Is England's number one shirt in Hampton's hands?

Nothing is decided yet, but is this Hannah Hampton's accidental to amusement she should beryllium England’s first-choice goalkeeper for Euro 2025?

Lionesses brag Sarina Wiegman did not truly clarify who her fig 1 is erstwhile she was asked astir it past week, and it feels similar she has near the doorway open.

I'd beryllium amazed if Hampton does not commencement up of Mary Earps successful Friday's affable against Germany - but that won't amusement that Wiegman has decided thing for adjacent summer's tourney successful Switzerland.

What Wiegman is large on, though, is signifier and playing clip - and Hampton is presently up of Earps connected both.

She has started England's past 3 games, aft replacing Earps erstwhile she was injured aboriginal connected against France astatine the extremity of May, and has done good arsenic an ever-present successful Chelsea's beardown commencement to the Women's Super League season.

While Earps has been backmost into the Paris St-Germain squad for their past 2 matches, she has had a tougher clip since her determination from Manchester United successful the summer.

As Wiegman says, it tin instrumentality players clip to accommodate to caller situations erstwhile they determination countries arsenic good arsenic clubs.

Earps has fought to get backmost successful astatine PSG, wherever she had mislaid her spot to Katarzyna Kiedrzynek, and she mightiness person to bash the aforesaid with England now.

Her concern is the aforesaid arsenic each goalkeepers who occasionally find themselves retired of the team, nary substance who they are and what they person achieved successful their career.

I recovered that retired myself - erstwhile you are retired of favour, you person to bide your time, enactment hard successful the inheritance and hold for your opportunity. Then, erstwhile it comes, you person to instrumentality afloat vantage of it.

That's precisely what Hampton has done to get successful the England squad successful the archetypal place.

Technically, she is strong. Her shot-stopping is peculiarly bully connected her left-hand broadside and her organisation is awesome too. For Chelsea, she seems to favour playing retired connected the right-hand side, astir apt down to the information that Lucy Bronze is there, and they tin proceed that narration for England too.

It does not get immoderate easier for her from here, though. Now she has got to beryllium she has the consistency to prolong this bully form, particularly astatine the precise highest level.

Earps has already done that successful the past, of course, but she has made immoderate precocious illustration errors too.

So, what happens successful these adjacent fewer friendlies - England besides play South Africa successful Coventry connected Tuesday, earlier the United States successful November and Switzerland successful December - volition beryllium important for some players, whoever gets picked.

Having contention similar this is not a atrocious concern to beryllium in, for anyone involved.

Both keepers volition get amended due to the fact that of it, adjacent if the situation erstwhile they are moving unneurotic mightiness beryllium a small awkward astatine first.

That's inevitable whenever the goalkeeping hierarchy is not clear, but it's not a immense occupation - it conscionable takes clip to manage.

From Wiegman's constituent of view, determination is clip betwixt present and the Euros for the concern to enactment retired earlier she has to marque a decision. If Earps stays successful the PSG squad and plays well, past it becomes much hard to choose, but it's a bully occupation to have.

Ideally, Hampton continues to play well, which would springiness the squad assurance that some keepers tin execute astatine the level required, whoever ends up being the established fig one.

At 23, Hampton is 8 years younger than Earps and it is decidedly steadfast for the squad to person a younger keeper pushing for a starting place.

Their existent conflict for the fig 1 garment has been described arsenic a imaginable 'changing of the guard' erstwhile I americium not convinced that is the lawsuit yet - but the absorption connected that possibly masks immoderate imaginable concerns implicit England's excavation of elder keepers and who other could beryllium successful the framework close now, if required.

It feels similar determination has been a spot of a spread from Earps to Hampton - a benignant of generational improvement lag, wherever different keepers person not challenged Earps, astatine slightest consistently.

Hopefully, Hampton volition span that and then, further down the road, determination are bully young keepers specified arsenic Manchester City's Khiara Keating coming through.

In the meantime, I thought Anna Moorhouse staying successful the squad for the Germany and South Africa games was interesting, due to the fact that it reinforces that Wiegman values playing clip and form, not conscionable potential.

It's a mode of establishing recognition with her, which I like. I consciousness similar she understands the travel of a subordinate - you tin person bully oregon atrocious times, and you tin beryllium connected an upward oregon downward curve.

Keating, who lone turned 20 successful the summer, exceeded anticipation with City past season, and performed good supra expected levels, successful presumption of the shots she saved.

That earned her an England call-up astatine the extremity of 2023, but she has been rotated with Ayaka Yamashita this season, and has not started a WSL game.

Moorhouse is overmuch older astatine 29 and has not had a straightforward way into the England set-up - she was lone called up for the archetypal clip successful the summer, and is yet to triumph a afloat cap, but the mode she is playing astatine the infinitesimal is what justifies her place.

Equally, you could reason Sophie Baggaley deserves to beryllium successful the squad based connected however good she's playing for Brighton, but Moorhouse's enactment is simply a reminder to everyone that conscionable due to the fact that idiosyncratic is not playing successful the WSL, it doesn't mean they are not susceptible players.

Moorhouse near the WSL successful 2020 to determination to Bordeaux successful France and, since 2022, has been with Orlando Pride successful the United States.

Her communicative is an illustration of however each players request to find coaches and environments wherever they consciousness comfortable, understood and allowed to bash what they are bully at. It's besides a reminder that nary one's way is each straightforward oregon casual and that you person to beryllium determined and resilient to marque it to the top.

If you enactment each of that together, that's however you spot the champion of immoderate subordinate and, successful the past and present, it applies to Hampton and Earps too.

Karen Bardsley was speaking to BBC Sport's Chris Bevan.