England manager Sarina Wiegman has named Bethany England in her 23-player squad to take to the FIFA Women's World Cup but Beth Mead misses out.
Arsenal forward Mead, Player of the Tournament as the Lionesses won Euro 2022 last summer, has been out since November with a ruptured ACL injury. She has lost her race against fitness, while Steph Houghton also misses out on a recall. Spurs forward England does return to the international fold, after a fine run of form since her transfer from Chelsea in January.
Centre-back Millie Bright, who hasn't featured for Chelsea since March, is included while Lucy Bronze has also overcome her recent knee problem to make the final squad. Captain Leah Williamson was already ruled out of the tournament in Australia and New Zealand, that gets under way on July 20, after rupturing her anterior cruciate ligament for Arsenal last month.
Fran Kirby's absence is confirmed, but there is a recall for Man Utd captain Katie Zelem in midfield. The Lionesses kick off their Women's World Cup campaign in 52 days when they face Haiti in Brisbane on July 22 and will also play Denmark and China in Group D.
Sarina 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 squad for the 2023 FIFA World Cup
Goalkeepers: Mary Earps, Ellie Roebuck, Hannah Hampton
Defenders: Millie Bright, Niamh Charles, Alex Greenwood, Esme Morgan, Lotte Wubben-Moy, Jess Carter, Lucy Bronze
Midfielders: Laura Coombs, Jordan Nobbs, Ella Toone, Keira Walsh, Georgia Stanway, Katie Zelem
Forwards: Bethany England, Lauren Hemp, Rachel Daly, Alessia Russo, Katie Robinson, Lauren James, Chloe Kelly
Standby: Maya Le Tissier, Jess Park, Emily Ramsey
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