England captain Leah Williamson will miss the Women’s World Cup this summer after rupturing her ACL in Arsenal’s loss to Manchester United on Wednesday.
Williamson got her replacement after collapsing to the ground 12 minutes into Arsenal’s 1-0 loss at Leigh Sports Village, with her knee appearing to be the source of her pain.
While the 26-year-old was able to walk off the pitch with the help of two Arsenal physios, a scan revealed she had suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament, which normally takes at least six months to recover from.
As a result, she will almost certainly be unable to lead the Lionesses at the Women’s World Cup, which will be held in Australia and New Zealand from July 20 to August 20. Sarina Wiegman will name her squad in late May, and England’s first game will be against Haiti on Saturday, July 22nd in Brisbane.
She led England to the inaugural Finalissima trophy at Wembley, defeating Brazil in a penalty shootout to win the second piece of silverware since Wiegman named her captain ahead of last summer’s Euros.
Leah Williamson in Doubt to Miss the World Cup
Initially blaming the Man Utd field for the incident on Wednesday, Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall expressed uncertainty about Williamson’s length of absence. However, after the severity of her injury was confirmed on Friday, Arsenal announced that Williamson will have surgery in ‘due course’.
Initially blaming the Man Utd field for the incident on Wednesday, Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall expressed uncertainty about Williamson’s length of absence. However, after the severity of her injury was confirmed on Friday, Arsenal announced that Williamson will have surgery in ‘due course’.
Leah will receive close support from everyone at Arsenal throughout her journey, and the club kindly requested that her privacy be respected at this time.