Column: Nikita Parris snub is latest example of how international cycles and club seasons don't always match up
The Manchester United forward has 15 goals in all competitions so far this season, but Sarina Wiegman and England are looking to the future...
There has always been – and probably always will be – much debate over the merits of those privileged few who get selected for their national team, whether it be for a major tournament such as a World Cup, or a couple of friendlies in sunny southern Spain.
But international football is not that different to domestic football, it’s just a little more spread out.
A squad is made up of 20+ players, there’s a head coach and a set of games to play, except within club football the cycle is a quickfire 10-month campaign played every week, while in international football a cycle is a minimum two years between major tournaments, for some even as long as four years, with games spread out across months and months.
The principles though remain the same, because reality shows any head coach wants consistency. Club coaches go out and revamp their squad during transfer windows, and then they have what they have.
Some might then stick with the same eleven every week, some may tinker, but only ever within the 25-squad limit, meaning there’s a certain amount of stability in what they are working with.
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For Wiegman and co, that’s no different. Each and every international head coach, whether it’s England or Estonia, USA or Uzbekistan, wants to have a core group of players to work with, and therefore won’t be overly swayed by the swings and roundabouts of club form. Not too much, anyway.
To say it’s not important at all would be remiss, but it’s not pivotal, and history shows that. As well as being a different head coach at the helm, there is a different system, a different style of play, different opposition, and a group of players who require that consistency given they come from clubs across the country, and don’t play together every single week.
Some players shine at club level, but don’t for their country. Others do it the way other around, one doesn’t always guarantee the other.
The contentious call – or lack of it, somewhat – in Wiegman’s latest announcement for friendlies in Spain this month was the continued absence of Manchester United forward Nikita Parris, and when you look back over the past few years, Parris is the perfect example of how international cycles do not always correspond with club cycles.
When Wiegman arrived in 2021, Parris had been a key part of England squads for many years, particularly under previous head coach Phil Neville.
The Lionesses at that time didn’t have a dearth of talent out wide, and Parris was a solid performer. At 26, she was in her peak years and had shown she could perform as both a striker or a winger, with versatility a key trait for any player hoping to forge a successful international career, when you consider there are only 23 spots up for grab.
Parris had won the Women’s Super League golden boot playing for Manchester City before signing for European giants Lyon, so her presence in England squads was no shock.
But Wiegman’s arrival 12 months before the ultimately successful European Championships coincided with Parris returning to England with Arsenal, a move which quite simply never really worked out for either.
Yet for the Lionesses, she remained.
In 18 WSL games, Parris scored just once, but throughout remained a regular selection in the England squad, her experience, versatility and quality in the system and her presence off the field was still right for Wiegman and England, even if it wasn’t for Arsenal in the long-term.
There were doubts among some supporters when she was named in the Euro 2022 squad, where she played only twice, but Wiegman utilised that experience, game management and counter attack ability in vital moments, against both Spain in the quarter-final and then in the final minutes against Germany in the final at Wembley.
Where maybe a younger player wouldn’t have offered that experience, Wiegman knew Parris would come on and know exactly what was expected of her to see her team through to their first major tournament success.
Parris joined Manchester United that summer, a move which was received with a lukewarm reception from a chunk of the Leigh faithful after an average year in North London, but United felt they could get the best out of her, particularly with an assistant manager in Martin Ho who had worked with Parris at Everton, and knew her best qualities.
She had a steady first season, but 12 months on is flying. Eight goals in 12 league games so far leaves behind only Khadija Shaw, Lauren James and Elisabeth Terland, while goals in the cups sees her on 15 goals in 18 appearances in all competitions.
Yet Parris hasn’t received an England call-up since November 2022.
She didn’t leave the Lionesses in bad form either, scoring in both September World Cup qualifiers against Spain and Germany, but quite simply Wiegman and England moved onto their next cycle.
Because while for Marc Skinner and Manchester United, the next aim is three points against Arsenal in just three days, and he will pick his team with that in mind, Wiegman’s next aim is almost 18 months away, the next European Championships in Switzerland.
Everything until then is a means to an end. While Wiegman could constantly chop and change for the next 18 months based on league form on a whim, how will that help her or any head coach build any sort of consistent team, let alone develop a system and way of playing before Euro 2025?
In 2022, Chloe Kelly was a squad player, as was Alessia Russo, while Rachel Daly was pinned to her left-back role.
Lauren James hadn’t even received a senior call-up, and Jess Park and Katie Robinson too weren’t really on the radar.
The majority of the aforementioned are much younger than Parris, who will be 31 by the Euros and 33 by the next World Cup, so the question is, who is likelier to be in those squads? That’s the key element, rather than simply looking at who should go to Spain this month.
There was further consternation at Park’s return to the squad over Parris, particularly given she hasn’t started a single league game this season, but she plays in a position Wiegman has slightly less depth than out wide, and she’s only 22 years old, meaning there’s a much greater chance she will make up Wiegman’s next two major tournament squads, and a player she will work with through to 2027.
That in reality is the major essence of the matter, and while those who talk about form have understandable and fair points - and sometimes you simply cannot ignore that form - international football is about thinking years in advance, rather than just about the next Sunday.
While Parris will no doubt be a starter for Manchester United at the Emirates this week, will she be so for England at Euro 2025? If the answer in Wiegman’s head is no, what does she gain from bringing that player into the squad for two quickfire friendlies that are about building towards that very tournament?
This is not to focus solely on Parris, because her form right now would no doubt add a lot to England and her selection would be justified, but Wiegman is not thinking about the right now, and it will only take an injury somewhere down the line for Parris to likely be first in the queue for a recall, which she may well grab with both hands.
Laura Coombs is a great example of that. The midfielder saw the stars align, despite going eight years without an England call-up. After an entire Manchester City midfield departed in 2022, Coombs suddenly had a chance at regular game time and she took her chance, her form meaning she was at the forefront of Wiegman’s mind when a midfield opening became available for last year’s Arnold Clark Cup.
She’s taken her chance and stayed there, and if Parris gets the same chance, there’s no doubt on current form she will take it, but right now Wiegman and England have moved on, because they have a core of exciting young forwards who will make up the front element of the squad for years to come.
Even aligning this camp with Emma Coates’ U23s squad is telling of where Wiegman is looking next. The head coach has committed to the Lionesses until 2027, so in the next three-and-a-half years will she be looking towards those approaching their thirties, or the likes of Katie Robinson, Ebony Salmon and Aggie Beever-Jones, who have all shone at times, will only get better, and may well be the future of her team?
International football moves very slowly, cycles last a long time, but once a new one begins, it can be very unforgiving and brutal on those who are moved on. Parris is not the first, and she won’t be the last, and all she can do is keep performing and hope an opportunity comes back her way.
Would understand the youth angle if she wasn't still playing the same team as euros.still sees daly as a lb.
The rigid nature is why they was knocked out at groups
Good piece. much more thoughtful than i would be at this point.
it's not about 8 GOALS IN 9 LEAGUE GAMES BRO! - it's context of how those goals happened and who they happened against.
Parris' ceiling is a known commodity for the national team set up.
Sarina Wiegman being capable of adding context in terms of whom she is performing well against weighed alongside her historical inconsistency in the national team set up with the insane aged 20-23 year olds who are waiting for their chances, it's not complicated, united supporters!