With just over two weeks remaining until the Arnold Clark Cup, impressive performances are a must for those Lionesses hoping to see their name on Sarina Wiegman's squad list next month and potentially at the summer's Women's World Cup.
The competition for spaces has been heady since last summer's triumphant Euro2022 campaign, and after a hefty weekend of Women's FA Cup fourth round fixtures, Wiegman has been sent plenty of reminders of what certain players can bring to the table.
Bethany England was conspicuously absent from England's final two camps of 2022 but her record-breaking swap for north London from west might pay off if she keeps up her current form in the Tottenham Hotspur shirt.
Meanwhile, Nikita Parris became Manchester United's sole saviour on Sunday as they were nearly the victims of a FA Cup scalp against Sunderland. And Aston Villa's Rachel Daly is making it increasingly difficult to see her plying her trade at left-back in an England shirt.
Below, Mirror Football goes through the FA Cup weekend that was for the Lionesses bidding for a berth in Wiegman's upcoming squad.
Bethany England
In some parts of women’s football, England’s decision to ditch reigning champions Chelsea for Tottenham Hotspur in a bid to reinstate herself into Wiegman’s eye line ahead of the summer’s Women's World Cup came across as a dangerous gambit.
But the striker is threatening to make fools of those early apprehensions. England’s header against Championship leaders London City Lionesses on Sunday not only fired Spurs into an eventual 5-0 goal gala but earned the 28-year-old her second goal in just her third appearances under Rehanne Skinner.
England might’ve made her overall tally three had she not over-thought an early chance when handed a one on one with keeper Shae Yanez. Nevertheless, as the game wore on, one couldn’t help but get the eerie sensation that her early miss will be a distant memory as the season progresses.
England’s combination play with fellow new signing Mana Iwabuchi, on loan from Arsenal, was on display against the Championship leaders. While she was subbed on the hour mark, the hour’s work reiterated the sense that England’s record move might just pay off.
Rachel Daly
Daly has made it clear she’ll play anywhere Wiegman requests but Daly's incessant goalscoring for the Villains is complicating that sentiment.
Against third-tier Fylde, Daly turned the pitch into her personal plaything as she bagged four goals in Villa's 11-0 victory. The tally takes her record for the season to 15 goals in all competitions, with nine arriving in the WSL, two in the Conti Cup and four from Sunday's thrashing.
Daly’s last performance in an England shirt saw her lead the line, resulting in a goal just after the half-hour mark to maintain the national team’s impressive unbeaten record under Wiegman.
Whether performances like Sunday will call to mind Daly’s performance against Norway deployed in the striker’s position will be the question in two weeks. The 31-year-old makes a convincing case.
Nikita Parris
The Lioness spared United blushes as her brace edged a 2-1 victory over Sunderland to earn Marc Skinner’s side a spot in the FA Cup fifth round.
The pair of goals were Parris’ first for the club since 30 October and extended her goal tally to five in all competitions.
The Championship side made United work for the win in front of a raucous home crowd, but it was Parris' class that proved decisive. Her first goal – a relatively straightforward volley in the middle of the box after good work from full-back Ona Batlle – broke the deadlock six minutes from halftime.
And two minutes after Sunderland threatened to spark an upset against the WSL league leaders with a leveller, Parris once again came to the rescue with a close-range strike.
Parris has struggled to assert herself on Wiegman’s starting XI. At the summer’s victorious Euro2022, the 28-year-old saw just eight minutes of playing time. She was included in the September camp for England’s World Cup qualifying campaign, scoring the second goal in a 2-0 win over Austria and the seventh in the 10–0 demolition of Luxembourg.
In the final camp of the year, Parris came on as a late substitute in the 4-0 win over Japan and started the 1-1 draw against Norway before being subbed after the 80th minute.
Chloe Kelly
Kelly’s name might’ve appeared only once on Manchester City's scoresheet in their 7-0 win over Sheffield United. but the Lionesses’ fingerprints were all over the result as she registered three assists, including Bunny Shaw’s first and last to bookend the fixture with unerring symmetry.
Kelly proved a constant threat on the right side of Gareth Taylor’s front three and Sheffield United could offer little in the way of a game plan to deal with her.
Under Wiegman, the 25-year-old has become a mainstay in the Lionesses’ squad and with the Women’s World Cup zooming into view this summer, she’s more than likely to play a critical role. Performances like that on Sunday will only reiterate her inimitable value to Wiegman.
Katie Robinson
The 20-year-old was the fifth Brighton player to etch her name onto the scoresheet against West Brom on Sunday but proved an incessant threat throughout the contest down the right flank.
The goal was Robinson’s third in all competitions this season and arrives just in time to remind Wiegman of what she has to offer for the future. Robinson was included in Wiegman’s most recent Lionesses squad and made her an 83rd-minute substitute against Norway on 15 November 2022.
More goals to showoff her end product could prove pivotal if Robinson is to relish a second call-up for the upcoming Arnold Clark Cup.
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