England face a nervous wait to learn the extent of a knee injury picked up by captain Leah Williamson.
Williamson limped off after 15 minutes of Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat by Manchester United in the Women’s Super League (WSL) on Wednesday night, after her knee buckled competing with Katie Zelem for possession.
The Lionesses skipper instantly asked to be substituted, although she was able to walk off the pitch after originally calling for a stretcher. Williamson will now be assessed over the coming days to learn the extent of the injury, with both Arsenal and England hoping for positive news.
“Of course it’s not good that she had to come off,” said Arsenal Women manager Jonas Eidevall. “You see the pitch, it is a pitch that has a lot more to [be desired]. I think it’s going to continue here with the schedule we have and pitches like that, players are going to get injured.
“That is something that we all need to improve on, the facilities where we play, so we can keep the players on the pitch.”
The Women’s World Cup starts in just 91 days and England head coach Sarina Wiegman is already sweating on a number of injury concerns. Centre-back and vice-captain Mille Bright missed the international break earlier this month with a knee injury, while forward Fran Kirby was also absent.
Beth Mead, who was top scorer and player of the tournament as England won Euro 2022 on home soil last summer, is expected to miss the World Cup entirely after injuring her knee in November.
Williamson being out is a big blow for Arsenal, who travel to Wolfsburg for the first leg of their Women’s Champions League semi-final tie on Sunday.
The Gunners have been hit hard by fitness issues this year and have already lost both Mead and star striker Vivianne Miedema for the rest of the season due to knee injuries. Captain Kim Little is also out for the rest of the campaign after injuring her hamstring.
Those absences told on Wednesday as Arsenal lost to Manchester United after Alessia Russo scored the only goal of the game. The Gunners are now third in the WSL and trail leaders United by six points, although they have a game in hand.
“I think with all the things accumulating here, with suspended players and Leah coming off injured, it was one absence too many for us,” Eidevall said.
