Houghton misses out on place in England squad for women's Euro

Houghton had Achilles surgery in February which forced her to miss the second half of the club season with Manchester City. The 34-year-old has made 121 appearances for England, featuring at five major tournaments.

Arsenal's Leah Williamson has taken over the captaincy from Houghton and leads a squad with a mixture of youth and experience from the side that reached the semi-finals of the World Cup three years ago. Nine of the squad will be involved in a major tournament for the first time.

"We all know this is a huge opportunity and it is one we have to grab with both hands," said Wiegman, who has experience of winning the Euro with home advantage after leading her native Netherlands to the title five years ago. "The chance to represent the nation on such a big stage on home soil is one to relish. This group so far has proven they are prepared to give it all they have in every training session, in every meeting and in every game."

Sandy MacIver, Niamh Charles, Lucy Staniforth and Katie Zelem were also cut form the provisional squad of 28 but changes can be made until June 26 in case of injuries. England kick off the tournament at Old Trafford against Austria on July 6 before facing Norway and Northern Ireland in Group A.

"Of course, we hope to avoid any setbacks before we start against Austria but we know where we can turn in case we need a replacement," added Wiegman. "Togetherness is a big part of what we are all about and from every player in the squad to my superb support team, and with the strong backing of everyone at The FA and our fans, we are committed to make it a summer to remember."

The Lionesses begin their tournament preparations against Belgium on Thursday, with further friendlies against the Netherlands and Switzerland to come later this month.

England women's squad

Goalkeepers: Mary Earps (Manchester United), Hannah Hampton (Aston Villa), Ellie Roebuck (Manchester City)

Defenders: Millie Bright, Jess Carter (both Chelsea), Lucy Bronze, Alex Greenwood, Demi Stokes (all Manchester City), Rachel Daly (Houston Dash/USA), Lotte Wubben-Moy (Arsenal)

Midfielders: Fran Kirby (Chelsea), Jill Scott (unattached), Ella Toone (Manchester United), Georgia Stanway (Bayern Munich/GER), Keira Walsh (Manchester City), Leah Williamson (Arsenal)

Forwards: Beth England (Chelsea), Lauren Hemp, Chloe Kelly, Ellen White (all Manchester City), Beth Mead, Nikita Parris (both Arsenal), Alessia Russo (Manchester United)

June 15, 2022