Kendall’s Dream Lionesses Goal Delights St Mary’s

ENGLAND : For Lucia Kendall, scoring her first goal for the Lionesses six minutes into England’s 2-0 win over Ghana was a moment of overwhelming emotion, especially as it happened at St Mary’s Stadium, the ground she called home for a decade.

England manager Sarina Wiegman captured the joy of the moment perfectly, remarking with a smile, “She celebrated as if she had won the Champions League,” adding a joke about the midfielder’s enthusiastic knee slide: “They are still doing some treatment on the grass!”

For the 21-year-old Aston Villa midfielder, the feeling was entirely justified. Kendall was “part of the furniture” at Southampton, graduating from their academy and playing 103 games before her move to the Women’s Super League (WSL) this summer. Scoring her first international goal on only her third cap, and in front of her childhood crowd, was the stuff of dreams.

“A really special moment for me to be able to do it here, where I grew up. This place made me into the player I am,” Kendall told ITV. “It felt like it was written [in the stars]. It was so special. I got overwhelmed with emotion really.”

Kendall’s goal opened the scoring before Alessia Russo added a second from the penalty spot in injury time. Kendall was substituted after an hour, receiving a huge roar from the home crowd and a special mention from the stadium announcer hailing “Southampton’s very own.”

Her rapid rise has impressed Wiegman, who noted Kendall’s immediate impact since moving to the top flight. “She shows consistency and that’s not easy when you just come into a new environment and into the WSL with Aston Villa,” Wiegman said. “Things have gone so quickly so fast, but she just keeps up her levels and shows she is a good player – and that is impressive.”

Kendall, whose childhood idol was goalscoring midfielder Frank Lampard, is quickly proving her pedigree at the highest level. Her former coach, Marieanne Spacey-Cale, praised her “spot on” mentality: “She knows what she wants and how to get there. She is an intelligent player… Technically and tactically, she is a very strong midfield player.”