Beth England has been recalled for England's squad at this summer's Women's World Cup after an incredible second half of the season with Tottenham Hotspur. Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman announced her squad on Wednesday afternoon, with Euro 2022 top-scorer Beth Mead missing out as expected due to her continued absence with an ACL injury.
Striker England had found herself out of Lionesses contention since the Euros and the striker was one of the most talked about stars leading up to the World Cup squad announcement. Since leaving Chelsea for Tottenham Hotspur in January, England has scored 13 goals in 11 games across all competitions and played a crucial role in Spurs maintaining their top-flight status. She will face fierce competition from WSL top scorer Rachel Daly, who has rightfully been added to the forwards roster, and Alessia Russo to lead England’s line at the summer tournament.
Right-back Niamh Charles has also retained her place in the squad after a stellar campaign with Chelsea as they secured their fourth consecutive WSL title last weekend. Charles will be making her major tournament bow with the Lionesses, alongside Manchester City defender Esme Morgan and Manchester United’s Katie Zelem, who played a key role for the Red Devils as they pushed Chelsea all the way in the title race.
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Veteran Manchester City midfielder Laura Coombs, who was handed an England recall after several years earlier in 2023, is also heading to Australasia in July to act as a senior figure for the dressing room.
With the Lionesses having to look ahead to the World Cup without captain Leah Williamson, midfielder Fran Kirby and Euro 2022 Player of the Tournament and Golden Boot winner Beth Mead, Wiegman had her work cut out for her to select a strong squad for the campaign in Australia and New Zealand.
Mead was key to England’s triumph at the Euros last summer but after suffering an ACL injury with Arsenal this season, she has been unable to recover in time to make it to the World Cup. Goalkeeper Sandy MacIver ruled herself out of the World Cup after an injury at the end of the WSL season derailed her bid to be a part of Wiegman’s squad.
Reacting to her squad, Wiegman said: “I have huge belief in this squad and we’re very fortunate to be selecting a fantastic group of players to travel to Australia.
“We know we will face tough challenges from strong teams, and we will have to be competitive from the first match on 22 July. We will do everything to be at our very best again this summer.
“It is important the players get some well-deserved time to rest and recover over the next few weeks before we start the final preparations to get them ready.
“We learned a lot of positive lessons about how to get the players fit, fresh and ready from the EURO last summer and we know what we have to do to make sure we hit the ground running in the right way when the tournament starts.”
England’s World Cup campaign gets underway on 22 July against Haiti.
The Lionesses squad in full:
Goalkeepers: Mary Earps (Manchester United), Hannah Hampton (Aston Villa), Ellie Roebuck (Manchester City)
Defenders: Millie Bright (Chelsea), Lucy Bronze (Barcelona), Jess Carter (Chelsea), Niamh Charles (Chelsea), Alex Greenwood (Manchester City), Esme Morgan (Manchester City), Lotte Wubben-Moy (Arsenal)
Midfielders: Laura Coombs (Manchester City), Jordan Nobbs (Aston Villa), Georgia Stanway (Bayern Munich), Ella Toone (Manchester United), Keira Walsh (Barcelona), Katie Zelem (Manchester United)
Forwards: Rachel Daly (Aston Villa), Bethany England (Tottenham Hotspur), Lauren Hemp (Manchester City), Lauren James (Chelsea), Chloe Kelly (Manchester City), Katie Robinson (Brighton & Hove Albion), Alessia Russo (Manchester United
