Former Lioness Ellen White has admitted feeling ‘uneasy’ about Mary Earps’ new autobiography and the extent to which it delves into the inner dynamics of Sarina Wiegman’s England dressing room.
Earps, 32, details her 53-cap international career in All In: Football, Life and Learning to Be Unapologetically Mepublished six months after her retirement from international football.
In the book, she goes into detail on the breakdown of her relationship with Wiegman and her tense dynamic with fellow goalkeeper Hannah Hampton – which she pinned down to a ‘misalignment of values.’
White, who won Euro 2022 alongside Earps, said she had been left conflicted between supporting her former teammate and protecting what she called the ‘sanctity’ of the dressing room – a space she described as a ‘beautiful bubble’.
Speaking on BBC 5 Live, the 36-year-old said: ‘Honestly, it’s made me quite uneasy. I feel very nervous because I feel like I – and all the Lionesses – almost have this unwritten oath: when you’re in a team, what happens in that dressing room, in and amongst training, in your bubble, stays within that team and that environment.
Former Lioness Ellen White has admitted feeling ‘uneasy’ about Mary Earps’ autobiography
White, who won Euro 2022 alongside Earps, said she had been left conflicted between supporting her former teammate and protecting the ‘sanctity’ of the dressing room
‘I feel a little bit uneasy about what has been spoken about by Mary Earps. But then I also feel like she’s my team-mate, so I feel a lot of sadness at the same time that I want to help. I was there in 2022, and I would protect my team with my life, and I would never go into what happened within that environment. That’s not for me to speak about.’
Reflecting on England’s unity under Wiegman, Lionesses record goalscorer White added: ‘When Sarina came in, we built a culture that felt unbreakable. 2022 was so important – we never let anything come between us, that bubble, or the winning mentality.
‘I feel like that’s been penetrated a little bit and it’s quite hard to take. In any workplace or walk of life, you’re not going to get on with everyone. But what a boring life that must be if we’re all the same.
‘You’re not necessarily going to get on with everyone, but you respect everyone and you love everyone because what they bring makes your team better. All 23 of those players enabled us to win the Euros.
‘We would do anything for each other and we would fight for each other. But everything is in that bubble and nothing escapes that bubble. That’s what makes it quite challenging for me and makes me nervous to talk about because it’s sacred.’
Elsewhere, Ian Wright, Roy Keane and Gary Neville have also weighed in on the controversy. Wright expressed concern for the wellbeing of both Earps and Hampton amid the furore surrounding the book’s release, warning: ‘Normally you’d get this kind of story 15 or 20 years later. Neither of them is used to this level of attention, and that’s a worry.’
Reflecting on England’s unity under Wiegman, Lionesses record goalscorer White added: ‘When Sarina came in, we built a culture that felt unbreakable’ and that ‘has been penetrated’
Keane took a different view, suggesting Earps ‘is not naive’ and would have known her comments would spark a reaction, while Neville questioned the timing of the publication, saying: ‘I’m not sure she’ll be delighted and I don’t think that she had to bring the book out (right after England won the Euros).
‘I just remembered towards the end of my career, I brought an autobiography out and I decided that I would never bring it out while I was still playing. I had written my book but I got given another contract so I just employed a writer, didn’t go to a publisher and the moment I retire, I’ll bring it out.’
