England midfielder Keira Walsh says Ella Toone needs to be given more “respect” for the role she has played in helping the Lionesses reach the Women’s World Cup final.
Toone, 23, scored in England’s 3-1 semi-final victory over Australia to set up a final against Spain on Sunday.
But Toone may miss out on a starting place with Lauren James available again after her two-game suspension.
“Tooney has come back in and she has done an unbelievable job,” said Walsh.
“People probably won’t speak about it too much, but it’s not easy to come in for a quarter-final or semi-final when all the spotlight has been on the player’s place you are taking.
“She tackled, she got stuck in, she took us up the pitch, she gave us a lot of security. LJ is a massive talent, but we have got to put some respect on Tooney’s name as well – she has been fantastic.”
Chelsea forward James, 21, scored three times and created three assists in the group stage of the competition before she was sent off in the last-16 match with Nigeria, which England won on penalties after playing extra time a player down.
Manchester United’s Toone, who scored in the 2-1 Euro 2022 final win over Germany at Wembley, played all of the 2-1 quarter-final win over Colombia and started in the semi-final success against co-hosts Australia.