampton in England’s 0-0 draw with Spain at Carrow Road on Sunday.
Hampton hasn’t had the best season with Villa after making the move from Birmingham City in the summer. She had been impressive in the Blue’s relegation-threatened 2020-21 season and drawn plenty of attention and plaudits for her shot-stopping, but since joining Villa she’s looked accident-prone and sometimes unsteady behind a shaky defence.
The 21-year-old has been around the England senior set-up before but, having never won a cap, it was a shock to see her thrust into the starting line-up for England’s toughest game of the Arnold Clark Cup in awful conditions in Norfolk.
Hampton had to deal with a swirling, churning wind and driving rain for most of the game, but she never showed signs of crumbling under the pressure.
In fact, the weather was the toughest part of her whole debut, according to Hampton, who said afterwards: “The weather didn’t really help. I was quite cold. But I think I just took everything in my stride and enjoyed it.
