Grace Clinton on Lionesses call-up: “It’s probably the biggest achievement of my career so far”
Grace Clinton has spoken of the “surreal” feeling she had when Sarina Wiegman handed her a first senior England call-up this week.
The attacking midfielder’s fine form in our colours at the start of the season was rewarded on Tuesday when Lionesses boss Wiegman named her in the squad for this month’s UEFA Women’s Nations League double-header against Belgium.
Signed on loan from Manchester United over the summer, the 20-year-old has started all three of our Women’s Super League fixtures so far this term and scored a stunning goal from distance in the 3-1 win at Brighton on Sunday.
She has now become the first player to earn a first senior Lionesses call-up while playing for us.
Recounting the moment she got the call from Wiegman, Grace revealed: “First of all, I was shocked. I think I actually missed a couple of calls earlier in the day and then she called me on WhatsApp so I could see her profile picture before I answered and I was like ‘no way!’
“After that, most of it was just a bit of a blur to be honest – I was just speechless when she was on the phone to me. I still can’t believe it now – it’s obviously very surreal. Like I said, I was shocked but also I’m very proud. I think it really hit home when I was on the phone to my mum and she said she felt like she was going to cry, so I think it’s probably the biggest achievement of my career so far and I’m very, very proud.”
Having previously featured in the younger England age groups, Grace has been playing with freedom and confidence at club level this term. She attributes her recent form in part to our Head Coach Robert Vilahamn, who coincidentally told the media at his pre-match press conference ahead of our trip to Brighton last week that he believed the midfielder would one day represent her national team.
“I don’t think either of us thought it would be this soon but it’s just about taking it in my stride now – I’ve just got to dive in and have a go. I know the standard will be unbelievable,” smiled Grace.
“Robert is one of the biggest factors in the call-up, I would say, just with the confidence he’s given me. To be honest, all my confidence comes from the team that I’m playing in, the manager and the staff behind the scenes. I think this is the most confident I’ve been in my career so far and you can definitely see that on the pitch.
“I know a couple of the girls – I’ve played with them before – so I have an idea of what to expect, but at the same time I also don’t fully know what to expect, so I think that’s the exciting part. I’m just going to go in there and try to be myself.”
England host Belgium at Leicester City’s King Power Stadium on Friday 27 October before travelling to face the same opponents in Leuven on Tuesday 31 October.