- Leah Williamson tore her cruciate ligament while playing for Arsenal last April
- She missed the World Cup, but is now fit enough to be part of the England squad again
- IAN LADYMAN: David Moyes should leave West Ham this summer with his head held high It’s all Kicking Off podcast
Leah Williamson has been included in the 23-player Lionesses squad for the first time since tearing her cruciate ligament ten months ago.
Sarina Wiegman has announced her latest squad ahead of England’s upcoming friendlies against Austria and Italy in Spain this month.
And the biggest talking point ahead of her announcement was whether the Euro-winning captain would return to the fold.
Williamson has not played for England since April 11 in the friendly against Australia. She tore her ACL eight days later in the WSL, forcing her to miss the Women’s World Cup in Australia, which England lost 1–0 to Spain in the final.
But the defender has made good progress. She returned to Arsenal’s starting XI last month and featured in Arsenal’s last two games – in the Gunners’ 2-1 defeat to West Ham on February 4 and in Sunday’s defeat to Manchester City in the fifth round of the FA Cup.
Leah Williamson is back in the England squad after recently making her return for Arsenal
Sarina Wiegman has brought her back into the fold after Williamson tore her cruciate ligament last year
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And now, in a huge boost for the team, Sarina has decided to bring the 26-year-old back into the squad. Williamson replaces Chelsea defender Millie Bright, who took over the captaincy in Williamson’s absence. Bright has not played since November due to a knee injury.
On Williamson’s return, Wiegman said: ‘It’s very nice to have her back because she is a very good player. Even though she’s been out for months, her decision making is really good. She is still building.
‘The team did very well last year. The players stepped up. But it’s really nice to have her back.’
The England manager has made just one more change to the squad she named for England’s Nations League matches in November, bringing in uncapped Manchester City midfielder Jess Park in place of Katie Zelem.
Nikita Parris, who has scored fifteen goals in the past sixteen games in all competitions for Manchester United, was not part of the selection. Wiegman cited the extreme competition in the English attack areas as the reason for her omission.
“We are in a luxurious position that we have a lot of players up front – not just in the ninth position, but also on the wing – that it is so competitive that I have to make difficult choices and some players who are doing very well have to doing. keep outside. But (Parris) is available and she knows we are watching her closely.”
Elsewhere, Mary Earps’ goalkeepers include Chelsea’s Hannah Hampton and Manchester City’s Khiara Keating. Ellie Roebuck misses out again in favor of her Manchester City teammate Keating, who put in a spectacular performance in front of Wiegman in the stands during City’s victory on Sunday.
The Under-23s are also flying to Spain and Wiegman says she sees these upcoming friendlies as an opportunity to ‘experiment’.
‘We hope the weather is nice and the conditions are good to train well and play well. Also, the Under-23s are nearby, so we can get a closer look.
‘And what we can do is experiment. This is the first start in our preparation for the European Championship qualifiers, and hopefully also for the European Championship. This way we can try things out. We can see many players to see where they are. So I’m really looking forward to starting again next week.’
England will play Austria on February 23 and Italy at the Estadio Nuevo Mirador on February 27. Both matches will be shown on ITV.