Manchester United goalkeeper Mary Earps, affectionately known as “Mearps”, may now be firmly ensconced as England’s number one after her heroic displays at the Euros – and impassioned leadership of the table-dancing celebrations that followed – but her chances of even being part of the squad once looked remote.
Prior to the arrival of Sarina Wiegman as England manager in September 2021, Earps believed her form was so poor she might never return to the national team, having made her debut against Switzerland in 2017 but received only a handful of caps thereafter before falling out of favour.
