Five years into her reign, Sarina Wiegman knows exactly what it takes to keep her Lionesses ticking.
After a four-goal thumping by Spain prior to the summer break, the Dutch coach opted to wield the axe and bring in the young guns.
Wiegman, who has regularly been praised for her transparency with her players over her selection decisions, chose to leave out two of her most trusted stalwarts in Chloe Kelly and Ella Toone for these two-legged semi-final World Cup qualifiers.
Whether this was a tactical ploy to light a fire under the duo amid tepid starts to their club seasons, or a warning sign to the rest of the squad not to rest on their laurels, it remains to be seen. Either way, there was no holding back.
‘I think the levels weren’t what I expect from them on the pitch,’ Wiegman said. ‘We expect a bit more and we know they can bring more.’
An injury to Lucy Bronze has thrown a lifeline to the returning Toone, but the future remains uncertain for the pair who played significant roles in helping England claim back-to-back Euros wins last year, despite Kelly’s right boot having been the deciding factor in both of those triumphs.
Yet with one keen eye on next summer’s World Cup, Wiegman has already cranked up the gears ahead of what many believe will be her last tournament in charge.
Freya Godfrey and Lexi Potter are among the young stars hoping to make their mark with England in their World Cup qualifiers against Greece
Indeed, there is a new guard champing at the bit, waiting to usurp their heroes and book a seat on the plane to Brazil, should they get there, of course.
Many of these youngsters point to the fact that Michelle Agyemang, who is still sidelined with an ACL injury, showed last summer that the status quo is there to be disrupted.
Here, Daily Mail Sport’s women’s football reporter, TARA ANSON-WALSH analyses the three young stars to watch in the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Greece…
1) Lexi Potter
At just 20, Lexi Potter is the latest young star off Chelsea’s production line, her impressive start to the season earning a first senior call-up from Wiegman.
Asked about that intensifying spotlight, a smiley, slightly overawed Potter told the media at her first Lionesses camp earlier this week: ‘I don’t really like to read into anything I see in the media.
‘I like to keep my feet on the ground. All my team-mates have been making fun of me and making comments. Keira has been calling me a baller and I’m like “please, stop”.’
A deep-lying midfielder, the Epsom-born player broke through the ranks at Chelsea’s academy before spending two seasons at Crystal Palace between 2023 and 2025. At Palace, she was credited by former coach Laura Kaminski with helping the side secure promotion. Calm on the ball and blessed with a strong passing range, Potter’s tactical astuteness is of a different pedigree.
She received the highest of praise from Walsh, one of England’s best players, earlier this year: ‘She’s probably going to be better than me, to be honest.
‘I don’t mean to put too much pressure on her with that, to be fair, but the way we see the game is very similar. We both see football in a very tactical way and I’ve really enjoyed playing with her so far.’
She added: ‘When Lexi’s playing alongside me, she makes me feel really comfortable and she gives me the freedom to (get forward), and we’ve got a great partnership.’
Lexi Potter has been rewarded for her strong start to the season at Chelsea with a call-up
Keira Walsh claimed earlier this year that Potter is ‘probably going to be better than me’
Potter returned to Chelsea for last season, and after spending a lot of it on the bench, she made a case for herself to head coach Sonia Bompastor over the summer – and the Chelsea coach answered.
Such was the composure that Potter showed on her debut alongside Walsh that Bompastor rewarded her with a further two starts. The pair have shown a natural chemistry while working together on the pitch, with Walsh given more freedom to roam forward, trusting that there are capable feet to mop up behind her should she need it. That composure was monumental in keeping rivals Arsenal quiet in Chelsea’s 1-0 victory at Stamford Bridge last month.
After the match, Chelsea’s French head coach Bompastor said: ‘For her age, the way she has been performing, I think it’s great. I think people were looking forward to this game to see in this big occasion if she was able to repeat and sustain the performance, and she proved that today.
‘For a player as young as her, being able to bring that impact into the game, out of possession, in possession, it’s great news for England. I wish she could be French.’
2) Freya Godfrey
For those who regularly follow the WSL, Freya Godfrey is one they will know well. A pacy, exciting young winger with the world at her feet.
Yet to Lionesses fans, the 21-year-old is still a relative unknown, having failed to make her debut despite receiving her first call-up by Wiegman last November.
Godfrey joined London City Lionesses from Arsenal last year and had a terrific debut season, ending as the club’s 2025-26 Players’ Player of the Season after scoring six goals and providing four assists in their maiden WSL campaign.
There were warning signs that she could be displaced by one of her team’s many expensive new recruits when she was left out of the opening matchday squad against Manchester United. Yet Godfrey has clearly shown enough in training to stake a claim in Eder Maestre’s starting XI for three of London City’s last four games and to get the nod once again from Wiegman.
While there has been stiff competition ahead of her on the right wing, with Beth Mead, Jess Park and Lauren James all able to play in that position, Godfrey’s newfound deployment at No9 for London City could set her in good stead for winning her first cap during this camp, should Wiegman look to rest Russo at any point.
And she has been learning from the best, feeding off the nuggets of information World Cup winner Alexia Putellas has been handing out this season.
Godfrey was London City Lionesses Players’ Player of the Season last year and has retained a spot in the team despite expensive summer arrivals
The 21-year-old looks in good stead to win her first England cap during this camp
‘As a young player it’s so incredible to have her around every day,’ Godfrey said of the two-time Ballon d’Or winner. ‘She’s very caring, she wants you to develop and she’ll put a lot of faith in you and have a lot of conversations with you.
‘She’s very good at one-to-one speaking, if she sees something, she’ll say it, so I think I’ve developed a lot (playing alongside her).’
Charismatic and funny, Godfrey has been open about the fact that she genuinely enjoys speaking to the media, unlike some of her peers, speaking with maturity about the importance of ‘feeling like my opinion is valued’. She opened up about her desire to dress up for Halloween as her favourite character from the video game Fortnite, but has been shut down by ‘the Spanish’, who ‘want to go sexy… typical.’
‘I’m not going to embarrass myself and go as a banana while everyone else looks great,’ she adds.
While there is no doubt that the priority is always to win football games, in terms of the marketability of the Lionesses, Godfrey has that bit of stardust that will stand her in good stead for the future.
3) Erica Meg Parkinson
Lastly, but certainly not least, Erica Meg Parkinson is another to keep an eye on this window after the 18-year-old returned to camp just a few months after she was handed a shock call-up in March.
A player full of flair and close ball control, Parkinson is an exciting attacking midfielder to watch, and she has adjusted well since moving from Portugal’s top flight to America in the summer, turning down a plethora of enquiries from European clubs, including the WSL, in the hope of more game time.
‘I feel like the NWSL does a good job at bringing in young players and giving them the minutes that they need, and I felt like that was what I needed at that time,’ she said on Tuesday, a worrying indictment of the lack of opportunities afforded to young players in this country.
For Parkinson, though, North Carolina Courage have certainly provided that. Their reliance on the youngster has grown to the point where she was forced to withdraw from the U20s World Cup in order to help guide her club through its play-off matches.
One of the more amusing anecdotes from Parkinson, who grew up in Singapore and whose parents are Japanese and English, related to the origins of her first name.
‘My dad’s a huge Man United fan, so we basically became a huge Man United family and I was named after Eric Cantona,’ she said.
Erica Meg Parkinson, who revealed she is named after Man United legend Eric Cantona, would become England’s youngest debutant should she feature for the Lionesses
‘It was a pretty good player to be named after, except for the karate kicks. And my brother was named after Denis Law. I don’t think my mum had much of a say but it kind of worked out because we both play football now.’
Wiegman has been known to make her young players wait for their first appearance, although she broke that mould with Lucia Kendall getting a first start in her first call-up against Australia last year.
If Parkinson were to make an appearance in one of the Lionesses’ upcoming World Cup qualifiers, she would become England’s youngest debutant by some distance. Euros heroine Michelle Agyemang currently holds that record, having been aged 19 years and 64 days when she came off the bench to score 41 seconds into her debut against Belgium last April.
If Agyemang is anything to go by, the future is certainly bright for these young Lionesses.
