After scoring the winning penalty in the Euro 2025 final, Chloe Kelly turned to the camera with a mic in one hand and defiance in her voice: “Thank you to everyone who wrote me off. I'm grateful.”
But what did she mean?
Earlier this year, Kelly’s future looked uncertain. She was struggling for game time at Manchester City and dropped from the England Nations League squad.
She called that stretch “dark days” and later revealed she didn’t think she’d even make the squad for this tournament.
A loan move to Arsenal reignited her spark. There, she found form, fitness, and belief—just in time to be recalled by Sarina Wiegman.
Fast forward to Basel. With England’s title defence hanging in the balance, Kelly stepped up again.
She buried a 110 km/h penalty and let the moment swallow her: grabbing an ITV mic to belt out “Sweet Caroline” as fans roared around her. “I was cool, I was composed, and I knew I was going to hit the back of the net.”
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For Kelly, this was redemption.“I’m really proud to be English right now and part of an amazing group of girls,” she told ITV. Her teammates, including Lucy Bronze, hailed her as the ultimate big-moment player.
From the edge of the squad to the edge of glory—Kelly didn’t just score the winner. She wrote her own comeback story.
England Lionesses news and related links
- Chloe Kelly career redemption: How star became England Lionesses' hero again after Euro 2022 heroics and Man City struggles
- Celebrate from your sofa: How to watch The Lionesses' Euro 2025 victory parade live today
- Lionesses' victory parade: Route, times & how to join London's Euro 2025 party today