Chloe Kelly issued a response to her doubters after she scored the winning penalty to England women defend their European Championship crown at Euro 2025.
The 27-year-old scored the decisive spot-kick for England to win the shootout 3-1 as scores remained level at 1-1 against Spain after extra-time.
Kelly had come on for the injured Lauren James after 40 minutes and delivered a pinpoint cross to assist Alessia Russo for the equaliser in the second half.
It was yet another decisive impact at Euro 2025 from Kelly, who has seen her fortunes transform since joining Arsenal on loan in January this year.
“There were a lot of tears at full-time, especially when I saw my family because those were the people that got me through those tough dark moments,” she reflected.
“That’s a story to tell someone that experiences something similar, tough times don’t last.
“Just around the corner was a Champions League final, won that. Then a Euros final, won that. Thank you to everyone that wrote me off, I’m grateful."
Having started the domestic season at Manchester City, Kelly found herself outcast from the squad and struggling to get minutes even as a substitute.
But a post on her Instagram story in January stating she wanted to be “happy again” forced a loan move to Arsenal on deadline day.
Having been dropped by England, the following months saw her earn a starting spot in north London and force her way back into favour with Sarina Wiegman, for whom she had plenty of praise.
“She’s bloody amazing. She’s an incredible woman, what she’s done for this country, we should all be so grateful for,” said Kelly.
“What she’s done for me individually, she gave me hope when I probably didn’t have any. She gave me an opportunity to represent my
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