Battle for England World Cup places
In the January transfer window, several players have engineered moves in search of regular playing time before the World Cup in July. Beth England’s decision to leave Chelsea for Tottenham, for a record fee between two WSL clubs, will not have been made lightly, but with her game time squeezed at Chelsea and competition for places up front in Sarina Wiegman’s England squad for the World Cup increasing, the move makes sense. England’s move was followed by that of her international teammate Jordan Nobbs, whose career has been blighted by injury to the extent that she has played only one match at a major tournament for England, at the World Cup in 2015. At 30, her move to Aston Villa after 12 years at Arsenal is likely one more roll of the dice. Lucy Staniforth’s switch from Manchester United to Villa is another example of the Villa manager Carla Ward’s astute plan to capitalise on the stacked squads of the top WSL sides. The season resumes on Saturday lunchtime with Villa’s home game against Spurs.
