How Bronze became the best player in Europe

She also praises her predecessor as England’s right-back, Alex Scott, alongside the move to Lyon, as key to reaching the award-winning level to which she is not accustomed. “I’m not striving to win personal awards, I’m not striving to be the best player in Europe, I just want to win things for England and Lyon … Being the first English player to win the European award is more special than it actually being me, because it shows English football is growing and getting better and people are thinking of us.” Britain's greatest sportswomen (Read Sport) That is Bronze: sometimes frustratingly humble, keen to avoid attention, but more aware than ever of what being at the biggest club in women’s football and a talisman of the Lionesses means; that she has a responsibility to get used to the cameras and microphones. Bronze, on her first appearance since winning an award for her outstanding performances at right-back, was again tested in midfield by Phil Neville in the friendly in Belgium. The panel of judges disagreed, scoring her 32 and 44 points higher than her Lyon teammates Ada Hegerberg and Amandine Henry respectively. Whether at the back with Steph Houghton or Griedge Mbock, in the middle with the players such as Jill Scott, Henry and Marozsan, or almost spoon-feeding Hegerberg, Ellen White and Nikita Parris, she has a fine understanding of the movements around her. With Hegerberg taking the Champions League final plaudits for herstunning 16-minute hat-trick, Bronze – like much of the Lyon team – was brutally efficient in the background. Her wonderful ball between the lines split Barcelona for Hegerberg’s firstgoaland an inch-perfect cross set up the Norwegian to poke home her third. Football's biggest derbies (FourFourTwo) In the group stage of the World Cup, particularly against Scotland, Bronze wore well the mantle of being, arguably, England’s most valuable player. Marozsan spent the year battling injury and illness, and Pernille Harder, last year’s winner of the Uefa award, failed to qualify for the World Cup with Denmark.