Mary Earps will walk out for Sunday’s Women’s World Cup final with the title of Fifa best goalkeeper of the year, but three years ago her international career was in the doldrums.
The goalkeeper fell out of favour during the latter stages of Phil Neville’s England reign and was not selected by the next Lionesses coach Hege Riise, but a recall by Sarina Wiegman in Sep 2021 – and the Dutchwoman’s complete faith in Earps – has changed the 30-year-old’s life. So what is behind this change in career trajectory?
Arguably the most significant decision Earps made was to leave Reading five years ago to spend the 2018-19 season on foreign soil in Germany’s Frauen Bundesliga, playing for six-time Women’s Champions League finalists Wolfsburg.
Patrick Platins was the club’s goalkeeper coach at the time and he recalls working with a player with intense focus, determination and a willingness to learn something new every day. Yet it was not an easy year for Earps, who found herself out of the starting side as the back-up keeper behind Germany’s Almuth Schult.
“I think she needed that year in Wolfsburg, to be where she is now,” former Arminia Bielefeld and Wolfsburg men’s goalkeeper Platins told Telegraph Sport. “It was a game-changer for her. [Being a number two] she learnt how strong she had to be to beat other goalkeepers. And critically she discovered how much she can improve by working hard every day in training even if you are not playing in the matches.
“She really developed long-term. She was always asking for more, she wanted more from herself, she wanted more from every session. She wanted more games and she learnt from that year a lot. After [that season] she knew exactly what she wanted and how to get there.
“Mary and Almuth, they were fighting for the spot. Almuth has a really strong mentality too and she hates to lose, and when she’s not playing she hates it, so it was a tough fight between them.
“It was not easy for Mary to be here in Wolfsburg when Almuth was the number one. Mary got closer and closer and closer to Almuth throughout the season but it was our opinion that she maybe would become the number one in a few years. It wasn’t easy for either of them, they both wanted to play, and we don’t have so many cup games in Germany so it’s not so easy to just change the goalkeeper for the other cups like in England.”
Platins, who is still currently working for Wolfsburg, said working with Earps was a privilege because of her high work-rate: “Every single day, she worked hard. I love that, as a coach that’s really cool. Sometimes you work with goalkeepers who say, ‘Oh, I’m only number two’, and they do less work, but all the time Mary wanted to learn.
“Her best skill is her reactions, that’s her greatest attribute. And she has no fear. If she goes into a one-on-one situation or a blocking situation, she goes in with no fear.
“The other great thing about Mary is she can read the game. She anticipates what will happen next before other players know. Not forgetting, she has a really good personality. Those are the big skills of Mary Earps.
“In her season [at Wolfsburg] she worked really hard on her body fitness. She did her own extra work on fitness as well. We were also concentrating on her position management. The other thing that stands out is her focus. She has got a strong mentality. In the German league, every opponent treats Wolfsburg as their biggest game of the season because they want to beat Wolfsburg, they want to kill Wolfsburg, so you have to have a big personality at Wolfsburg, always trying to improve yourself and be really professional.”
In 2019, Earps moved to Manchester United as their first-choice keeper and has never looked back, domestically. One of her closest friends at United – albeit one who has now signed for Arsenal – has been her England team-mate Alessia Russo.
“Mary is one of the very best people, first and foremost,” said Russo. “She’s someone that I really admire and have learnt a lot from. I think she has a really wise head on her shoulders and she’s been and seen a lot, and to see where she is now makes me so happy.
“I think not many people remember the days – not so long ago – where she wasn’t even considered for England, and yes, people counted her out, and I think if you realised how far she’s come and how much work she’s put in, it’s incredible. She fully deserved the Fifa Best award and not only as a player but as a leader. The way she helps this team is incredible, and I’m glad she’s one of my closest friends.”
Earps may be enjoying success now but she is not one for settling; she is keen to reach greater heights. “I thought that winning trophies would make me feel like, ‘OK, cool, I’ve done that, now I can tick that off now I can relax now’. And it’s actually the complete opposite. It just makes you push your standards even higher and makes you just want to win even more things.
“It’s like a fire in your belly that I’ve always had. But I think you’re always trying to achieve things that you don’t know if it’s going to be possible. To actually achieve those things just makes me want to fill my cabinet with even more trophies and medals really.”
On Sunday, one more is on the line. Earps has kept three clean sheets so far in this tournament, and has only been beaten by a penalty, a cross that appeared to be mis-hit and unintentionally looped in, and Sam Kerr’s long-range screamer in the semi-final. One more good performance could see her become a world champion and, on the evidence of those who know her best, nobody has worked harder to get there.
