11 October 2022

As Lucy Bronze wins her 100th cap, a look back at her dazzling England career

11 October 2022

Lucy Bronze was selected for her 100th England cap in Tuesday night’s friendly against the Czech Republic.

Here, the PA news agency looks at the Barcelona full-back’s international career.

Attacking threat

Bronze made her international debut in 2013 as a substitute against Japan, when an offside flag denied her a late goal which would have been a sign of things to come from the attacking full-back.

She has 11 goals to her name, one every nine games on average prior to Tuesday’s centenary, with her first coming against Belarus in 2014. Since then she has scored at least one international goal every year except 2016 and a pandemic-affected 2020 in which England played only three games and Bronze was not involved.

Three of her goals have come at World Cups, against Norway and Canada in 2015 and Norway again four years later – having also netted twice in qualifying for each of those tournaments. She also scored against Sweden in the semi-final as the Lionesses won Euro 2022, their first major trophy.

Bronze was also part of the squads that won the high-quality Arnold Clark Cup warm-up event and the 2019 SheBelieves Cup, and played for Great Britain in all four matches at the delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

At club level, Bronze has won the Women’s Super League twice with Liverpool and once with Manchester City, the FA Cup and League Cup twice each with City and, during her spell at Lyon, three successive league and Champions League doubles.

She was named UEFA women’s player of the year for 2018-19 and The Best FIFA women’s player for 2020.

Century club

Former midfielder Fara Williams holds the record for most England caps with 172, with Jill Scott second overall on 153.

Bronze is the 13th woman to reach three figures and joins former captain Steph Houghton as the only active players on the list, after Jill Scott retired along with Ellen White after winning Euro 2022. Houghton’s 121st and most recent appearance came in last February’s win over Northern Ireland, before she suffered a long-term injury and struggled to regain her place.

Alex Scott – Bronze’s predecessor at right-back – fellow defenders Casey Stoney and Rachel Unitt, midfielder Gillian Coultard, wingers Karen Carney and Rachel Yankey and forwards Kelly Smith and Eni Aluko are the other century club members.

  • Fara Williams 172
  • Jill Scott 153
  • Karen Carney 144
  • Alex Scott 140
  • Casey Stoney 130
  • Rachel Yankey 129
  • *Steph Houghton 121
  • Gillian Coultard 119
  • Kelly Smith 117
  • Ellen White 113
  • Eni Aluko 102
  • Rachel Unitt 102
  • *Lucy Bronze 100

After White and Bronze within a year of each other, there is unlikely to be another inductee in the near future.

Toni Duggan has 79 caps but none since March 2020, and will not play for the remainder of this season after recently announcing she is pregnant, leaving Alex Greenwood as the next active player after winning her 70th cap against the Czech Republic.

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