10 hours ago
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It is a luxury to have too many strikers, but Sarina Wiegman has had some tough decisions to make - and Aggie Beever-Jones has made it even harder.
England's number nine shirt is sought after with Arsenal's Alessia Russo a solid mainstay and Chelsea's Beever-Jones a strong competitor.
Throw in on-loan Brighton forward Michelle Agyemang, and Wiegman has three very talented players to choose from.
Agyemang, who worryingly went off injured in England's 3-0 win over Australia on Tuesday night and left Pride Park on crutches, is a young and exciting prospect.
But Beever-Jones - who scored her first senior goal in April - has become a regular starter for Women's Super League (WSL) champions Chelsea and ended the 2024-25 international season as England's top scorer.
It has led to much debate over whether Wiegman can afford to leave Beever-Jones out of the starting line-up much longer, even if Russo has proven her worth.
On Tuesday, Wiegman played them both and Beever-Jones took her opportunity, scoring England's opening goal from the left-wing position.
"Playing football brings out the best in me wherever I am playing," Beever-Jones told ITV after scoring her seventh goal in 13 internationals.
"I don't look at the stats, I just come here and focus to try and tell Sarina what I can do. I love playing for England no matter where I am."
Beever-Jones was a threat against Australia almost immediately as she came inches from getting on the end of a Beth Mead cross after just three minutes.
She was offside when she lobbed goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold minutes later, but finally got on the scoresheet when Russo was brought down by Alanna Kennedy - the Australia defender receiving a red card - and Beever-Jones netted from the resulting free-kick.
The 22-year-old continued to cause problems before she was forced off prematurely, picking up a knock with less than 10 minutes left.
"She was so bright. She was making really good runs and making herself a nuisance," said former England defender Anita Asante on ITV.
"She was also asking questions of Sarina because I'm sure she wants to play every single minute she can for England."
Beever-Jones only played 74 minutes during their success in Switzerland, coming off the bench twice and starting once - an experience which taught her how to react to the disappointment of not being selected and how to manage those emotions.
"I'm always a believer in timing. I look back to the Euros and yeah, I wish I could have played more, I wish I could have helped more," she told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"But for me, as soon as it ended I thought, 'right, go back to my club, smash it, do what you can do and hit the ground running'."
Beever-Jones did just that and has scored four goals in six WSL matches, leading to many calling for her to start this week's friendlies.
She played 27 minutes as a second-half substitute in Saturday's defeat by Brazil, but Wiegman gave her the opportunity against Australia out wide and was pleased with what she saw.
"[Beever-Jones and Russo] have played together before. I think we have three players who can play at centre-forward and all three are good and very different," said Wiegman.
"Aggie can also play on the sides. That is what you saw today, that she is very agile and quick with the ball which can help the team."
Chelsea team-mate Ellie Carpenter was part of the opposition's backline and aware of Beever-Jones' threat.
She has taken on the regular number nine spot at Chelsea with Australia forward Sam Kerr still returning to full fitness and an injury to Mayra Ramirez.
Former England striker Ian Wright told ITV that Beever-Jones has "the right attitude" by taking her opportunities and waiting patiently for them.
"She can play in the nine and also out wide. She has every attribute to be a world-class striker," club-mate Carpenter added.
"She is hard to defend against. I'm happy for her that she got more minutes tonight and has shown why she can be a regular starter for England."
While Beever-Jones grasped her opportunity, so did debutant Lucia Kendall.
The 21-year-old midfielder was exceptional on her first senior start, and named player of the match after a mature, confident display.
Wiegman expected her to settle in well, but did she expect her to be as cool as she was?
"To be honest I was not really surprised because she has done so well at Aston Villa. She came in our environment and even though we didn't have that many training sessions, straight away you saw her understanding and reading of the game," said Wiegman.
"She keeps things very simple. Well, it looks simple, but it's not simple. So I had hoped - maybe hoped more than expected - but I did expect it a little bit.
"I just wanted her to go out there, play and enjoy herself and I think that is what she did."
It was certainly a fun night for Kendall, who said it felt "amazing" to make her debut in front of a sellout crowd in Derby.
"I felt at home. The girls were so easy to play with and it was easy to fit in," she told ITV.
"Sarina just said 'go and enjoy it and play how I've been playing at my club'. I had my family here which made it that bit more special.
"When I was a little girl you couldn't even have dreamed of that."
She made her mark against Australia, flicking a header on to the crossbar in the second half and coming close on several occasions.
"To see her able to achieve this shows how far the game has come," added Wright.
"She deserves her call-up. She has done brilliantly, and hopefully she will be in the next squad."
