27 November 2023 , 16:17
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For the first time in over a year, Beth Mead is available for England.
The 28-year-old returns to the international scene this week for two crunch UEFA Nations League fixtures, firstly against Netherlands under the Wembley lights on Friday, before a trip to face Scotland at Hampden Park next Tuesday.
The Lionesses must win both to have any chance of reaching the tournament finals, which in turn they must do to keep alive hopes of Team GB qualifying for next summer's Olympic Games. Mead, infamously not selected for Team GB at the 2020 Games, has not played international football since a 4-0 friendly win over Japan last year, after she ruptured her ACL the following week.
During that time Sarina Wiegman and England have had to cope without the Lionesses' Player of the Tournament at Euro 2022. In the main they coped well, winning the Finalissima, lifting another Arnold Clark Cup and reaching the World Cup final.
But with their Nations League campaign now in danger of coming off the rails after a shock 3-2 defeat in Belgium, the prospect of a fully fit Mead will be major boost to the European Champions. Then again, will she actually be in the team?
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Any side would be happy to welcome back a former European Footballer of the Year and England are no different. But this boost also brings Wiegman one of her toughest selection headaches to date in her two-year reign as manager, for two fixtures the Lionesses have to win.
After a long road to recovery Mead is now not only back on the pitch, but back amongst the goals. The Arsenal star scored twice in a 3-0 win over West Ham on Sunday, only a week after her return to the Gunners' WSL starting XI against Brighton. Her return to the squad was announced in-between the two games, completing something of a dream week.
But with Mead still only just back from a major injury, Arsenal manager Jonas Eidevall is understandably keen to manage her minutes. She was withdrawn after 64 minutes on Sunday, with the Swede not willing to risk her unnecessarily, despite the fact she was on a hat-trick.
Although the Gunners' forward looks sharp, the prospect of her starting against the Netherlands on Friday is perhaps minimal, purely based on how she is still yet to play a full 90 since recovering.
Even if Mead starts from the bench, if England are chasing a goal with half an hour to play, it will be hard for Wiegman to resist throwing her into the mix. But the Dutch coach will still have to select between Chloe Kelly, Lauren Hemp and the retuning Lauren James in the two wide forward roles should she go, as expected, with a 4-2-3-1 system.
The trio did feature together in the win over Denmark at the World Cup but that was with James in the No.10 role, which seems unlikely to be replicated, given Fran Kirby is now back and firing.
Of the quartet of talented wingers, James may appear the frontrunner for a starting place. The Chelsea star is playing close to her best football right now, following up a dominant display against Liverpool with another two-goals in the Blues' 5-2 win over Leicester on Sunday.
Beth Mead of Arsenal celebrates after scoring the team's second goal against West Ham (Photo by Alex Burstow/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)But she didn't start in the World Cup final, or in the reverse Nations League game against the Dutch back in September. Will Wiegman trust her in a must-win scenario?
Whoever starts on the right will have to be defensively switched on to deal with the in-form Barcelona star Esmee Brugts. James might not be the best pick for that task, but then she doesn't always produce her best when coming off the bench.
Wiegman's task of selecting her attack is made even harder with by the form of Chloe Kelly and Lauren Hemp. Both were at their devastating best in Man City's 3-1 win at Old Trafford recently and in the 7-0 win over Tottenham last weekend.
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Hemp has arguably been the Lionesses most consistent performer in the Nations League to date. She scored the winner in both previous home games against both Scotland and Belgium, as well as providing a glorious assist for Fran Kirby last time out when England were beaten by the Red Flames.
When partnering Alessia Russo, Hemp was also the European Champions' best player at the World Cup finals. Then there is the question of Russo's place in the team herself.
Lauren Hemp has been in sensational form for Manchester City recentlyThe forward has only scored once in five games for England since the World Cup semi-final. With Rachel Daly back to her best for Aston Villa, and both Hemp and Mead capable of playing centrally when required, Russo's position is perhaps under real threat for the first time since she replaced Ellen White as England's primary No.9.
The other intriguing part of the equation comes from the rigorous schedule that the players have faced this season. As is well documented, top international players in the women's game have had very little rest since the start of the World Cup.
England played their first Nations League tie just over a month after the final and the WSL started just a week later after a shortened pre-season. With the Women's Champions League now in full swing, the top English players are playing on a relentless every three or four days.
Games are coming thick and fast and even though Wiegman isn't the biggest fan of major rotation from one game to another, she may not have much choice this time around.
Will Wiegman unleash Lauren James as she did during the World CupThe Lionesses boss was typically guarded when asked last week by Mirror Football about the possibility of greater rotation between the two games. "We have to approach both games to win," said Wiegman. "And of course we need to see how the players are when they come in (to the team camp)
"It's a very busy period for all the players who have Champions League. So when they come in we'll see how sharp they are. We'll try and get everyone ready for the Friday game and then after the Friday, we'll get everybody ready for the Tuesday game.
"We'll see, but we'll go with a starting line-up with players more fresh and ready to play in that moment. Then during the game we'll just look at who can win us the game."