Lauren James smiled as Beth Mead tries to answer how Arsenal are going to knock Chelsea off their perch this season.
Even though James and Mead are firm friends from their experience of playing together for England, speaking to two players from rival clubs was not the usual interview format.
A new Women’s Super League season begins on Friday and both James and Mead took time out of their busy schedules to speak to Mail Sport about their preparations, new arrivals, managerial changes and more.
James’ Chelsea will face Aston Villla first up, while Mead’s Arsenal will tackle Manchester City.
Here’s how our conversation went…
England team-mates Lauren James (left) and Beth Mead are preparing for the start of the WSL season on Friday
James’s Chelsea and Mead’s Arsenal are two of the favourites for success in the coming season
Chelsea lifted the WSL title last year for the fifth year in a row and are looking to retain again
First of all, it must have been nice for you both to finally have some time off over the summer for a change?
Beth: It didn’t feel like a long time off, I don’t know how LJ felt…
Lauren: I had the chance to go away twice…
Beth: Oh, that’s nice!
It’s tough. It’s such a long season and then you’re expected in 10 days to two weeks just to be able to switch off just like that and I think some people are better than others. I had the chance to get away for a week and then I went to see my family for a week, so take what you can get.
Lauren, you’ve got a new manager in Sonia Bompastor. How is she different to Emma Hayes and what has it been like getting to know her?
Lauren: She’s a good manager, I think what she’s won says that. What she’s bringing in is obviously to try and help us win the Champions League. You could tell from day one that she’s a winner. It’s still early days but everyone is looking forward to seeing how the season goes.
One of the players she’s brought with her is Lucy Bronze, how big of an impact has she had?
Lauren: I think everyone knows Lucy is Lucy, what she brings on and off the field. She’s fitted in well. I think everyone is just excited to play with her.
Beth, Arsenal have had some new signings too, how have they settled in?
Beth: It’s been a bit of a whirlwind for them but the girls have settled in great. Mariona is a very good footballer, won it all, brings good experience and quality to the team.
Rosa [Kafaji] is very exciting, quite a raw talent. Daphne [van Domselaar], goalkeeper, is competition for Manu [Zinsberger], they’re great additions and have settled in really well.
Have any of the new girls had to do initiations?
Beth: We don’t do initiations, we’ve got Kim Little as a captain and Kim says she would never do one so she doesn’t make anybody else do one! There’s no pressure of that here.
Lauren: Millie Bright is on it, she makes it a competition…
Beth: Of course she does, Millie loves it!
Lauren: Lucy was alright, we had two young ones who were the best, they actually won it.
This is where it’s weird having two players from opposing teams next to each other but, Beth, how do Arsenal improve on back-to-back third place finishes and attempt to knock Chelsea off their perch?
Beth: I think we’ve just got to be consistent. We went a season where we won against every lower team but then dropped points to the bigger teams. Arguably last season we got the most points against the top teams but then we dropped silly points to the lower teams.
I guess it’s finding a consistency throughout the season to be able to get games over the line and not drop silly points because by the end of the season we’re not many points behind teams but when you look back it’s frustrating because we’ve lost games where we’ve had one chance against us and conceded one chance. I think that’s a big part of our game we need to rectify.
And Lauren? I can see you’re smiling…
Lauren: Like Beth said, just not slipping points to the lower teams and making sure we’re consistent.
Mead explained how Arsenal are looking to improve this campagin after back-to-back third-place finishes
James, meanwhile, explained the need for consistency as the league continues to get stronger
Arsenal were the best team in the country before Chelsea’s rise and are looking to get to that level again
Is it harder to stay consistent now when every team is getting stronger?
Beth: I guess that’s why we love the WSL, one of the best leagues in the world now, probably one of the most competitive leagues from top to bottom.
No game is an easy win or a guaranteed three points, I think that’s the exciting thing about the league but it makes it hard to play in. You’ve got Champions League games and then you’re coming back and you’re playing a tough side. Every team is becoming stronger.
Lauren: I think it’s definitely getting harder but it’s good for the league. You’re not turning up to the games knowing you’re gonna win, it makes it more exciting for the league and for the people who are watching as well.
Away from the WSL, you’ll both be hoping to go far in the Champions League this season. Lauren, you were so close to the final last year, how will Sonia’s experience of winning it as a player and manager help?
Lauren: It’s the competition that I want to win and that Chelsea want to win. With the help of Lucy who I think has won it five times, having her on the field and her experience will obviously help and then Sonia’s experience will add to that.
Beth: Like Lauren said, it’s a trophy we all want to win. It’s a prestigious trophy that we’re all striving to get close to. It’s been a long time since an English team won that trophy so it would be nice if we could all compete if we could get close if not win that trophy.
You’ve both got some exciting friendlies with England coming up against Germany and the United States. Lauren, a reunion for you with Emma Hayes?
Lauren: It’s going to be weird playing against Emma since she knows me inside out. It will be good for the fans as well to see two great games at Wembley. Hopefully we can win them both.
Beth: We’ve got a lot of fond memories at Wembley, the Euros final, we played the US at Wembley and beat them last time so it’s great preparation going into the Euros. We’ll obviously have a target on our back going into that tournament. You’ve got to play against the best to beat the best. Emma is in charge of America who is a born winner, just won an Olympics. I think it’s a good test to see where we’re at and where we can improve. They’ll test us at a good level.
Emma Hayes is no longer in charge of Chelsea, having left her role to take over at the United States
James explained how it will be hard to take on her former boss when England face USA at Wembley in November
You’re both ambassadors for McDonalds’ Fun Football, tell us why you got involved?
Beth: I’m a little bit older than Lauren but growing up it was difficult to get into football. Having the Fun Football sessions available, free access, it’s nice to be a part of that and be able to put that on their doorstep. I’m proud that since 2022 we’ve had half a million kids joining in these sessions. It’s pretty incredible figures and it’s rewarding to be a part of that.
Lauren: It’s just good that it offers free football for girls and for all abilities as well. Growing up there’s not always access, even me I had to play with boys, there’s not always just girls teams. It allows girls to start from a young age.
Beth Mead and Lauren James were celebrating the latest free wave of McDonald’s Fun Football sessions this Autumn, available to all children aged 5-11 across the UK. Sign up now for your nearest free session at mcdonalds.co.uk/football