England star Mead: "It was a tough one to take, it was unfair how it was written. My values and beliefs are completely different to what was written and it is not a true reflection of me as a person"; Mead has withdrawn from squad for Tuesday's friendly due to family circumstances
Wednesday 16 November 2022 23:12, UK
Beth Mead has defended herself over comments attributed to her in an interview with The Guardian in which she was quoted as saying the lack of diversity in the England Women squad was "a coincidence".
Speaking after Friday night's 4-0 friendly win over Japan in Spain, Mead told Sky Sports News that the article was "unfair" and not a "true reflection" of herself.
It was announced on Saturday morning that Mead has also withdrawn from the England squad due to family circumstances, having won her 50th cap for the Lionesses in Friday's victory.
She said on Friday: "For me it was a tough one to take, it was unfair how it was written. My values and beliefs are completely different to what was written and it is not a true reflection of me as a person.
"In terms of diversity in the game, I want to be there front and centre and helping with that. I know the FA are doing a lot for it. I actually said that in the interview, but that didn't get put through on the interview, so unfortunately it made me look worse in that context.
"Unfortunately, these things can happen in the media these days, but it's not a true reflection of me. I hope people understand that. Sometimes, don't believe everything you read."
Asked what the consequences have been since the article was published, she responded: "I guess it has brought the issue to light even more. I know it's not great the way in which it's happened but hopefully it can help push in the right direction.
"There's a long, long way to go but the FA are doing a lot and people need to get on board with that and try and help that process as best as we can, myself and the team included."
Lucy Bronze will also leave the squad and return to her club over the weekend as a precaution due to a minor injury.
England take on Norway on Tuesday in their final fixture of 2022.
The Guardian has since responded to this interview.
Speaking before the victory over Japan, England Women manager Sarina Wiegman said more must be done to increase diversity in football - and believes the Football Association is tackling the issue.
The FA's second annual report on the Football Leadership Diversity Code showed English clubs are failing to meet some of its pledged targets while just three of the 23 members of Wiegman's Euro 2022 winning squad were from Black, Asian or mixed heritage backgrounds.
The level of ethnic minority representation in the Women's Super League and England Women team has been a considerable talking point in recent years.
Asked by Sky Sports' Anton Toloui if there is a diversity problem in English football, Wiegman said: "That's a good question. I would love to see more Black players in the team, I think that's what your pointing on.
"With the senior squad I pick the best players, who are the best to perform, but I do think we need to do more and we are doing more. The FA is doing more to give access to anyone who wants to play football.
"We know the team has shared this letter for girls in football that every girl has access to football, that also counts for every boy, whatever skin colour you have, needs to have access to football, in England, in Europe, in the world. We really have to work on that."
The FA announced plans in May to grow the existing talent programme for the women's game, providing a wider and more diverse talent pool, with the number of players set to more than double by the end of 2023-24.
There is to be a wider national network of what will be called Emerging Talent Centres for girls aged eight to 16, with funding provided by the Premier League. That announcement followed the launch last year of the 'Discover My Talent' project.
Wiegman believes her inspirational squad can continue pushing for change with them set to speak to the Government later this month.
"The players have a voice," she said. "It starts with performing, when you keep performing you will be visible and then you have a voice.
"We have so many powerful players and personalities in our team, and they're using their voice to address these things. These little girls and boys see them playing football and think, 'I can achieve that too'. That's really nice to be part of."
