Zara Shaw: England & Liverpool's versatile teenager who has already produced big World Cup moments

Shaw is a product of the Liverpool academy and was long rated by former head coach Matt Beard, who left his post on Thursday after four years in charge, so much so that he previously said he would have played her in the first-team at 15 years old if he was able to. However, just as she started to come into the senior picture, the teenager's rise through the Reds' ranks was obstructed massively by an ACL injury.

It came in the summer of 2023, only three months after Shaw had helped England reach the semi-finals of the U17 Euros and just as she looked set to continue that momentum into a first campaign with Liverpool's senior side.

“She’s really impressed us during pre-season so far, not only with the maturity in her play for someone of her years but with the way she is around the place too," Beard said at the time. “It’s a blow for us not to have her complement the group as we continue to prepare for the WSL season, but the most important thing now is us all rallying around her for the journey ahead."

Shaw was able to complete her comeback in the 2023-24 season and get on the pitch for Liverpool's final game of the campaign, that her senior debut. "Immensely proud of her," Beard said. "She has been a machine."

With that setback put behind her, Shaw was able to catch the eye plenty towards the end of 2024 as she helped England reach another semi-final, this time at the U17 World Cup which ran through October and November. Though used as a midfielder by Beard at Liverpool, it's as a centre-back that she thrives for the Young Lionesses, highlighting her versatility.

Shaw scored twice at the tournament, most notably in the quarter-final win over Japan. With England 2-1 down inside the final 20 minutes, the teenager lost her marker and managed to squeeze a header through a crowded box to level the scores and send the game to penalties. There, she grabbed the headlines again, netting the winning spot-kick to put her team into the last four.

The tournament wouldn't end in glory for Shaw and her team, with defeat to Spain in the semi-finals followed up by a loss against the United States in the third-placed play-off. Yet, it saw England continue their great recent run of returns in youth tournaments and served as a reminder of how bright the future is for the nation, with Shaw right there among its most promising young talents.

Understandably, given that World Cup took place in the middle of the season, Shaw hasn't yet played a great deal in the WSL this term. But when she has, she has impressed. The 17-year-old has emerged as a stalwart in the Reds' squad, started two huge league outings against Arsenal and Manchester United and has taken her chances when they have come, scoring her first senior goal in the League Cup victory over Newcastle.

"Her development is coming on leaps and bounds and she's got an exciting future ahead of her. She's a great squad member," Beard said earlier this month. "I think last year was a massive blow for everyone, [for her] to be out for the whole season, because that would have been a real learning curve in the sense of understanding the Women's Super League level. I've worked with many a player that's come in, tactically, physically, mentally, that has to adjust to the training level, the game level, but I think she's been fantastic."

Shaw has a lot of different qualities in her game, which explains why she's able to play both centre-back and central midfield to such a high-level. Despite her young age, she is physically strong, with her hard work in the gym during her ACL recovery certainly paying dividends. That is part of an athletic profile which helps her suit both roles well, as do a lot of other traits.

Her quality on the ball is one of those, with Shaw able to use both feet brilliantly. Her vision and passing range also ticks boxes in defence and midfield, with Beard noting the benefit of her "seeing different pictures from deeper" while playing further back for England, even if he was of the belief that her long-term future would come as a holding or box-to-box midfielder.

Then there are the mental aspects. Beard lauded Shaw for her attitude in her recovery, which says a lot about the teenager's character and ability to deal with adversity, while her application on the field is also admirable for a young player. She has great awareness, focus and sticks to her task well, which are all things that mean she can be an asset out-of-possession and in games when her team has less of the ball.

It is more of that senior experience which Shaw will benefit from as she looks to go to the next level. She's only played a handful of first-team matches to date, so adding to those will be her first priority as she looks to get the exposure to the top-level that will help her to develop.

While playing in a Liverpool team that doesn't always dominate possession, one aim for her will be to understand how to make the most of her opportunities to have an impact on games, too. Those chances will come thick and fast in some games but, as her first WSL starts against Arsenal and United will have shown her, it's another thing to make something happen when there are not as many openings and your team doesn't have all of the ball.

With Shaw's qualities, she certainly has the potential to be a game-changer in a league as strong as England's top-flight; it's just about taking the steps to realise that promise.

Watching Shaw in this Liverpool team now, in which she often plays as one of two box-to-box midfielders, there are shades of Frida Maanum about her. That comes from her athletic profile, which includes a rather tall figure and good running power off the ball. Those are traits that let Maanum be a line-breaking, goal-getting midfielder for Arsenal and Norway, and it feels like Shaw could provide a similar threat. Maanum is also a hard-working individual who will always honour her defensive and pressing duties for her team, and Shaw ticks that box as well.

That comparison only applies if Shaw's long-term future is indeed in midfield and that could well change as Liverpool look to appoint a new manager. Indeed, a different set-up may bring out different traits in her and move her into a different role, be that centre-back or a deeper midfield position.

After suffering a truly devastating injury in the summer of 2023, this current season has been a great return for Shaw. She's worked hard to come back, had a fantastic U17 World Cup with England and then set about getting back into the first-team picture with Liverpool, having been dealt that setback just as she appeared primed for a recurring role in it.

With a flurry of starts under her belt now, plus a bump up into the U19s with the Young Lionesses, this feels like a strong foundation that she is laying for future success. She's had a taste of the next level for club and country, and her next steps are steady ones to keep climbing the ladder.

She'll have a new manager to impress in order to keep getting those opportunities at Liverpool, but this 17-year-old is a real talent. There are few that will doubt her ability to do that, with there every reason for club and country to be excited about what she could become.