Quotes from Karen Bardsley

I trained alongside full-grown men at college and worked with some great male keepers. It helped me 100% with speed of play, speed of reactions, and strength. The mindset they gave me was invaluable.

I don't know what I was expecting the World Cup to be like. I never thought to ask anybody; maybe I should have. I've never played in a stadium with, like, 20,000 watching. It was an intense sensory experience.

It's a goalkeeper's job. There's so many times you're doing nothing for 89, 90 minutes, and then there's a split-second moment. It's a different challenge to outfield players, who have a lot of physical challenges and battle. We have a lot of mental battles; it's about maintaining your focus, refining processes of what you do in a game.

There were some coaches, some teammates, some sports psychology people who I could trust and rely on. They were very important to keep me focused on the right things - the things which would be beneficial to me instead of catastrophising things and worrying about things which were not in my control.

To build more interest in goalkeeping, we have to change how people think and report on goalkeepers. You are not just there to keep the ball out of the back of the net: you are there to impact the back four, to organise the team, essentially lead from the back. It is a really pivotal position.

I want to carry on improving and learning.

There's no point going to a tournament if you don't want to win.

That's what tournament football's all about. It's about finding your feet in the first game, finding what works, and gaining confidence.

I think, in a tournament, things are always a little more exciting.

I trained with some great keepers at college, alongside full-grown men, and it helped me 100%.

I like to eat healthily and feel like I'm putting good fuel in my body, although I do allow some tasty treats once in a while.

As a keeper, you have to understand that your job is black and white: you make a save, or you don't; you can be the hero - or the goat.

I'm not fussed about awards. I just want to win a medal and a trophy.

You take the opportunities when you get them, and you try to see if there's any cues the opposition gives you, but more important is focusing on your own process, trusting your instincts, and being decisive.

We do get a lot of sexist tweets and comments, things about a woman's place being in the kitchen, not on the pitch.

We talk sometimes about the impact we hope we're having, that little girls - and boys - at home are watching us on TV. We can be role models.

Goalkeepers get criticism for commenting on outfield players, but outfield players can comment on goalkeeping; it is not a two-way street.

There are constant messages I heard growing up... like, 'If you're unfit, you go in goal' or, 'If you're crap, you go in goal.' No, no, no! How do we change that? How do we give goalkeeping more respect?

Kids in school told me my parents had accents, but I had no idea; they've always sounded that way to me.

I don't think there's any reason why girl goalkeepers cannot train alongside the boys in academies. We have done it in the past. But health and safety have stepped in and stopped us. It may be there were child protection regulations to observe.

Different techniques are now being used in futsal and handball. It's about timing more than anything else. Those little intricacies are slowly being picked up in the women's game - and it's kind of going unnoticed.

Anyone that plays knows football is up and down. As much as you want to, you can't control everything. You take what positives you can.

As a result of my upbringing, I was interested in reconnecting with my family and making them proud. Therefore, this emotional connection meant that representing England became a personal obsession.

My big thing is we need to change how people feel about goalkeeping. I don't think there is enough respect for the position in the game, whether male or female. There is a stigma that you have to be a certain size or not very good with your feet, or you have had to go in goal as a last resort.