Defender Anna Patten came through the Arsenal Women Academy from the age of 12, before pursuing her education at college in the United States, playing for Florida State Seminoles and the South Carolina Gamecocks. On her return to the UK, Patten went out on loan from Arsenal to Aston Villa. She then completed a permanent transfer to Aston Villa in July 2023.
The 24-year-old has been capped by England’s Under-21s on seven occasions but has made the switch to Ireland in the hopes of forging an international career in the years to come.
Patten received her first Republic of Ireland call-up for the Euro 2025 qualifiers against France and England. Patten qualifies for the Republic of Ireland through her Donegal-born grandfather and Galway-born grandmother.
“I’m delighted to be in with the Ireland squad, I was super excited when Eileen gave me the call and to have the clearance come through is great,” Anna told the Irish Times.
“This is a really strong squad and I just want to bring what I can to it to help the team. My grandparents have always been my greatest supporters and they have really motivated me to work hard to succeed in my career, so I’m delighted to be able to represent Ireland through them.”
Arsenal Women’s Katie McCabe captains the Republic of Ireland team, who will face France on 5th April, kick-off 8.10PM (GMT). The match will take place at Stade Saint-Symphorian, near Metz in France, and will be shown live on RTE 2, with coverage starting at 7:25pm.
England’s Lionesses v Sweden, who are in Group A3 alongside France & the Republic of Ireland, also go head to head tonight, at Wembley Stadium in London, kick-off 8PM (GMT). You can watch that match live on ITV.
Michelle M
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