England’s women footballers are world beaters, but earn a fraction of the male players’ rewards or fame... so why isn’t Lucy Bronze, their star player, jealous? Here, she explains why she feels sorry for the men

It would be safe to say there aren’t many professional footballers who grew up dreaming of becoming a chartered accountant. Fortunately, Lucy Bronze doesn’t seem to mind being a touch unusual. Numbers are just her thing.

‘It’s probably the wrong way round, I know,’ she laughs, ‘but I just love maths, and doing equations. When I was a kid I was really good at it, so when I was seven I asked my mum what job lets you do maths and pays you for it. She said accountancy, and that was it. I was dead set.’