Lauren James: Carving Out Her Own Name at the World Cup
As the World Cup approaches, England forward Lauren James is determined to make a name for herself rather than be known as her brother Reece’s sister. The 21-year-old Chelsea star is often linked to her older brother, an England international, but she is determined to carve out her own identity. With the World Cup giving her the chance to become the first member of her family to win a major international tournament, James is eager to make the most of the opportunity.
“Even just ‘that’s Lauren James, that’s Reece’s sister’,” she said. “But I want to carve out [my own name] and be known as ‘this is Lauren James.'”
Missing Out on Euro 2022
Having not been involved in the Lionesses’ Euro 2022 triumph, the World Cup will give James the chance to make her mark on the international stage. She said missing out on Euro 2022 gave her extra determination to make sure she made it on to the plane to Australia.
“Watching it, going to the final last summer [as a fan], it obviously made me feel more like ‘I want to make sure I’m there’ this summer, and it gave me a bit more motivation and hunger,” she said.
No Sibling Rivalry
There is no sibling rivalry between James and her brother Reece. She says he is just proud of her and his advice was to enjoy the World Cup and have fun.
“To be fair I think he’d just be proud. We’re just like best friends,” she said. “His advice was just to enjoy it [the World Cup], have fun, try and score goals.”
Enjoying Playing Under Wiegman
James played a key role in Chelsea winning a third successive domestic double last season, earning her a place in the Lionesses squad. She says she is enjoying playing under manager Sarina Wiegman who has allowed her to express herself and play freely with confidence.
“She’s been brilliant with me, she’s just allowed me to express myself and not tried to change me, which obviously plays a massive role because it allows you to just play freely and have confidence,” she said.
Learning from Experienced Players
James is relishing learning from the experienced players in the squad, such as Barcelona defender Lucy Bronze. She says she likes to keep learning and listens to what advice Bronze has and the other experienced players have.
“I just like to keep learning and [listen to] what advice [Lucy] has and the other experienced players [too] – how she conducts herself, within training and within games,” said James.
Conclusion
With the World Cup fast approaching, Lauren James is determined to make a name for herself rather than be known as Reece James’ sister. She is eager to make the most of the opportunity and carve out her own identity on the international stage. With no sibling rivalry between her and Reece, James is enjoying playing under Sarina Wiegman and learning from experienced players such as Lucy Bronze. It will be exciting to see what she can achieve at this summer’s World Cup.