Phil Neville and Baroness Sue Campbell have congratulated Casey Stoney on her appointment as head coach of Manchester United Women.
Stoney joined the England Women’s backroom staff in February this year after confirming her retirement from playing and immediately joined The FA’s new player to coach scheme.
She assisted Neville at the SheBelieves Cup in the United States, when England recorded their best-ever showing and subsequently moved up to second in the world rankings.
The move to United brings to an end a long-term association with England that began with her senior playing debut in August 2000.
Neville said: “I would like to thank Casey for her significant contribution to the Lionesses, first as a player and more recently in a coaching capacity. She has certainly been a tremendous support to me since my appointment.
“In taking the role, one of my goals as England head coach was to help develop female coaches and in our short time together, I have seen at first hand that Casey has a great knowledge of the game, a huge capacity to learn and a commitment to develop herself as an outstanding coach.
“I wish her all the best in her new role with Manchester United.”
In her playing days, Stoney won 130 caps for the Lionesses and played an integral part in England’s rise to become one of the world’s best teams, including being part of the squad that took the bronze medal at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Having spent two years as England skipper, she captained Team GB in five matches at the 2012 Olympics in London, scoring in the 3-0 defeat of Cameroon in Cardiff before leading the team to a memorable 1-0 win over Brazil at Wembley Stadium.
Sue Campbell, FA director of women’s football, said: “Having Casey take such a prominent club role will serve as a great inspiration to young coaches across the country.
“As a player and now as a coach, she has continued to be a wonderful ambassador for women’s football and the game in general.
“I know she will put youth development at the heart of her new role and will do everything she can to be a success.
“While we are sad to see her leave the England fold, she will always have a strong bond with the national team. We are very proud of her and I wish her all the best in future.”
The 36-year-old began at Chelsea before heading to Arsenal and then Charlton Athletic. A return to Chelsea followed before spells at Lincoln and Arsenal, where she won her third Women’s FA Cup with a 1-0 defeat of Chelsea at Wembley Stadium in 2016, before moving on to Liverpool.
Notably, from an international perspective, Stoney played in the UEFA Women’s Euro 2009 final before that 2015 World Cup third place and was named in the squad that reached the Euro 2017 semi-finals.
