Laura Blindkilde Brown: Midfielder credits Man City for first England call up

Manchester City midfielder Laura Blindkilde Brown praises the Women's Super League (WSL) club environment that pushed her to secure her first senior England call up.

City starlet Blindkilde Brown spoke to the media ahead of England's friendly showdown with the USA this Saturday at Wembley Stadium. After receiving her first senior call up to Sarina Wiegman's Lionesses squad, the 21-year-old has been relishing the moment.

"I was just sitting in my apartment watching a film," laughed Blindkilde Brown. "I saw my phone said Sarina was ringing me and I answered the phone and she said that we want to bring you to this camp. I phoned my parents straight away to tell them the news and they were just really proud of me."

The Cityzens currently occupy second spot in the WSL standings, and have been taking Europe by storm in the UEFA Women's Champions League. Blindkilde Brown spoke on how the competitive environment within the club has helped lead her toward her first England call up.

"The competition at City is unbelievable," praises Blindkilde Brown. "The midfielders are world class, so as much as I am competing against them, I am also learning from them day to day. That's definitely helping me to develop in my career.

"The style that City play is really suited to me. We really like to keep the ball, we like to be dominant, we like to press. I think that all really aligns with England."

Blindkilde Brown has been biding her time on the bench whilst learning from the world class talent at the club. She shares the centre of the park with the likes of Yui Hasegawa, Jill Roord, Jess Park, and more recently, Vivianne Miedema.

It's all been about waiting for her moment to shine admitted Blindkilde Brown, saying: "If I just kept developing with the team and showing what I could do, eventually I could get an opportunity. Then it was about taking that opportunity when I was given it."

"Having the Women’s Champions League this year has helped because the squad depth is being rotated. I’ve been getting more opportunities which has definitely helped."

The midfielder departed Aston Villa for the Cityzens in January 2024, in what she described as a "tough decision".

She piled on the praise for the work her former manager, Carla Ward, has done to help her develop. "I definitely have to be really thankful for Carla," admitted Blindkilde Brown. "She gave me a lot of opportunities at a young age to establish myself in the WSL, so I’m really grateful to her."

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