Wales women head for Euro 2025 wanting to scale heights and leave legacy
The rain cascading down on the Vale of Glamorgan is so heavy, so incessant, that the hotel's reception has run out of umbrellas for guests to borrow and frustrated golfers crowd the lobby. Only two sets of residents seem oblivious to the weather; those heading to the spa and the Wales Women squad. It is late May and with Rhian Wilkinson's players flying to Switzerland for Euro 2025 at the end of June far too much is at stake for anyone wearing a national tracksuit to be at a loose end.
Charlie Estcourt has travelled to the sprawling Vale Resort from the United States where she plays for Washington's DC Power, but the midfielder is not about to succumb to jet lag. Instead, she is focused on impressing Wilkinson as the team trains at the Welsh's FA's centre of excellence within the hotel's verdant grounds. 'We have a no-excuses culture now,' says Estcourt. 'It's something Rhian's brought in and it's really helped us get to the next level.'
Advertisement
That change enabled Wales to qualify for their first major tournament while opening a window to social change. 'A really big thing for us as a collective is that we want to leave a legacy for Welsh women,' says Estcourt. 'To create the sort of opportunities for girls growing up in Wales today that we never had.'
The squad's Euro 2025 slogan is 'For us. For them. For her'. They are entering a formidable group containing England, France and the Netherlands motivated by a desire to reach the knockout phase for not just themselves and their families but every aspiring female footballer in Wales.
'We're want to show how empowering women's football can be,' says Estcourt, speaking with the assured fluency of having completed a sports broadcasting degree. 'One of the most amazing things about the game is all the people you meet, the places you visit, the connections you make. So we're trying to do our bit to grow women's football here. We go out to schools and when you talk to the young girls in their replica kits they're so excited. We don't want them to lose that feeling.'
To place this in context, it is only recently that Wales Women acquired parity with the men's team in terms of not merely equal pay but training facilities and support staff. The squad did not acquire their first full-time manager until 2010 and wore shirts with numbers but no names on the back until 2019. Dave Adams, the Football Association of Wales's technical director, says 'We're doing a lot of catch up. You'd hope your daughter would be afforded the same opportunities as your son.'
Advertisement
In Wilkinson's case, the personal and the political are inseparable. Although the Wales head coach was born and brought up in Quebec her mother is Welsh and her late father was English. Between 1989 and 1991, the family relocated from Montreal to their beloved south Wales. Y Bont Faen primary school in Cowbridge is six miles from the Vale Resort, but it is where the move soured when it barred Wilkinson and her sister from playing football, a sport they had enjoyed in Canada.
Although her parents, in Wilkinson's words, 'went into battle for us and took on the governors' only minimal changes were made and the family, reluctantly, returned to Quebec because the girls 'weren't going to get the same opportunities here'.
For Wilkinson, that parental sacrifice paid dividends in the form of 183 caps for Canada, two Olympic bronze medals and the foundation of a coaching career that peaked in 2022 when Portland Thorns won the US's National Women's Soccer League title.
It also dictates that she views the Wales job as more akin to a crusade than a mere entry on a CV that briefly became clouded when she and a senior Portland player informed the club they shared a mutual attraction but had done nothing inappropriate. Although an investigation cleared the manager of any wrongdoing while exonerating her conduct, Wilkinson resigned during a sanctimonious social media storm.
Advertisement
'I was completely vindicated, but I was very hurt. I was made an example of,' she said when becoming Wales coach in February 2024. 'It was very public and very painful. Safeguarding is critical but when anyone's investigated people assume they've done something wrong because there's so much wrongdoing in sport.'
Returning to Wales has proved restorative. 'This is a special team,' she says. 'They're strong and don't quit on each other. I've never been prouder. But my arrival maybe came just at the right time to ask these players to do things that in the past they weren't ready for.'
After a morning on the training pitches, her squad return to the Vale Resort for lunch before disappearing into a series of conference suites repurposed as video analysis studios and media rooms. When Jess Fishlock emerges from one meeting and walks down a staircase into a public lounge a couple of guests sitting in the lobby quietly nudge each other.
Fishlock remains the team's most recognisable face and her enduring presence is at the centre of preparations for Switzerland where she is convinced Wales will escape their group of death.
Advertisement
At 38, the Seattle Reign midfielder remains world-class, with her on-field partnerships alongside the Wales captain, Angharad James, a Reign teammate, and the former Chelsea enforcer Sophie Ingle key to shocking Europe's elite. 'Jess is so important,' says Estcourt. 'She's so experienced, so knowledgable. On the pitch she's invaluable; she controls the tempo, she brings goals, she brings assists. She also brings that calm head when things get a bit chaotic.'
Wales arrive in Switzerland as the lowest-ranked team but they rarely lose games by more than a single goal and are awkward opponents. 'We're used to being underdogs, but we're not going to the Euros to make up numbers,' says Estcourt.
'We've shown we can compete. Rhian's made us very adaptable; we can change our style depending on who we're playing and we understand all the different systems so well. We're such a tight-knit group. We chat all the time; that closeness definitely pushes us on.'
Fast forward one month to 9am last Thursday and it seemed fitting that Wilkinson named her final 23-strong squad on the summit of Yr Wyddfa, or Snowdon. While her staff and media ascended by a tourist mini railway the Wales coach marched up in 90 minutes.
Advertisement
Significantly, the squad's meeting and dining rooms at the Vale Resort are routinely studded with pictures of the Welsh mountain superimposed with the team badge and a fixture list. The former Real Betis defender Rhiannon Roberts explains that as Euro 25 qualifying games were ticked off the badge was regularly re-pinned on its climb towards the summit.
If some of the squad were sceptical when Wilkinson introduced the Yr Wyddfa metaphor after taking charge, they are now looking forward to images of a Himalayan peak at the training camp on Portugal's Algarve and, then, their Swiss tournament base near Lake Constance.
'The mountain was used as a theme because qualifying was always going to be an uphill battle, with setbacks,' says Wilkinson who has also introduced a mental performance coach and invited the Wales men's manager, Craig Bellamy, to address her players.
In recognition of the scale of the challenge ahead, the squad's Swiss base is every bit as high end as any occupied by Bellamy's players. A luxury hotel has been block-booked by the FAW and a purpose-built training ground media centre constructed along with a new gym and freshly laid pitches.
As Estcourt reiterates, there are no excuses for underachievement. 'We're so inspired by what Wales men did in reaching the semi finals of Euro 2016,' she says. 'They also went as underdogs and I think we might surprise a few people too.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Bayern Munich add Arsenal's Gabriel Martinelli to transfer target list
Christian Falk reports that Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich have added Arsenal's Gabriel Martinelli to their list of summer transfer targets. Incoming transfer rumors relating to the German giants continue to come thick and fast. FCB chief personnel officer Max Eberl and staff are clearly working overtime at the Säbener Straße headquarters. Arsenal's 18-times-capped Brazilian international fits the profile of what Bayern seek during the current summer transfer window. Namely, a winger with a proven performance record and a price tag in the €50m-€70m range. Martinelli maintains a current €55m estimated market value. Advertisement Bayern require assistance on both flanks ahead of the new Bundesliga campaign, but seem to be prioritizing players with leftward proclivities first. The Martinelli rumors make sense in the context of this need. Thanks to their early qualification for the Round-of-16 in the ongoing club World Cup, Bayern have already earned the equivalent of €39.5 million in the new mega-format tournament. It is such that one expects the German record champions to seal some blockbuster summer signings in the coming days. GGFN | Peter Weis
Associated Press
an hour ago
- Associated Press
Kenan Yildiz scores twice in Juventus' 4-1 win in Club World Cup
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Kenan Yildiz scored two goals in Juventus' 4-1 win over Wydad in the Club World Cup on Sunday. The victory clinched a spot in the elimination round of the tournament for Juventus. In the sixth minute, Juventus took the lead as defender Abdelmounaim Boutouil deflected a shot attempt by Yildiz into the back of Wydad's net. Ten minutes later, Yildiz showed up again in front of the 31,975 fans in Lincoln Financial Field, less than half the stadium's capacity, to double Juventus' lead with a powerful volley into the top right corner. Wydad made it 2-1 in the 25th minute after a pass from team captain Nordin Amrabat left Thembinkosi Lorch one-on-one with Michele Di Gregorio, who wasn't able to stop Lorch's chip shot. Following the goal, the referee paused the match after Wydad's supporters threw three flares onto the field and set off red and black smoke in the stands that affected visibility on the field. The four-minute pause also served as a hydration break for the players as temperatures in Philadelphia reached 89 degrees in the first half. With his second goal of the game, Yildiz secured the win for Juventus in the 69th minute after an assist by Randal Kolo Muani. In stoppage time, Dusan Vlahovic added a goal after converting a penalty kick. Key moment Vlahovic's score in the 94th minute was key to make Juventus' goal differential better ahead of a tough match against Manchester City for the lead in Group G. Takeaways Juventus is through to the round of 16 of the Club World Cup. They will play Manchester City next Thursday to determine the leader of Group G. With the loss, Wydad is eliminated from the tournament. They will face Al Ain in a battle for third place in the group. ___ AP soccer:
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Juventus 4 Wydad 1 – Majestic Yildiz denied brilliant hat-trick, flares on pitch and surprising match-ups
Kenan Yildiz was the star as his two brilliant goals helped Juventus continue their 100 per cent start to the Club World Cup. The young Turk's first-half wonderstrike and winding finish in the second were the highlights. He was denied a hat-trick, however, as the first Juve goal, after great work from Yildiz, was given as a own goal. Wydad gave their raucous fans a first goal of the tournament to celebrate when Thembinkosi Lorch pulled one back, which led to a flare being thrown on to the pitch and smoke engulfing much of the playing area. A Juve penalty completed the scoring. Advertisement The final group games take place on June 26, with Juve facing City and Wydad taking on Al Ain. Here Steve Madeley and Larry Henry Jr break down the action from Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia. Juventus's Turkey international Kenan Yildiz is only 20 but in a relatively short senior career, he has made a habit of scoring goals that are a little out of the ordinary. So when Andrea Cambiaso rolled a pass to him on the edge of the Wydad penalty area 16 minutes into his latest game, Juventus fans would have had an inkling what might be about to happen. Sure enough, Yildiz made an incredibly difficult piece of technique look ridiculously simple, connecting with the outside portion of the laces of his right boot to propel the ball with a cocktail of power, precision and swerve that took it away from helpless goalkeeper El Mehdi Benabid and into the top corner. It should have been no surprise, coming as it did from a player who announced his first-team arrival with a superb first senior goal against Frosinone in Serie A in December 2023. He then scored the first goal in the revamped Champions League group stage in September with a stunner against PSV Eindhoven (below). If his talent needed underlining further against Wydad, it was in the second half as he scored a goal with echoes of his strike against Frosinone to complete a 'spiritual hat-trick', even though he will not be credited with an actual one. That was because the opening Juventus goal, which was entirely down to Yildiz's mesmeric dribbling and near-post shot, went down as a own-goal for Abdelmounaim Boutouil. Steve Madeley The Wydad supporters were out in bunches again at Lincoln Financial Field, providing a deafening atmosphere from the pre-match warm-ups through the final whistle. Similar to Wednesday's match against Manchester City, the Wydad supporters chanted loudly, banged their drums, and even threw a few flares onto the field, not far from goalkeeper El Mehdi Benabid (see below) following Lorch's goal in the 25th minute. A PA announcement was made in the 44th minute reminding fans that pyrotechnic usage was prohibited, but Wydad supporters responded to the intercom message by setting off three or four additional flares in the stands. They then booed the half-time whistle from referee Said Martinez as it was blown with Wydad in the ascendance. While Manchester City, Chelsea, and Juventus have garnered most of the headlines in Philadelphia, the scenes left from the Wydad, Flamengo, and Esperance de Tunis fans have certainly left a positive impression in the city. Larry Henry Jr This Club World Cup is a dream come true for fans of high-profile blasts from the past. Whether it is Sergio Ramos scoring for Mexican side Monterrey, Edinson Cavani rolling back the years for Boca Juniors or any number of former Premier League folk heroes lining up for Al Hilal, the tournament is a hotbed for former stars enjoying another day in the spotlight. But it was the turn of two of the Premier League's less heralded players to go head to head in Philadelphia. Nordin Amrabat, who joined Wydad from Hull City just before this tournament, and Lloyd Kelly (who moved to Juve from Newcastle earlier this year) had met before, in the relatively less glamorous surroundings of Watford's Vicarage Road in a 2017 Carabao Cup tie. Just over 9,000 fans watched Amrabat's Watford side lose to 3-2 Kelly's Bristol City in that game, and both came up against each other several times on Sunday. Amrabat got the assist for Wydad's goal as well as sending in several dangerous crosses. Steve Madeley Thursday, June 26: Manchester City, Club World Cup group stage (Orlando), 3pm ET, 8pm UK Thursday, June 26: Al Ain, Club World Cup group stage (Washington), 3pm ET, 8pm UK
