Most footballers would be grateful to have either Emma Hayes or Sarina Wiegman firmly in their corner—Jess Carter has both.
The Chelsea full-back made her England debut in 2017 but endured an agonising four-year wait until England head coach Wiegman gave her a second shot in a Lionesses shirt.
And last month, Blues boss Hayes said she’d personally ring up Wiegman to argue the rising star should get more playing time for England, insisting “she’s really showing her value to club and country.”
“It’s so nice to know that your coaches support you,” said the 24-year-old, 100 days before the Lionesses kick off their EURO 2022 campaign against Austria at Old Trafford on 6 July.
“Obviously I’ve worked with Emma for four years, she’s seen me on a day-to-day basis, and she’s seen the progress that I’ve been trying to make over that time, so I think that always gives you that bit more confidence to know that your managers are backing you."
Carter was thrilled to get the September call-up from the Dutchwoman, who took the head coaching reins the month before.
“It’s massive,” she agreed. “I was really shocked. It was an honour.
“When Sarina took over, I think maybe for me it was the right time of where I am in my career to join when she started. It’s kind of like a fresh start for a lot of people. So far I’ve only seen such great things from Sarina.
“She gave me my first cap after a long, long time.”
It seems everyone in the England camp is fond of the word ‘fresh’ these days.
Carter’s Chelsea and England team-mate Millie Bright is also a fan—she used it often when describing the revitalised Lionesses squad, fresh from winning the inaugural Arnold Clark Cup trophy, at Monday’s EURO 2022 ticket sale launch.
The London extravaganza featured giant football figurines hanging above Carnaby Street, where, below, Carter and Bright faced off against Germany’s Ann-Katrin Berger (Chelsea) and France’s Kenza Dali (Everton) in a fierce game of table football.
While Carter was reluctant to reveal the result of that clash, she was more forthcoming about the level of competition at July’s nine-city tournament, which on Monday UEFA announced was already on track to break the 240,000 tickets sold record set at the 2017 Women’s EURO in the Netherlands.
“There are so many nations that can win this tournament,” said Carter.
“I think it’s going to be one of the most competitive tournaments yet with the quality that Europe has.
“I think it’s going to be really tough to say who’s going to be lifting that trophy at the end of it, but I think that’s safe to say that it’s going to be a great tournament.”
England will face Norway, Austria and Northern Ireland in the group stages with the ultimate aim of qualifying for the Wembley final on July 31.
And Wiegman, who used the top-tier Arnold Clark Cup competition to experiment with combinations and tactics, will have a few more chances to solidify her tournament-opening starting XI with two World Cup qualifiers in April followed by June friendlies against Belgium and the Netherlands.
While the Lionesses’ ultimate goal is a trophy on home turf, Carter was quick to point out her squad’s more holistic hosting ambitions.
“It’s going to be massive,” she added. “Our aim as a country is to help inspire younger children to go out and play, and to hopefully get more sponsors and support for the women’s game.
“Hopefully more and more people want to be part of women’s football and play it from a young age and just inspire.”
Tickets for UEFA Women's EURO England 2022 are on sale now. Visit: www.uefa.com/womenseuro/ticketing. The tournament takes place across nine cities in England from 6-31st July 2022.
