Often referred to as one of the best right-backs in women's football, Northumberland-born Lucy Bronze is a true North East success story.
After scoring England's second goal in the Lionesses 4-0 victory over Sweden on Tuesday, Bronze and the rest of the England Women's team will take on Germany in today's Women's EURO 2022 Final.
Their success in the tournament will be an inspiration to many young footballers who dream of pursuing a career in the sport. Bronze has previously admitted that growing up she never aspired to be representing England because she "didn't know that was even possible."
Read more: Alnwick's Lucy Bronze scores as England reach Euros final in fine style with 4-0 win over Sweden
But now she has made over 80 appearances for her country, including the 2015 and 2019 World Cup squads, and scored 10 goals in the process. Today we look back at her rise to success - from playing for Alnwick Town to battling it out in the Women's EURO 2022 final at Wembley.
Born in Berwick in 1991 - the year of the first ever FIFA Women's World Cup - Bronze grew up on Holy Island until the age of seven. She later moved inland and attended the Duchess' High School, in Alnwick.
She joined her local football team, Alnwick Town, but was later forced to travel to Blyth to play the game she loved as she wasn't allowed to play on the boys' team after the age of 12 due to then-FIDFA regulations.
Blyth had the only girls' team in reach at the time. However, Alnwick now has a thriving women's side, partly inspired by her success.
As a teenager she played for Blyth Town and then for Sunderland. She was promoted to Sunderland's first team in 2007, aged 16, and became Manager's Player of the Year in the same year.
Bronze later relocated to America after being offered the chance to study at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and play for the North Carolina Tar Heels. There she became the first British player to win an NCAA Cup.
She later returned to Sunderland. And in September 2010, it was revealed that she had signed for Everton.
By 2012, Bronze had secured a move to Liverpool in 2012 where she was awarded the PFA Women's Players' Player of the Year. Bronze then went on to play for Manchester City between 2014 and 2017, helping them qualify for the UEFA Women’s Champions League for the first time.
In 2017, she signed a three-year contract with Olympique Lyonnais, where she helped the team go on to win the Champions League. Towards the end of her time with the club, she finished as runner-up for the Women's Ballon d'Or.
A return to Manchester City followed in 2020. After her contract expired in June 2022, she agreed to join Barcelona on a two-year contract.
On July 31 she will play against Germany in the Women's EURO 2022 Final.
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