Race for World Cup places is on and fringe Lionesses have grabbed their chance | Tom Garry

Everybody keep calm. England sit top of their qualifying group with a 100% record after beating Spain, but there remains a very long way to go before anyone can start booking flights to South America for 2027 … Let us cast aside that sensible advice, though, and begin to look at the players who enhanced their prospects of selection because, whether England continue this winning streak or not, their target is to win a first world title and there is no hiding from that challenge. So who has staked a claim?

Of the 11 players who started at Wembley on Tuesday, eight look nailed on to be in the first-choice XI for the World Cup, let alone the squad. That octet of Hannah Hampton, Lucy Bronze, Alex Greenwood, Keira Walsh, Georgia Stanway, Lauren Hemp, Lauren James and Alessia Russo will be central to Sarina Wiegman’s plans for Brazil, together with senior players such as Leah Williamson and Ella Toone when they return after injuries, plus the “clutch moment” saviour that is Chloe Kelly, who was on the bench.

There were three players for whom starting against Spain was a huge chance to show what they could do and none of them did their chances any harm at all. The centre-backs Esme Morgan and Lotte Wubben-Moy, in particular, were exemplary and their focused, calm and resolute performances ensured England kept a clean sheet against the world champions.

Morgan, 25, and Wubben-Moy, 27, have both had to be fairly patient during Wiegman’s tenure, amid the performances of Greenwood, Williamson, Millie Bright and Jess Carter in a variety of combinations during the past three major tournaments, but on Tuesday this new-look duo did not look out of place.

Sarina Wiegman has plenty of options to choose from as her team attempt to reach the World Cup. Photograph: COLORSPORT/Ashley Western/Shutterstock

“I’m very proud of them,” Wiegman said of Morgan and Wubben-Moy. “They showed up today. It says a lot about them. They should be proud of themselves.”

Morgan, who has been improving her game markedly with Washington Spirit, whom she helped finish second in the regular 2025 NWSL season, said: “I’m just proud of the concentration and the organisation that we had. As a team, from back to front, we communicated really well, worked really hard out of possession and defended resolutely. Those games, even though they’re not always the prettiest, as a defender they’re really satisfying.”

Wiegman also displayed significant trust in Lucia Kendall, with the 21-year-old Aston Villa midfielder tasked with taking on the immensely respected Barcelona holding midfielder Patricia Guijarro. It involved slightly more defensive responsibility than a traditional No 10 role, and she worked hard, even if it was a fairly quiet evening for the youngster with the ball. Her only disappointment will be spurning a glorious chance to score when she missed the target from fairly close range in the second half.

“She [has] shown performances that are really good for Aston Villa,” Wiegman said of Kendall, who made her senior international debut last October and looks at home in this squad. “She understands the game very well, she has some physical attributes too, and most of the time she just keeps the ball really well. It would [have been] perfect for her – she should have scored that chance. But she’s a very talented player.”

Surprisingly, there was no appearance on Tuesday for Jess Park, who has been in inspired form for Manchester United, but her displays in February’s internationals for England will mean she is far more ‘on’ any hypothetical plane to Brazil than ‘off’, and it feels highly likely that she will be deployed against Iceland on Saturday, when the Lionesses will expect to have more of the ball. Park scored the winner when England beat Spain in February 2025.

Lucia Kendall was tasked with taking on Barcelona’s Patricia Guijarro. Photograph: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

The 22-year-old midfielder Laura Blindkilde Brown, meanwhile, will take great heart from being called upon as a 72nd-minute substitute to help Wiegman’s side close out the victory, and her contributions to Manchester City’s upcoming title success will only have enhanced her chances for 2027.

There are also some new faces in this squad waiting for a chance to debut against Iceland. Erica Meg Parkinson and Keira Barry both received their first senior call-ups for this camp and Wiegman will be watching their output on the training ground at St George’s Park closely. For now, their inclusions in the squad seem largely down to more senior players being sidelined by injury, but nonetheless, this chance to impress the boss is invaluable. Let us not forget, even just three months out from Euro 2025, most Lionesses fans had not even heard of Michelle Agyemang. Ruling out further surprises would be foolish.