It took them long enough, but England’s England is finally back in England. Sarina Wiegman released her full squad for the upcoming World Cup this summer in Australia and New Zealand, and Tottenham Hotspur forward Bethany England made the cut!
England is one of seven forwards named by Wiegman for the World Cup which kicks off July 20. She’ll be competing for minutes with Rachel Daly, Lauren Hemp, Lauren James, Chloe Kelly, Katie Robinson, and Alessia Russo which is a pretty stacked field. But it’s no less than she deserves.
It’s not hyperbole to suggest that Tottenham’s mid-season signing of England, which set a new English transfer record, saved Spurs from relegation. England scored 12 goals in her 12 Spurs appearances, making her far and away Spurs’ top goal scorer.
Beth’s rationale for leaving Chelsea, where she had been relegated to a bench role for the WSL champions, for Spurs was that she wanted minutes in order to force her way back into Wiegman’s plans for the World Cup. That plan worked — with 14 total goals she was the third highest scorer in the WSL this season behind Daly (22g) and Bunny Shaw (20g). She’s a force in front of goal and in her prime. If she gets on the field, she’s going to score, I can virtually guarantee it.
England’s squad will be without Beth Mead, the Golden Boot winner and MVP of last summer’s EUROs, as she’s still recovering from an ACL injury sustained during the WSL season. England have 10/3 odds to win the World Cup this summer, which is second behind USA (11/4).
Here’s the full England squad for this summer’s World Cup.
Goalkeepers
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 (Manchester City)
- Ella Toone (Manchester United)
- Kiera 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)
