England Lionesses pay tribute to Poppy Atkinson, 10

England’s footballers have paid tribute to a 10-year-old girl who was struck by a car and killed on a training pitch.

Midfielder Ella Toone held a shirt with Poppy Atkinson’s surname on the back as the Lionesses lined up ahead of their match against Belgium on Friday.

The two sides also wore black armbands throughout the game, which was played at Bristol.

Manchester United fan Poppy was taking part in a football session at Kendal Rugby Club, in Cumbria, on 5 March when she was hit.

A member of Kendal United’s U12 girls team and Morecambe girls, her family have described her as a “force of nature” whose “passion for football was infectious”.

The child was a huge fan of Toone as well as Georgia Stanway and Kobbie Mainoo.

Poppy’s funeral was held on 24 March with her coffin decorated with a mass of poppies and bearing the image of Manchester United’s football stadium

At the service in Kendal, family and friends were joined by players and officials from local junior football teams, many wearing Manchester United shirts with the number 10 and “Poppy” on the back.

People had been invited to line the streets and create “a sea of love” as the cortege made its way to the parish church.

An online appeal set up by her uncles to fund a memorial and provide support to grassroots football teams across the UK has raised almost £60,000.

A 40-year-old man from Lancaster was arrested at the time of the crash on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving but has since been released while investigations continue.

At the time, police said there was “no indication to suggest that this incident was a deliberate act”.