Two people hunched over a black and white checkered board, deliberating what moves they will make, how their opponent might counter and how they might counter that counter, with barely a flicker of emotion passing over their faces.

Jordan Nobbs, an energetic box-to-box midfielder and former Arsenal captain, has had more than her fair share of bad luck in recent years and was forced to miss out on the 2019 World Cup, the 2020 Olympic Games and Euro 2022 because of knee and ankle injuries. Even in spite of those heart-breaking setbacks, she has still notched up 71 appearances for her country and scored eight times, including a memorable long-range drive against Italy on her debut in the Cyprus Cup in March 2013, in addition to captaining the national side at under-17 level. Now 30, Nobbs will be relishing her chance to get out on the field at a major tournament once again, rather than languishing in a TV studio on punditry duties, and has the calm and experience to martial the Lionesses from the middle of the park, as Jill Scott was often called upon to do during difficult moments last summer. Nobbs was born in Stockton-on-Tees in County Durham and is a product of Sunderland’s youth system, making her first team debut for the Black Cats at 16 and scoring nine times in 29 outings between 2008 and 2011, during which time the side were beaten FA Cup finalists in 2009 and she was named FA Young Player of the Year in 2010. Nobbs subsequently signed for the Gunners in 2010 and became an integral part of the North London club’s success for more than a decade, winning three Barclay’s Women’s Super League titles (captaining the side that lifted the trophy in 2019), as well as four FA Cups and five League Cups. She scored 52 goals in 157 matches between 2010 and 2023 before that sequence of niggling injuries began to hamper her progress and eat into her playing opportunities. Earlier this year she gave herself a new lease of life when she signed for Aston Villa, joining up with current England teammate and Rachel Daly, and scored a hat-trick in a 6-2 trouncing of Brighton, firmly re-establishing her credentials at the highest level. Read More How to watch England vs Haiti: TV channel and start time for Women’s World Cup opener Women’s football world rankings: Who could take No 1 at the World Cup? FIFA Women’s World Cup fixtures and full schedule

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