England boss Sarina Wiegman says there was never a chance Arsenal forward Beth Mead would be fit for the World Cup.
Mead has been out since November after injuring her knee and was forced to undergo surgery with her season deemed over at the time.
Wiegman said in March that Mead needed a miracle to be fit, but the forward has always refused to rule out making the plane to Australia and New Zealand this summer.
The 28-year-old, however, was left out of England’s World Cup bid as Wiegman named her 23-player squad.
When asked if there was ever a chance for Mead to be in the squad, Wiegman said: “No, I don’t think so.
“Beth is so positive and she is going really well, but we said the time schedules she had, we would have taken so many risks to try and get her to the World Cup.
“And also she had a personal situation too. So that all added and very early we said: ‘We are not going to take that risk’.
“I am not willing to take that risk, to push her too much and then she gets injured again, because we also have to take care of players and do what’s smart.”
Despite not taking Mead, Wiegman has opted to pick seven forwards and Tottenham striker Bethany England has made the cut.
England has not been in a Lionesses squad since September and she left Chelsea for Spurs in January as part of a British record deal worth £250,000 to get more game time.
The move has paid off, with England scoring 12 goals in her last 12 Women’s Super League games and Wiegman has rewarded her for her form.
“She was at Chelsea and didn’t build that much credit because we hardly saw her play,” said Wiegman.
“But then she made a move and how she did, performed and the resilience she showed made us make the decision to get her in the squad.”
Mead may not be fit in time, but Wiegman is confident Chelsea centre-back Millie Bright will be.
Bright has been out injured since March with a knee injury, but she has been named in the squad by Wiegman and is due to captain the team.
“Millie Bright is in a good place, so we’re positive. She’s still building but we have time. It looks good,” said Wiegman.
