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Leah Williamson
Williamson with England in 2019
Personal information
Full name Leah Cathrine Williamson[1]
Date of birth (1997-03-29) 29 March 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth Milton Keynes, England
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[2]
Position(s) Midfielder, Centre back
Team information
Current team
Arsenal
Number 6
Youth career
2003–2006 Rushden & Diamonds
2006–2013 Arsenal
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014– Arsenal 126 (7)
International career
2011 England U15 1 (0)
2012–2013 England U17 16 (2)
2014–2016 England U19 15 (6)
2014 England U20 3 (0)
2014–2018 England U23 6 (0)
2018– England 39 (2)
2021– Great Britain 3 (0)
Medal record
Women's football
Representing  England
UEFA Women's Championship
Winner 2022 England
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 1 July April 2022
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22:40, 28 September 2022 (UTC)

Leah Cathrine Williamson (born 29 March 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays for Arsenal of the WSL and captains the England national team. A versatile player, she started playing as a midfielder before moving to central defence after a managerial change. She has spent her entire senior domestic career at Arsenal since her debut in 2014.

Club career

Rushden & Diamonds

Williamson joined Rushden & Diamonds Centre of Excellence at the age of 6. On that period, Williamson said, "My coach at the time left to go to Arsenal. I went across with her and had a couple of trials and luckily they took me on and I never looked back from there. So I owe it all to my coach from when I was 9."[3]

Arsenal

Williamson joined Arsenal's Centre of Excellence in 2006 at the age of nine.[4]

2014

Williamson made her senior team debut when she came on as an 81st-minute substitution for Rachel Yankey in Arsenal's 0–2 defeat to Birmingham City in the UEFA Women's Champions League quarter-final.[5] She made her FA WSL debut on 16 April against Notts County.[6] She won her first major title, the 2014 FA Women's Cup with Arsenal on 1 June in the final against Everton, in which she came on as a 76th-minute substitute for Jade Bailey.[7] On 13 July, Williamson netted her first professional goal for Arsenal in a 4–0 win away against Millwall Lionesses in the League Cup.[8] On 4 September, she scored her first league goal against Chelsea.[9] She made 12 appearances in the 2014 FA Women's Super League. Williamson played in the 2014 League Cup final against Manchester City which Arsenal lost 1–0.[10] At the end of the 2014 season, she was named the League Cup Player of the Year, ahead of Jess Clarke from Notts County, Ji So-yun from Chelsea and Toni Duggan from Manchester City.[11]

2015

Rachel Yankey giving Williamson the captain's armband during a match in 2015

On 8 January, Williamson won the England Women's Youth Player of the Year award.[12] Before the start of the 2015 FA Women's Super League, on 31 March, Williamson signed her first professional contract with Arsenal.[13] On 26 April, she was named the 2014–15 PFA Young Women's Player of the Year.[14] Williamson scored her first goal of the season in a convincing 3–0 home victory over Watford in the League Cup on 23 July.[15] Williamson was a key figure in the club's victorious League Cup campaign, after the quarter final win over holders Manchester City, who had beaten Arsenal in the final, Williamson said, "I think Arsenal as a football club have won a lot of trophies in the past and we wanted to keep winning silverware for the club. Even with the younger players in the squad we all thought we have got to win, the morale was certainly high before the game. Last year’s final was always in the back of our mind and we know how good a side City can be. After going 1–0 up it was all about defending which we managed to do and it was a great result for us. I think we can win the cup as we have won it three times but we have to keep on focusing on the next game."[16]

2016

Williamson helped her team reach the final of the FA Cup of 2016, which Arsenal won by a 1–0 margin over Chelsea.[17]

2017–18

Williamson was ever present in the 2017–18 FA WSL Cup as Arsenal ended as Champions beating the defending champions, Manchester City in the final. Arsenal's league campaign was more disappointing with Arsenal missing out a top two finish and Champions League qualification for the sixth consecutive edition of the WSL. She started the season in midfield but switched to central defence with the arrival of new manager Joe Montemurro in December 2017. On her change of position, Williamson said, "I’m not sure in the long term and I never want to shut the door on either position, because I know I can do both. But I’m enjoying playing as a centre back with the way we play. Under Joe we want to play out from the back and that suits my qualities. At the minute I am enjoying playing at centre half, but I’m open minded about what the future holds."[18] Towards the end of the season, Williamson reflected on the season since Montemurro took over, "I feel like since Joe came in we’re back on a journey again, we had lost that a little bit. Despite today, I feel like we’re building something. But pretty much every game we have played since around November has been a must win game and that takes its toll emotionally. In every single game we have known no less than a win will do, in the league and in the cups."[19]

2018–19

On 14 October 2018, Arsenal laid down a huge marker in their title challenge with a 5–0 thrashing of champions Chelsea, inflicting a first home defeat on the champions since July 2016. Williamson said, "This result means everything, regardless of league standings, we want to be the Arsenal of old, the Arsenal that everyone doesn’t want to play." As a die hard Arsenal fan, the win meant a lot to Williamson. "I said to Mitch [Emma Mitchell] as we were walking over, as an Arsenal supporter I hope that they feel it, that I feel exactly what they’re feeling watching this game. First and foremost I’m a supporter of this football club."[20] Joe Montemurro began utilizing Williamson on the right of a back 3 and after a 4–0 win at Bristol City on 28 October, in which Williamson assisted Jordan Nobbs for one of the goals, he said, "Leah’s really adapting to a bit more of a pro-active defending methodology. She’s got a bit of freedom to go forward and I’m really enjoying working with her. She’s getting the rewards for the amazing work that she’s put in over pre-season and the season so far, so all credit to her."[21] Arsenal won their first 9 games and went into the match with Manchester City 6 points clear of their title rivals. By the time Arsenal faced Manchester City on 2 December, their injury crisis was such that they were forced to start 17 year old Paige Bailey-Gayle in an injury hit team that lost 2–0 to a brace by Georgia Stanway. Two games later, a 2–1 home defeat to Chelsea which happened to be Williamson's 100th Arsenal appearance allowed Manchester City to move a point clear albeit having played one game more. On the injury situation, Williamson said, "Obviously injuries are a factor and everyone can see we’re down to the bare bones at the moment and it was before Christmas. But genuinely, we are not a team that makes excuses and it’s not something we’re talking about. We are focusing more on how to get the ball from A to B, for example." On the achievement of reaching 100 appearances at the age of just 21. Williamson added, "It’s funny, I was just talking to my mum and we said I could have done it much more quickly were it not for injuries. Naturally, I am always striving for more. In our meeting room at the training ground, the names of all the women who have made 100 appearances are on the wall and I look at some of the names on that wall and, without being too much of a fan girl, a lot of them are my heroes. It’s amazing to be up there now in their company. But it’s about the future for me too and the first 100 is amazing and especially at my age, I really do aim to get a few hundred more yet with this football club and in this shirt. This is more than just a football club to me. My family are all Arsenal supporters and they remind me every day that I am living a dream to play here and I hope that I have made them proud. Important day for me and them, I just wish we could have won".[22]

On 23 February, Arsenal attempted to defend their title in the FA WSL Continental Cup but after 120 goalless minutes, Manchester City won 4–2 on penalties. On Williamson, Joe Montemurro said, "For a girl of her age to show the maturity and the ability to understand the game, the way she positions herself- her positioning is like a 30 year old pro. She always finds the pass, she’s unbelievable. She has all the attributes to be an amazing footballer and an amazing centre-back on the world scale and England should be very excited about the prospect of her going to a World Cup with them. We love having her at Arsenal."[23] On the cup final defeat, Williamson said. "That gives you a good idea of the character and resilience of this team. But also we’ve got players that know what it means to be Arsenal and we’ve got new players that already know what that means. Today we maybe didn’t play the Arsenal way, but that character is what it takes to play for a top team to take a game as far as you can, to fight and when it comes to the league, that’s exactly what we will do. We’re pissed off now and we’ve only got one target to focus on and we’ll give it every thing we’ve got."[24] Back in the league, Arsenal won 3 games in a row, scoring 10 goals while conceding none after the Chelsea defeat before an away tie with Liverpool on 24 March which Arsenal won 5–1 on a terrible pitch. England manager, Phil Neville was present and while watching Williamson ahead of the world cup said, "This girl is a star. You get some players who are born to captain England. She’s a leader. She’s only 22, and she comes into the squad and acts like a 30-year-old."[25] Arsenal won another four games in a row to clinch the title with a 4–0 defeat of Brighton at the Falmer Stadium on 28 April. As a childhood Arsenal fan it meant the world to her and she said, "I came here when I was 9 and we were winning the league every year and it was all I ever wanted, to win the league with Arsenal. I guess I thought I would walk into the team one day and it would just happen. But the game has developed so much and the competition is so fierce, to win that out there is absolutely unbelievable. I thought it might come sooner, but the wait has made it sweeter." On the injuries Arsenal suffered throughout the season, Williamson said, "That makes today even greater, because we’ve had a crazy season with injuries. It’s easy to forget that when the trophy is in the cabinet. It’s easy to forget that at one stage we were down to ten senior outfield players. Those two defeats [to City and Chelsea either side of Christmas] was during the readjustment period. But losing those two games was probably good for us in the long run because we knew there was no room for error, so we’ve played every game like a cup final. I do just wish we could have played that City game more towards the start of the season when we were on a great run playing unbelievable football. A lot of teams would crumble in those circumstances but we didn’t." Williamson was typically modest in her own performance in the title clinching match, "I think that might be the worst I’ve ever played for the club and it’s because of how much this game and this title means to me. That’s something I’ll learn from, but I won’t apologise for feeling that way."[26] In the title winning season, the most common passing duo was Williamson to Lisa Evans (centre half to right wing back),[27] Williamson also finished the season as Arsenal's most active player on the ball with 1,501 touches to her name, as well as completing the most successful passes in the opposition’s half (591). She also made more interceptions than any other player in Arsenal's squad (30).[28]

2020–21

On 13 September 2020 Williamson netted her first goal of the season in Arsenal's 9–1 victory over fellow London side West Ham United.

On 18 November 2020 Williamson made her 150th appearance in all competitions for Arsenal against Tottenham Hotspur in the Continental Cup a game which Arsenal would draw 2–2 but go on to win 5–4 on penalties.

2021–22

On 16 June 2021, Arsenal announced that Williamson had signed a new one-year contract with the club until the end of the 2021–22 season.[29]

Just seven months later, in January 2022, she agreed a prolonged contract with the club. Arsenal did not disclose the duration of the new commitment, but coach Jonas Eidevall stated that Leah Williamson is "a player for us to build Arsenal around".[30]

International career

Williamson with England in 2018

Youth levels

Williamson has represented England since 2010 at youth levels. She captained the England under 17 side in the 2014 UEFA Women's Under-17 Championship held in England in November and December 2013, where they eventually finished fourth after being beaten by Italy in the third place play-off, losing 3–4 in the penalty shootout.[31][32] She was also part of the England women's national under-20 football team to compete in the 2014 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Canada in August 2014. Williamson started in the starting lineup in every England's match. The tournament, however, was a disappointment for the team as they were not able to progress through to the quarter finals, finishing third in their group with only two draws against South Korea and Mexico respectively, and a defeat to Nigeria.[33]

Penalty situation against Norway

On 9 April 2015, Williamson scored a penalty for her team in a qualifying match against Norway for the 2015 UEFA under-19 championship, which had been ordered to be retaken five days after the original contest. In an unprecedented decision,[34] UEFA had ordered the match to be restarted from the 96th minute.

Previously, on 4 April, Williamson's successful penalty for England was disallowed for player encroachment (by substitute Rosella Ayane, who had won the penalty and scored a goal in her brief cameo from the bench). The laws of the game state that in such a situation, the penalty should be retaken, but the German referee, Marija Kurtes instead awarded Norway a free kick. After protests from the England camp, the European governing body agreed that the match should be replayed from the time of the incident.[35]

The players returned to finish the last two minutes of their match after each had played what was scheduled to be their last qualifying matches for the tournament. With the scores standing at 2–1 to Norway, Williamson equalised and, in doing so, booked her team's place in the tournament finals.

Senior team

In November 2017, Williamson was called up the senior England squad.[36] She made her debut for the senior team with six minutes left in a 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup qualifier against Russia in the team's 3–1 win.[37] Williamson was part of the squad who won a 2–0 victory over Denmark at Banks’s Stadium in Walsall for one of their final friendly preparation matches for the World Cup.[38]

Williamson was involved in the England squad that won in the 2019 SheBelieves Cup in USA, playing the final game, a 3–0 win over Japan.[39]

In May 2019, Ian Wright announced on social media that Williamson had been selected for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup squad and would be on the plane to France.[40] On being selected for the squad, Williamson said, "After the World Cup in Canada four years ago that’s what I set my sights on and all I’ve ever wanted to do is be a part of this team. I can’t be more thankful because I think I’m the luckiest girl in the world."[41] Williamson made her World Cup debut from the bench in the Round of 16 match against Cameroon on 23 June 2019 in Valenciennes.[42] Then-manager Phil Neville felt he did not use Williamson as much as he could have during the qualifiers and World Cup, putting in more experienced defenders and considering Keira Walsh crucial to the defensive midfield instead.[43]

Williamson scored her first England goal, an 86th-minute winner, in a 3–2 friendly win against the Czech Republic on 12 November 2019.[44]

On 17 September 2021, Williamson was named England captain for the FIFA World Cup qualifier against North Macedonia at St Mary's Stadium, Southampton. On 5 April 2022, she was appointed permanent England captain.[45] Williamson was included, as captain, in the England squad which won the UEFA Women's Euro 2022.[46][47] Williamson also showed support for LGBTQ+ rights by wearing a rainbow captain's armband throughout the Euro 2022 tournament.[48]

On 31 July 2022, Williamson captained the Lionesses against Germany in the Euro 2022 final - winning 2–1 in extra time. The English captain made the most ball recoveries in the tournament, with 56. [49] Williamson became the first captain in the men or women's senior teams to lead England to a European trophy, with it being 56 years since England had won a major trophy.

Personal life

Williamson was born on 29 March 1997 in Milton Keynes and grew up in Newport Pagnell on the northern edge of the urban area, attending Portfields School for primary education and Ousedale School for secondary.[50] She comes from a divided footballing family, with her brother and father fans of North London team Tottenham Hotspur. She is a lifelong Arsenal fan.[51][40] In 2006, she was selected as the mascot to the Arsenal men's team in a league cup match at the Hawthorns against West Bromwich Albion.[52]

She is training to be an accountant.[53] After watching long jumper Greg Rutherford, who also comes from Milton Keynes, at the 2012 Summer Olympics she briefly considered switching her athletic focus to track and field as she had previously participated in some local competitions and wished to become an Olympic athlete.[54]

She is close friends with former Arsenal teammate Alex Scott,[55] and international teammate and Barcelona midfielder Keira Walsh. Williamson and Walsh went through all the junior ranks together and received their first senior call up on the same day in 2017; in 2019, Williamson commented that whenever England teams were announced "the first thing you do, you check for your name on the list and then you check for Keira's." Walsh also reflected that there was "nobody [she] would rather have shared this journey with".[56]

In 2022, she was one of the honourees of the British GQ Men of the Year Award.[55]

Williamson was one of the legends of football featured in Nike's "The Football Verse" ad spot for the (men's) 2022 FIFA World Cup.[57] She has been announced to guest write on the England men's football team at this tournament for The Athletic,[58] though told the BBC that while she will "support the boys [she has not] got any interest in it as a fan really this year, which is sad."[59]

Career statistics

Club

As of 28 September 2022.[60]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup[a] League Cup[b] Europe[c] Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Arsenal 2014 FA WSL 13 1 4 0 7 1 1 0 25 2
2015 7 0 2 0 3 1 12 1
2016 8 0 3 0 0 0 11 0
2017 7 0 7 0
2017–18 17 1 2 0 7 0 26 1
2018–19 19 1 2 0 6 1 27 2
2019–20 15 1 2 0 6 1 4 0 27 2
2020–21 20 1 1 0 3 0 24 1
2021–22 18 2 1 0 1 0 7 1 27 3
2022–23 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 4 0
Career total 126 7 17 0 33 4 14 1 190 12

International

Statistics accurate as of match played 31 July 2022.
Year England Great Britain
Apps Goals Apps Goals
2018 4 0
2019 10 1
2020 3 0
2021 7 1 3 0
2022 13 0
Total 37 2 3 0
As of match played 26 October 2021
Scores and results list England's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Williamson goal.
List of international goals scored by Leah Williamson
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
1 12 November 2019 Stadion Střelecký ostrov, České Budějovice, Czech Republic  Czech Republic 3–2 3–2 Friendly [44]
2 26 October 2021 Daugava Stadium, Liepāja, Latvia  Latvia 8–0 10–0 2023 FIFA World Cup qualification [61]

Honours

Arsenal

England

Individual

References

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  2. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup France 2019™ List of Players – England" (PDF). FIFA. 27 May 2019. p. 8. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
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