England spy promise in Ruby Mace as they seek backup for Keira Walsh

There are the flashy players, all tricks and flicks, who get people off their seats. And there are others who quietly go about their business, just doing their job.

A deep-lying midfielder does not usually garner a lot of attention, given they rarely score or assist. That is not their primary duty. They are there to hold the midfield, make interceptions, switch or progress play upfield, and can ultimately dictate their team’s tempo. Theirs is not a glamorous role but it is crucial to a team’s performance.

England know that all too well after Keira Walsh’s midfield masterclass at the 2022 European Championship. Equally, when she was taken off on a stretcher with a knee injury against Denmark in the 2023 World Cup, it represented a huge blow.

The Barcelona midfielder was and still is arguably England’s most irreplaceable player. In Walsh’s brief absence last year in Australia, Sarina Wiegman turned to Laura Coombs as a No 8 with Georgia Stanway dropping deeper against Denmark, and selected Katie Zelem against China. Neither Stanway nor Zelem has been called up recently.

Unlike Wiegman’s many options for attacking midfielders (when all fit), there is not an obvious backup for Walsh. There has not been for some time. Stanway could be used in that single pivot role, while Leah Williamson could step up into midfield, but it is not the preferred position for either player.

It was a welcome sign, then, to see Ruby Mace make her debut in that position on Tuesday in the 1-0 friendly win over Switzerland at Sheffield United’s Bramall Lane. The 21-year-old has played that holding role at England under-23 level, scaling the ranks alongside starters Aggie Beever-Jones, Grace Clinton — who scored the game’s only goal — and fellow debutante Laura Blindkilde Brown, which made Tuesday particularly special.

Mace did the basics well, was tidy in possession, wanted to be on the ball, turned out of trouble and played simple passes.

The Leicester City midfielder, playing in front of England’s back three, was confident, composed and calm on the ball and did not look out of place. She did not attempt anything flashy, but simply got the job done.

Admittedly, Switzerland did not put her under any intense pressure and playing against tougher opposition will be a fairer measure of where she is at. Given the opposition dropped deep, Mace could have played higher up the pitch and played more forward passes rather than being conservative with sideways or backwards passes, as the graphic below shows.

At other times, centre-back Esme Morgan turned inside to Mace who looked for the diagonal ball to Maya Le Tissier on the right, only for the delivery to be cut out. Perhaps Morgan could have gone wide to Le Tissier straight away, bypassing the midfielder.

Wiegman was satisfied with Mace’s performance but also acknowledged it was the former Arsenal and Manchester City player’s first senior game representing her country “and the first moment she had to get through”.

After the game, Mace admitted she was a little “lost for words” and hoped she made her family proud. They were up in the stands watching their daughter make her England debut.

“I have to thank my coaches,” she said, “but the most important person to me is my mum. She was always there for me, driving me around the country. I dedicate that to her tonight.”

It has not been an easy journey for Mace.

Having joined Arsenal academy at age seven, she made three league appearances for the first team. “Ruby was a talent from a very young age — extremely mature in her game understanding,” said former Arsenal manager Joe Montemurro, currently at Lyon. “She is one of the few young players I’ve promoted that had no trouble integrating from academy to first team — you couldn’t tell she was from the youth sector. She has a very professional work ethic and is on the right path to be an important player.”

In the second half of the 2020-21 season, she played for Birmingham City on dual registration but, at the end of that campaign, she signed her first professional contract with Manchester City aged 17.

“It’s a hard graft,” said Mace. “People don’t see that behind the scenes. Some people think football is this massive high life and don’t see the work that you have to put in to get here.”

Mace has had to be patient. She was not getting enough game time at City and, in January 2023, was loaned to Leicester City before joining the club permanently last summer on a two-year deal.

She credits her loan spell under former Leicester manager Willie Kirk, new Leicester boss Amandine Miquel, as well as the Lionesses under-23 coach Emma Coates for her development.

“The move (to Leicester) has really helped me to showcase what I have learned from Manchester City,” she said. “I can only grow and move forward from there.”

Mace looks to former City midfielder Walsh, who replaced her in the 63rd minute, as a player from whom she can learn. “When she came on, the difference between me and her was the forward passing,” the youngster said. “That’s something I need to add to my game.”

When asked how close Mace would be to competing for the defensive midfield position regularly, Wiegman said: “I can’t answer that yet.”

A spot in the 2025 European Championship squad is “for sure” a New Year’s resolution, added Mace. “I’m not the finished article yet. I have to work so hard and it doesn’t come easy. Consistency is going to be key for me.”

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

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