Making the Lionesses tick: Keira Walsh holds the key to England winning the Women's World Cup

A tidy player with excellent technical ability, Walsh became a fixture at Manchester City during her eight years there, with her vision and ability to execute a pass making her a deadly playmaker in a deeper role.

So often, though, it was the players in front of her that got the plaudits. Jill Scott, Izzy Christiansen, Caroline Weir and Sam Mewis all played in front of her in City’s midfield and were named to the PFA Team of the Year. Walsh never featured in the XI.

But it’s the work she does in that holding role that allows the rest of the midfield the freedom to thrive, for club and for country. There's a reason why she became basically indispensable for City, subbed off just twice in the league from the start of the 2017-18 season all the way through to the end of the 2020-21 campaign.

Sadly, she was just thriving in a position that so often doesn’t get the plaudits.

That recognition started to come after the Euros. Walsh won the big trophy, was named Player of the Match in the final, made the Team of the Tournament and was named to the FIFPRO World XI, too. Oh, and she signed for Barcelona for a world-record fee.

It was a move that took her completely out of her comfort zone. The midfielder was born and raised just outside of Manchester and had always played for teams in the area. Now she was moving to a new country and joining a club with a unique style of play, one that demands the most from those in the middle of the park.

Walsh spoke a lot during the past season about it being difficult to adapt to the different things that were wanted of her at Barca, but that she’s got to grips with it all has made her a better player, one with even more to her game.

“As a player at City, I was told to stand still a lot more and to wait for the ball to come to me,” she said recently, explaining the differences. “Whereas at Barca it’s about moving all the time and most of the play goes through the middle so I always have to be an option.

“I think I’m probably fitter and sharper than I was in terms of trying to look for the ball and defensively they’re a lot more streetwise, in terms of tactical fouls and trying to slow the game down. That’s something I’ve added to my game.”

"Playing with Keira, it makes football easier,” team-mate Patri Guijarro said after the Champions League final. That’s quite a glowing review.

Part of Walsh’s growth has been about adapting to playing with different players, too. It’s something she’s done a lot over her career, of course, with her partner at the base of England’s midfield changing extremely close to the start of the Euros just last year. However, she has never had to do it on the scale that she has at Barca.

As one of Europe’s biggest clubs, the Catalans have incredible depth and, in order to compete on four fronts, they rotate a lot. In fact, Walsh was a part of nine different midfield trios when named to Barca’s starting XI this past season, sometimes playing as a lone holding midfielder, sometimes as one of two and very often alongside players with unique skillsets.

It's an important quality to have when it comes to tournament football, where so much can change so quickly, but also when you look at the new players in this England team.

Walsh might have new wingers or a new centre-forward to find with her defence-splitting passes, or even a new face in that No.10 role to link up with. It’s certainly a strength that she’s become used to learning to play with so many new faces in such a short space of time.

All of that quality that Walsh was able to bring to the Barca team helped them to achieve what was top of their list in pre-season and win the Champions League again. It was the England star’s first time lifting the prestigious trophy and Bronze, who also joined Barca last summer, believes the whole experience has had an impact on both herself and her team-mate – and, in turn, the Lionesses.

“It’s given me a different outlook on how to play football,” she said of moving to Catalunya. “I think Keira is the same. I think the pair of us drive a different kind of standard now at England training that has never been there before.

“I think we’ve been able to add that when we’ve come back into camps, not the style of play necessarily but the expectation and the kind of the quality you expect from a team that wins trophies like Champions Leagues and playing with the best players in the world.”

A first move abroad doesn’t just make a footballer better because of a new style of play, though. It adds experience, perspective and builds the player as a person.

Walsh has described the move to Barca as bringing her “a different experience”, like that which Georgia Stanway has got in her first year with Bayern Munich. The heightened confidence and composure in the big moments that she can bring to England this summer will no doubt be of benefit. But there are other things, too.

“Obviously, I’m not used to being around my family so that will be… Not easier, because I don’t think my mum will have me saying that! But I’ve got used to not being at home so much,” she explained. “Australia is going to be tough. It’s so far away and there’s the time difference so it’s not going to be that easy to speak to family and I think I’m a little bit more used to that now. I always lived in Manchester before and I could go home in 20 minutes and have a cup of tea if I wanted to. That’s obviously changed.”

There is also the case of being the new kid on the block. Walsh says she believes she can now “appreciate the position” those new to the England team are in, with six names in the Lionesses’ squad set for a first major tournament.

These might all seem like small elements, but they can help make big differences to a team’s environment.

It certainly feels like Walsh goes into this World Cup in a different way than she went into last summer’s Euros, then. She’s refined her game even more in Catalunya while also strengthening it, she’s enjoyed incredible success, played in some new high-pressure moments and acquired a different perspective.

She’s also finally gained more recognition – and her world-record move has probably helped the holding midfield role become more appreciated in general in the past year.

“I think it’s just the position in general that goes under the radar,” Walsh told reporters. “For me, if you look at Patri, she’s the best player in the world in my opinion and nobody speaks about her, so it’s just part and parcel of the position we play.

“The personality goes with the position, too. We don’t want to be stars of the show. I’m just more comfortable in the way I play. I’m still going to improve but the way I play is the way I play.”

Walsh might not want the spotlight, but it feels like there will be more of one on her this time around – and deservedly so. Fortunately, she’s well-versed in performing under pressure.

What hasn’t changed in the past year is Walsh’s value to England. She is still the Lionesses’ most important player. Everything goes through the Barca star when her team has possession, with her ability to ensure they keep the ball coming not only from her passing, but her movement and the way she dictates those around her. In defence, she’s there to break up play and, in transition, she has the passing range to start a dangerous attack quickly and effectively.

Walsh’s first World Cup, in France in 2019, wasn’t her best few weeks of football. The midfielder appeared burned out from the ever-present role she’d played for Man City that past season and she’s since admitted she even considered quitting football due to the social media criticism she received at the time.

“I don’t do social media so much anymore,” she told reporters last month, talking about what she learned from 2019. “Everyone’s going to love you or hate you, it’s a game of opinions, and I had to learn that. I’ve maybe got more confidence in myself and what I bring. The main opinions that matter are Sarina’s and my team-mates’ so it’s just trusting that and believing in what they’re saying.

“At the Euros I really enjoyed it, I stayed in the moment, and hopefully that’s what I’m going to do at the World Cup. Also draw on my bad experiences, learn from them and have a good time.”

It’s just another example of Walsh’s growth as a player and a person as she prepares to show the world stage what she is all about.