Former England captain Steph Houghton will not be heading to Euro 2022 this summer, as she has been left out of Sarina Wiegman’s 23 man squad.
The Manchester City defender, who has also spent time at Arsenal, has been sidelined since January with an Achilles injury, and a decision was made that she would not be able to make the cut and be match-fit in time to play a meaningful role in the tournament.
‘It was a hard decision. She’s just not ready to compete. It was just a matter of time and we don’t have that time’, Wiegman told the media.
‘She is such a big player and has had such an impact on the English game. Of course she was really, really disappointed.’
W0PM2J Le Havre, France. 27th June, 2019. Steph Houghton of England celebrates after the quarterfinal between England and Norway at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Le Havre, France, on June 27, 2019. England won 3-0. Credit: Cheng Tingting/Xinhua/Alamy Live News
It means that Houghton, England’s 7th highest cap holder, will not be able to add to her 121 appearances for the Lionesses this summer.
However, fellow injury doubt Jill Scott has been selected, as she has seemingly recovered from an injury-plagued end to the season, which ultimately saw her let go from the Manchester City side when her contract ended.
There are also places for record goalscorer Ellen White, as well as Arsenal striker Beth Mead, who netted 11 times in 22 games in last season’s WSL.
The squad in full
The 23 person squad is as follows:
Goalkeepers
- Mary Earps (Manchester United)
- Hannah Hampton (Aston Villa)
- Ellie Roebuck (Manchester City)
Defenders
- Millie Bright (Chelsea)
- Lucy Bronze (unattached)
- Jess Carter (Chelsea)
- Rachel Daly (Houston Dash)
- Alex Greenwood (Manchester City)
- Demi Stokes (Manchester City)
- Lotte Wubben-Moy (Arsenal).
Midfielders
- Fran Kirby (Chelsea)
- Jill Scott (unattached)
- Ella Toone (Manchester United)
- Georgia Stanway (Bayern Munich)
- Keira Walsh (Manchester City)
- Leah Williamson (Arsenal).
Forwards
- Beth England (Chelsea)
- Lauren Hemp (Manchester City)
- Chloe Kelly (Manchester City)
- Beth Mead (Arsenal)
- Nikita Parris (Arsenal)
- Alessia Russo (Manchester United)
- Ellen White (Manchester City).
This is our family 🤝
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) June 15, 2022
England’s first game is against Austria at Old Trafford on July 6th, before they travel to Brighton to take on Norway on July 11th and round out their group stage with a clash against Northern Ireland in Southampton.
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