The Women's World Cup is very nearly here, and as the most ardent football fan will know, the elite sign of a Proper World Cup Fan is their knowledge of those mythically elite-yet-unheard-of players that not everyone in the media is already screaming about.
The need to know is fierce. And sometimes overwhelming, particularly with this year's expanded tournament in Australia and New Zealand and the sheer quantity of talent on display.
But to save you from having to frantically trawl through page 10 of Google for those undiscovered gems, the Mirror has taken on the onus of hashing out a list of 10 players who are cutting themselves convincing candidates for the title of the tournament's breakout star Down Under.
Lauren James - England
Filing any Lioness under the header of "unheard of" is a stretch, but if any lesson was provided during England's goalless World Cup send-off against Portugal, it's that Lauren James is the name to know.
For all the positives to glean, James' inclusion in the match provided the scintillating factor that has come to be anonymous with the freshly crowned WSL champion. Lionesses captain Leah Williamson previously described James as a 'cheat code', and it bears conscious reminding that the Chelsea attacker did not partake in last summer's European championship triumph, having only made her debut under Sarina Wiegman last September.
Yet 10 months on, leaving out James from England's starting XI feels a near impossibility. She has pace to burn, a penchant to dazzle and an instinct in attack that is proving ever more lethal and necessary when England are looking to break down frustrating defences.
They are qualities that cut her the obvious game-changer for England. James, who has one goal in her 11 appearances for England so far, has insisted she has little relish for the spotlight, a fact that can read paradoxically given how unerringly her ability thrusts her into centre stage.
Sophia Smith - USA
Sophia Smith’s most recent goal drought for the U.S. spanned exactly two measly matches – friendly victories over Ireland – but the timeframe felt like aeons considering the slew of goals the 22-year-old forward ratcheted up prior (four goals in her previous six for the national team).
Smith scores goals. Last season for NWSL’s Portland Thorns, the forward notched 14 goals in 18 appearances, giving Alex Morgan a right run for the league's Golden Boot award. In total, Smith boasts 12 goals in 29 appearances on the national stage.
You can be forgiven for forgetting Smith debuted in November 2020 against the Netherlands, becoming the first player born in the 2000s to appear for the USWNT.
Prescient? Probably. USA is going through what critics are politely dubbing “transition”. The four-time world champions have been clumsily wrestling with how to succession plan, abjuring their five-year home unbeaten run to Germany and losing three consecutive matches for the first time since 1993.
With injuries to Mallory Swanson and Catarina Macario, Smith’s goal-scoring responsibility, alongside 21-year-old Trinity Rodman, is large if the USWNT are to complete their historic three-peat. But if there’s a player to relish the burden, it’s Smith.
Grace Geyoro - France
The France midfielder enjoyed a breakout of sorts when she wrote her name into women's football lore after becoming the first-ever player to score a first-half hat-trick at last summer's European championship, helping her country to a 5-1 victory over Italy in their opening game last July.
Since, the Paris St. Germain star has been quietly going about her business, scoring six goals and registering two assists in 28 appearances across the league and Champions League last term. But her potential is well-known, with plenty of interest surrounding the 25-year-old from top clubs, including Chelsea who were linked to her in February and had a world-record bid for her services rejected in September.
Polished on the ball, positive in her movements and prescient in her ability to dictate matches, Geyoro has become an important figure in the French midfield, linking up well with Kadidiatou Diani up front.
The World Cup stage is not technically new territory for Geyoro, though this summer's tournament should be in stark contrast to that of 2019 when the attacking midfielder managed just 18 minutes across the home tournament.
France will be hoping for Geyoro to play a more prominent role under new manager Herve Renard.
Frida Maanum - Norway
For WSL fans, the Norwegian’s prowess is well-documented and, particularly those of Arsenal bent, wonderfully appreciated.
In a season eternally plagued by injuries to Jonas Eidevall’s attacking ranks, Maanum very nearly papered over the entire Beth-Mead-and-Vivianne-Miedema-shaped chasm. Her second season at Meadow Park saw the Norwegian start 32 out 38 matches, scoring 16 goals and providing nine, a team high for goal involvements across the season.
The 23-year-old’s stunner against Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finals to fire Arsenal equal on aggregate served as a metaphor for her season: shifting the fates when it seemed so defiantly against Arsenal.
Maanum’s domestic season has bled into the international scene. Her second goal against Sweden secured a last-ditch draw, and as Norway bid to reinstate themselves at the apex of European football (in their last four matches against European opposition, Norway drew two and lost two), Maanum will need to play a pivotal role.
Lena Oberdorf - Germany
Most WOSO fans know this name, given Oberdorf was just 17 years old when she burst onto the scene for Germany's senior side at the 2019 World Cup in France.
Since, the midfielder has cemented herself a mainstay for both club and country. Known for her ability to dictate the tempo of a match and a comfortability doing so that belies her years, Oberdorf has relished a comfortable trajectory into the game's upper echelons over the years.
During last summer's European championship, the Wolfsburg star was named young player of the tournament as she helped her side to a dramatic final against eventual champions England. In the campaign following, Oberdorf was instrumental in Wolfsburg's thrilling run to the Uefa Women's Champions League final, where they eventually fell to defeat to Barcelona.
In fact, since the Euro2022 loss Oberdorf has played runner-up three times with her respective teams (Wolfsburg finished second behind Bayern Munich in the Fraun Bundesliga). It's not difficult to glean the sense that the 21-year-old feels its her turn to hoist a champions trophy into the air, as will her German teammates.
Salma Paralluelo - Spain
Highlight reels are inherently slippery business. Anyone can look good in the right 10-second clip. But Salma Paralluelo’s solo goal against Villareal is not only nonsensical genius of the highest order (coolly turning two players inside out before jinking inside on her left foot and rocking a screamer into the top left bin from 30 yards out) but the quintessential encapsulation of why the 19-year-old is one of the most thrilling players to look out for this summer.
For Liga F and European champions Barcelona, Paralluelo has scored 10 goals with three assists across only 728 minutes. She was a 2022 FIFA Puskas Award nominee. For the Spanish national team, the former sprinter (yes) has scored five goals in her past three national team matches, notching a hat-trick on her senior debut last November.
They are ridiculous stats, not least in squads already teeming with proven attacking verve. Spain manager Jorge Vilda will find it difficult not to give the starlet plenty of minutes in Australia and New Zealand.
Fenna Kalma - Netherlands
The caveat is always that cold, hard statistics can be misleading.
But it's difficult not to race wildly down the narrative arc when presented with the goalscoring stats of Kalma.
Across 26 matches in all competitions, the 23-year-old racked up a startling 37 goals for FC Twente, tagging on another 11 assists as if by means of accentuating.
The exploits earned Kalma a move to German giants Wolfsburg ahead of next season as well as a place in the history books as she became the first player to score more than 30 goals in a single season in the Dutch women's top-flight. In fact, the forward ended 2022 as the leading female goal scorer in the world.
By all means, the numbers are impressive. Since the 2019 World Cup, the Netherlands have struggled to hit the starry heights they were accustomed to under now-England boss Wiegman, but Kalma could play a significant role in reversing those woes, particularly in the absence of Dutch taliswoman and top goalscorer Miedema, who will miss the World Cup through injury.
Kerolin - Brazil
How much can be read into pre-tournament results is debateable, but if you were going to err on the side of 'loads', then a glimpse at Brazil's most recent tune-up matches offer plenty of evidence towards the threat of Kerolin.
Brazil clawed back to level terms against England in front of 83,000 at Wembley only to lose on penalties as part of the historic Women's Finalissima. They then topped Germany 2-1 in front of 32,000 in Nuremberg.
Kerolin was instrumental in both results, with her dangerous blend of verve and composure on display. She slotted home her penalty beyond Lioness Mary Earps calmly and it was her assist against Germany that proved the difference.
The 23-year-old forward joined NWSL side North Carolina Courage last January and finished joint fifth for assists in the league while boasting a positive start to the campaign thus far this season.
Brazil's history in the Women's World Cup is storied, though recent showings have fallen short of the glamour regularly associated with the nation. Kerolin promises to reinstate the swagger synonymous with Brazilian football. With the other impressive players around her, her potential is high.
Jordyn Huitema - Canada
The 22-year-old striker swapped Paris St. Germain for NWSL’s OL Reign last summer and the decision has proved fruitful. This season, Huitema has found the back of the net four times in seven appearances, already equalling the number of times she found the back of the net across three seasons in France.
The Chilliwack native, standing 5ft and 11in, has particularly polished her threat in the air and is known for her wily movements off the ball and exploiting space in behind.
But those who have followed Huitema from national level know she’s more than capable of finding the back of the net. The Canadian became the first to score for the under-17s, under-20s and senior team in the same calendar year and played a critical role in Canada’s World Cup qualification this season.
The increase in minutes and goals in the NWSL will only correlate in an increase in confidence for Huitema, which is precisely what Canada need heading into the World Cup after a difficult year of internal strife between the players and governing body.
Mackenzie Arnold - Australia
Sam Kerr is the obvious choice here for any listicle about players to fear/prepare for. Yet watching out for the Chelsea striker is like attempting to keep watch on gravity. Kerr is inevitable.
But where Australia boast one of the most terrifying clinical finishers in the game, their goalkeeping ranks deserve a nod.
West Ham will feel indebted to Arnold for keeping their WSL status intact. While shipping 47 league goals across a 22-match season doesn’t look hot on paper (the tally sees the Hammers rank eighth in league goals conceded), Arnold’s shot-stopping and commanding aerial authority buoyed the Hammers during an otherwise abysmal second half of the season in which Paul Konchesky’s side registered just one win.
Arnold’s performances stymied some of the best attacks, even holding Arsenal to a memorable goalless draw in February. Her five clean sheets across the season ranked joint-fourth.
Australia manager Tony Gustavsson is still ambivalent over his first-choice goalkeeper, with the Champions League pedigree of FC Rosengard’s Teagan Micah a major sticking point.
Still, Arnold was his preferred choice in the Matildas’ most recent friendlies, including the 2-0 victory over England in which Arnold showed off her composure and intelligence in a display that will make any bench role difficult to reconcile.
