The Three Lionesses of England is one of the favorites for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup scheduled for Australia and New Zealand later this month but their status as favorites did not just come easy.
The English team went all the way to the finals of the Euro 2021 Women’s championships beating all comers to their first-ever title.
Their convincing victory has put them on the same pedestal with the likes of perennial World Cup champions USA, Japan, heavyweights Spain, France, and Olympic champions Canada.
The Women’s Super League In England, the English top-flight women’s football league, has also been interesting, with unexpected results in the last season.
A combination of English players from the league and overseas have raised the English women’s national team’s status.
In this article, we will take a look at the top 10 English women’s soccer stars in the year 2023. Some of them will be traveling to the woman’s World Cup, and some will, unfortunately, be unavailable due to injury but nevertheless still top stars of English women’s football.
1. Alessia Russo – Forward
Alex Russo has only spent three years with the English women’s national team.
Still, she has managed to grow to be an integral part of the team in that period, helping them win the UEFA-CONMEBOL Finalissima and the UEFA Euro Women’s Championship.
Last season she was the top scorer for Manchester United in the WSL before running down her contract to join Arsenal.
And with Beath Mead injured and unavailable for the World Cup for England, Russo will be the woman to go to for the goals in Australia and New Zealand.
Russo is a versatile player who can play as a center-forward or on either flank, and has also been deployed as an attacking midfielder. She is an excellent dribbler and has a keen eye for goal, with a powerful shot and good finishing ability.
She is regarded as one of the top strikers in women’s football at the moment.
2. Mary Earps – Goalkeeper
England’s first-choice goalkeeper is one of the reasons that they won the UEFA Euro Championship on the home front.
The Manchester United goalkeeper did not concede any goal in the group stage and conceded just twice all tournament long.
At the Finalissima, Mary Earps saved penalties as England triumphed against Brazil in March at Wembley.
She will definitely be key if England is to make any giant strides at the World Cup, especially if some of their key attacking players are injured.
Earps is known for her excellent shot-stopping ability, commanding presence in the penalty area, and strong distribution skills. She is considered one of the best goalkeepers in women’s football right now.
3. Lucy Bronze – Defender
Lucy Bronze is one of the best women’s players of all time, and she’s also England’s most capped Lioness with 104 games under her belt.
She was initially laid out for the FIFA Women’s World Cup, but after a knee surgery assessment, it looks like the player will be able to help England at the Women’s World Cup..
Lucy Bronze is a versatile football player who is known for her technical ability, athleticism, and defensive skills. She primarily plays as a right-back, but can also play in midfield or as a center-back when needed. Bronze is a strong tackler
Bronze is also the first England player and first female defender to win one of FIFA’s main awards
4. Leah Williamson – Defender
Arsenal’s Leah Williamson will be out of the women’s world cup no thanks to her ACL injury, and her absence has been echoed by her teammates who knew her contribution last summer to the Women’s Euros Championship win.
The 26-year-old still has a long career, injury permitting, ahead of her and can still add to her 48 appearances for England’s national women’s team. Her defensive leadership will surely be missed, no doubt.
5. Lauren Hemp – Forward
Lauren Hemp may not have finished as the top scorer of the women’s Super League last season for Manchester City, but her four years of experience with the English women’s national team and 30+ caps will come in handy at the World Cup.
The Manchester City forward has always been talented and considered a huge potential as she was named England Young Player of the Year in September 2016, 2017 and PFA Women’s Young Player of the Year in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2022.
In 2022 she helped the Lionesses win the Euros and followed it with seven goals and six assists in 20 Women’s Super League games last season.
6. Fran Kirby – Forward
While Chelsea offered Fran Kirby a one-year contract extension, the Three Lionesses, the women’s national team of England, refused to take a gamble on the injury-stricken 30-year-old who only played just eight games in the WSL last season.
Even though she scored six goals in those eight games, she was left out of the England women’s national team squad to the World Cup, and it is envisaged that the team will miss her presence.
Fran Kirby packs experience as she was part of the team that went to third place in the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2015, a year after her national team debut. The Chelsea record goalscorer has over 65 appearances for England.
7. Keira Walsh – Midfielder
The championship-winning mentality of Keira Walsh can never be underestimated after winning the treble with Barcelona’s women’s team in Spain, winning the La Liga Feminine Cup, and the UEFA Women’s Champions League in the past season.
She is currently one of the best women’s football players in the world.
Asides from that, the 26-year-old defensive midfielder was also very instrumental in the final of the UEFA Women’s Euro championships final against Germany as she was named the player of the final match.
England will need more of such performances in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
8. Beth Mead – Forward
Arsenal’s Beth Mead he’s one of the very instrumental and important players that the England women’s national team will miss at the World Cup, no thanks to a recurring ACL injury she has had to endure twice now.
Mead was the runner-up to the Balon D’or winner in 2022, and the striker has been named in the final list of several individual awards.
She has the all-time most assists and all-time second-most goal contributions in the WSL.
At UEFA Women’s Euro 2022, she became the Golden Boot winner, Player of the Tournament, and top assist provider, leading England to win a major tournament for the first time
9. Lauren James – Winger
Lauren James looks like the future of the Three Lionesses in the attack, and at 21, she’s justifying the tag.
Five goals in 18 WSL matches for Chelsea last season has prepared her for her first women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand after she got called up by coach Sarina Weigman.
Lauren James is also the younger sister of Chelsea and England defender Reece James.
10. Rachel Daly – Winger
Rachel Daly earned her place on the bus to Australia and New Zealand by top scoring for Aston Villa in the WSL with 22 goals and five assists.
That was almost half of the team’s whole tally in the WSL last season in 22 matches.
Rachel Daly, 31, has 69 appearances for the English women’s national team and has scored 13 goals in all. With the absence of Beth Mead, England could use a striker like her.
