All eyes on Earps as she returns to Old Trafford | OneFootball

Mary Earps will be back between the sticks at Old Trafford as her Paris Saint-Germain face Manchester United with the former England goalkeeper under added scrutiny.

Extracts from the goalkeeper's autobiography published in the press brought up Earps' past disagreements with England manager Sarina Wiegman, which explained why she stepped back from international duty. 

The emergence of Hannah Hampton and Earps' view on the Chelsea goalkeeper's 'disruptive' role in the Lionesses squad have also prompted debate and comments from pundits, players, and managers.

There was always going to be plenty of focus on Earps as she faces some of her former teammates but she'll be under the microscope now more than ever.

Earps chose to leave United in the summer of 2024 after five seasons with the club in which she was an ever-present figure and a part of the team that lifted the FA Cup.

After moving to Paris Saint-Germain, Earps' form has certainly not let up. Although PSG remain second best to Lyon (or OL Lyonnes as they are now known), the 32-year-old is still doing her thing between the sticks.

Earps is on a four game run of clean sheets in the league, having helped shut out Dijon, Strasbourg, Le Havre, and FC Fleury. No goalkeeper in the French league has as many clean sheets as Earps so far this season.

However, Earps was on the end of a 6-1 drubbing against OL Lyonnes back in September and PSG have lost both of their, admittedly tricky, Champions League games so far losing 4-0 to Wolfsburg and a 1-0 at home to Real Madrid.

Another defeat really would be panic stations for PSG in Europe ahead of a home game against Bayern before more 'winnable' fixtures against OH Leuven and Benfica Women.

Both for herself and her club, Earps needs to put in a stellar performance against her former club.