Man Utd respond to reports Galton rejected England call-up

The winger has been one of the stars of the Women’s Super League this season and reasons for her absence from the Lionesses’ squad have been revealed

Manchester United boss Casey Stoney has said that “a player’s needs come first” after reports emerged that winger Leah Galton had rejected an England call-up.

Sportsmail reported on Tuesday evening that the 25-year-old, who has been in fine form for her club in the FA Women’s Super League this season, was in contention for a place in Phil Neville’s latest squad, but asked not to be included.

The club has told Goal that Stoney and Neville are in regular contact and the latter is aware of and understands the situation surrounding Galton, who has featured in every one of United’s games so far this campaign.

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Stoney has now commented on the reports, with the club issuing the following statement on Wednesday.

“Most people are aware that Leah took a break from football in early 2018 before she joined Manchester United and had fallen out of love with football,” Stoney said.

“Since joining the club we have been working collaboratively with her to create an environment where she can be happy and enjoy her football again and as I’ve said previously I believe she is one of the best wingers in the country.

“Playing for your national team is something that Leah and other players dream of, however I am strong on a player’s needs coming first and seeing them as human beings. Leah is just starting to fall back in love with the game again and I fully support her in not being ready for that next step yet.”

Galton joined Man United in July 2018, ahead of the club’s first season in its current form. She had most recently played for Bayern Munich, having been at NWSL side Sky Blue before that, but only made two appearances for the German club in all competitions before taking a break from football.

Since returning to England, the winger has been touted for a call-up to Neville’s squad regularly. After scoring three goals in 14 league games in the FA Women’s Championship last season, Galton has been one of the star players in the WSL this term.

Last month, the Man United boss called her the “best left winger in the country” and spoke about the importance of getting her to love the game again – something which the player herself said Stoney and the club are doing.

“Casey’s just one of those coaches, she doesn’t put any pressure on you,” Galton said.

“For me to play well, I just tell her I have to be happy, so she’s making that environment and creating an environment where I am so happy, where I feel like I am playing well, and I think that’s very important for our team. It’s not pressure.

“Some people can react well to pressure, some people don’t. But I think the fact she doesn’t create that pressure environment, she just says go out there, the last words she has is ‘have fun’, and I think we all take that and have fun, because we know we’re good enough to do well.”

Neville named his latest England squad on Tuesday, with the Lionesses set to take on Germany at Wembley on November 9 before heading to the Czech Republic for a fixture on November 12.

United face Everton in the Continental Cup on November 3, with their first game back after the international break taking them to Kingsmeadow to take on Chelsea.