Toone's mountainous mentality
Monday marks another year around the sun for Manchester United Women's star Ella Toone, as she celebrates her 25th birthday.
Toone has been involved with United since the age of eight, joining our Academy as a youngster before spending time with Blackburn Rovers and Manchester City.
When the chance to return came in 2018, Toone was one of the first to sign up for our inaugural season and has since earmarked herself as an icon within the women's game, most famously scoring in the final as England won the European Championship in 2022.
Having scored the most goals and made the most appearances for the club, Ella is gearing up for another season under Marc Skinner and her commitment to the cause remains the same.
All The Angles: Toone's FA Cup final stunner
All The Angles | We could watch Ella Toone's rocket from the Women's FA Cup final over and over and over again...
Ella, who has just been named vice-captain, with Maya Le Tissier as the Reds' new skipper, is set to travel to Marbella this week as part our pre-season training preparations, alongside her team-mates.
Tooney featured for 75 minutes in our latest pre-season outing against Newcastle on Sunday.
Having almost scored with a curling drive that thundered off the bar during the first half, her dedication was personified following her substitution in the second period, as she headed off to an adjacent pitch at Carrington to complete her post-match conditioning.
No questions asked, no moaning, just running, for a solid five or 10 minutes to ensure she prepares herself in the best possible way for our continuing off-season challenges.
It is perhaps an indicator as to why Ella remains one of the most integral parts of Skinner's side, but also shines a light on something most supporters rarely get to see.
Those at the top level must sacrifice a lot, and it takes more than just how you perform on the pitch.
Ella Toone was subbed of in the 75th minute of their pre-season friendly against Newcastle today.
— Ben Ibson (@Ben_Ibson) September 1, 2024
She left the pitch and headed straight to the training pitch to complete her running… on her own.
Elite mentality 🔝🧠 pic.twitter.com/uX6Xcg7Pim
Our no.7 will hope to be involved as our WSL opener at Old Trafford, against West Ham, fast approaches.
At 25, Tooney still has so much to achieve but her influence overall has helped inspire the next generation of young girls around the world.
Happy birthday, Ella and we can't wait to see even more of your tireless performances in Red this season!