Manchester United women’s Irish centre back, Aoife Mannion, has lavished praise on goalkeeper Mary Earps.
The United shot-stopper has had a meteoric rise over the last few seasons with her standing across world football skyrocketing.
Earps was a crucial part of England’s Euros win in 2022 and was also magnificent in her national team’s run to the final of the World Cup, saving a penalty in the final.
She has also been crowned the best keeper in world football for two consecutive years and won the BBC sports personality of the year award.
The 31 year old has carried her fine form into club football, as she put in an outstanding performance for the Red Devils when she faced a barrage of shots in the club’s 2-1 win over Chelsea in the recent FA Cup semi-final.
Speaking to talkSport, her teammate Mannion has claimed, “What Mary is like on the pitch is exactly what she’s like in training.”
The defender was also full of praise for the attitude she brings to matchdays.
“She’s full throttle, incredibly authentic and passionate as a character and very inspiring to be around on the pitch.”
The defender once again praised Earps’ acts of heroism on the pitch and spoke of one particular save she made in the vital semi-final victory over Chelsea a couple of weeks ago.
“I was saying to her in the gym actually that there was one particular save that she made [vs Chelsea] where it almost looked like she had to hyper extend or dislocate her shoulder to stop the ball from going in the net and I’m surprised there’s not been any videos or memes [because] basically when she did that, I just put my hands to my face and gasped.
“For that moment, I was like a fan watching it and it’s very rare in football in a game as a player where you have a sense of something that’s so incredible.”
Referencing how crucial Earps is for the team she commented, “She’s an incredible goalkeeper and sometimes, little moments like that in games can remind everyone just how lucky we are to have her and how lucky I am personally to play alongside her.”
“Some of those saves were just enormous and can’t be understated how incredible and skilful they are. I’m really pleased she was in the net for us because it could have been a very different outcome if she wasn’t.”
United’s women aim to finish the season strongly as they take on Leicester City on Sunday and still have two mouth-watering fixtures against Liverpool and Chelsea in the Women’s Super League.
However, Earps will be no doubt be champing at the bit to help United win their first piece of silverware when they take on Tottenham in the FA Cup final on the 12th of May.
There is little doubt that the England international will once again be of vital importance if United go on to win the trophy.
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