Beth Mead focused on England Euro success after Olympic snub

Beth Mead says she has learned to channel her energy “a little bit better” after going into the 2021-22 campaign fuelled by the disappointment of rejection.

The forward was named the Arsenal fans’ player of the season after a stellar campaign in which she scored 11 goals and provided eight assists, the joint highest in the league alongside Manchester United’s Ella Toone. Mead had credited her success to “playing angry” after she was not picked for the Olympics by the temporary England and Team GB manager, Hege Riise, last summer.

Now, though, with her form suggesting that she will almost certainly be named in Sarina Wiegman’s 23-player squad for the European Championship next week, she has little to be angry about. “I guess I’ve figured out how to channel my anger and energy into my football a little bit better now,” she said.

“I’m obviously a little bit more confident than I probably was last season. Hopefully I can take that into the Euros. I’m in a good place, I’m in a good headspace, my football has been good so I’m just trying to channel that energy in the right way.”

Mead, who made her debut for England in 2018, is benefiting from the clear messaging and relaxed atmosphere that the former Netherlands manager Wiegman has brought in. “I’ve known where I’ve stood, what she’s expected of me,” she said. “She’s given me a lot of confidence on the pitch and on the training pitch.

“It’s just been easy for me to go on the pitch and do what I know I can do and have the backing of my manager. I would say I’ve been a lot more free. The expectation she has for me, I understand a lot more than probably in the past.”

An emphasis on enjoying the football has been heavily injected into a squad that often seemed fazed by pressure.