Former Lionesses keeper pinpoints 'essential' decision for Sarina Wiegman on eve of Euros

Former England goalkeeper Rachel Brown-Finnis expects Sarina Wiegman to hand out at least one debut against Jamaica on Sunday as the Lionesses prepare for their Euros title defence. Experienced keeper Mary Earps retired from international football in May, leaving uncapped duo Khiara Keating and Anna Moorhouse as the deputies to first choice Hannah Hampton.

Sarina Wiegman's side begin their European Championships campaign against France on July 5. Before then, though, they will take on Jamaica at the King Power Stadium in a match which allows the manager to take a closer look at some of her fringe players.

"From a goalkeeping union point of view you've got one player that's capped and two uncapped, so the concern is if something happens to Hannah Hampton then there's not a lot of experience," Brown-Finnis tells Mirror Football.. "There's no experience at senior international level from actually taking to the field.

"I think that's almost essential [for one to start vs Jamaica]. Sarina will know who her starting eleven is, I would expect - barring injury - for that opening game.

"The gaping gap is that experience for the goalkeepers so I would fully expect to see changes to what will be the starting eleven for next week. Certainly would expect that one of those will be involved for sure, even if it's a half each for both goalkeepers."

A run-out in a friendly will be rather different to Brown-Finnis' own baptism of fire. The BBC commentator won 82 caps in total during her playing days, but the first of those came when she was just 16 years old.

"It was more kicking me in at the deep end, it felt like," she says. "I think I was still 16, and it was half-time, playing against Germany and we were 4-0 down, and the manager said 'you're going to go on'. We lost 6-4 in the end, so we won 4-2 in the second half and I take that as a win.

"Goalkeeping is a little bit like that, you don't have time to get on the pitch, to have a few touches and get into the rhythm of the game. It is in at the deep end whether you're starting and you know you're starting or whether you come on. But any bit of experience, playing in a senior shirt - because that is very different [to other experiences].

"There are some similarities, but the size of the crowd that will be there against Jamaica, neither Anna or Khiara will have played in front of that in an England shirt at youth level. Possibly have done at a domestic level, but putting on that England shirt, doing a different job for a different manager - how you're playing, what your role is.

"Obviously it's not just about saving goals nowadays, it's how you're playing with your feet and how you fit in with that with the 10 outfielders. When you're in and out of possession, your job is different to what they do at club level. So it's about executing the game plan as a collective, so I would hope that both goalkeepers get an opportunity to be able to understand what it really feels like to go out there and where an England shirt."

Women’s Euro 2025 is on the BBC with matches available to watch live on BBC One, Two & iPlayer, or listen to on BBC Radio 5 Live & Sounds.

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