7/2/23
Above: Leah Williamson – the Lionesses captain is back in the England squad. Photo: BBC.
Ahead of their Arnold Clark Cup defence, England head coach Sarina Wiegman today announced her 26-player squad for the round-robin competition.
The headline announcements in the selection see captain Leah Williamson back in the squad after injury forced her out of November’s 4-0 defeat of Japan and 1-1 draw with Norway in Spain, while Jess Park, who scored on her debut in the first game, is also included again. Beth Mead is among those to miss out after suffering an injury just before Christmas.
Elsewhere, uncapped goalkeeper Emily Ramsey makes the step up from the WU23 squad, while Laura Coombs returns to a Lionesses squad for the first time since November 2020.
The tournament will see the European champions take on South Korea, Italy, and Belgium later this month. The Lionesses were the inaugural winners of the four-nation competition on home soil last year before going on to become European champions in the summer.
With this year’s fixtures to be played on double-header match days in Milton Keynes, Coventry and Bristol, Sarina Wiegman’s squad will hope for three positive performances to set them up for the FIFA Women’s World Cup challenge in Australia beginning in July.
The players will report to St. George’s Park from Sunday evening and will remain at the Burton base to prepare for each of the three internationals.
Speaking about her squad selection, Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman said: “The first camp of the year is always important to set the right tone for what comes next, especially with such a big opportunity in the summer.
“We are only looking forward now and we have to stay humble and focused on working hard. We know the fans will be with us again and we can’t wait to see them at every
stadium.
“We had a positive experience with the Arnold Clark Cup last time. We had three
tough matches with different challenges in each one, and we were able to learn a lot from our performances and work on many details which we are aiming to do again.”
LIONESSES SQUAD:
Goalkeepers: Mary Earps, Sandy McIver, Emily Ramsey, Ellie Roebuck.
Defenders: Millie Bright, Lucy Bronze, Jess Carter, Niamh Charles, Rachel Daly, Alex Greenwood, Maya Le Tissier, Leah Williamson, Lotte Wubben-Moy.
Midfielders: Laura Coombes, Fran Kirby, Georgia Stanway, Ella Toone, Keira Walsh, Katie Zelem.
Forwards: Lauren Hemp, Lauren James, Chloe Kelly, Jess Park, Katie Robinson, Alessia Russo, Ebony Salmon.
impetusfootball.org 