England’s Euro 2022 winner Jill Scott announces retirement from football

Jill Scott became the second Euro 2022 winner to retire in two days, announcing on Tuesday that she had called time on a remarkable career that will finish with 161 England caps.

The week started with Ellen White saying she would hang up her boots on Monday after England’s successful summer and Scott has followed her. Scott’s decision is less of a surprise, the 35-year-old being without a club after leaving Manchester City.

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Scott is one of the most respected and influential players in England’s history after an international career that spanned 16 years. Only Fara Williams has more caps – men and women – with 172. Apart from winning Euro 2022, she finished third at the 2015 World Cup and was a losing finalist at the European Championship in 2009. She played in 10 major tournaments, including two Olympics for Great Britain.

Scott also left her mark at club level, having come through at Sunderland before joining Everton in 2006. She spent seven years on Merseyside and a further eight at Manchester City, although she lost her starting place towards the end and was loaned out, first to Everton, then to Aston Villa. She won the WSL once, the WSL Cup three times and the FA Cup four times.

A hugely popular player among teammates, Scott was described by the former England coach Phil Neville as “happy-go-lucky”. He credited her with bringing “some cheekiness to the squad” and Scott’s former teammate Carly Telford said last year: “She’ll never take the plaudits that she deserves. She’s so unselfish, she will do anything for the team.”