England Women's boss Sarina Wiegman has confirmed a 24-player squad for their upcoming friendlies against the United States and Switzerland on home soil.
The Lionesses conclude a mixed 2024 with two exhibition contests on familiar territory, firstly welcoming the USA to Wembley on November 30 before hosting the Swiss at Sheffield United's Bramall Lane on December 3.
October's contests saw England suffer an enthralling 4-3 loss to Germany at Wembley before a 2-1 triumph over South Africa in Coventry, and there have been a couple of enforced alterations to Wiegman's squad for this month's battles.
Manchester City Women's Lauren Hemp and Manchester United Women's Ella Toone are both nowhere to be seen, as the former has gone under the knife to treat a knee injury and will be sidelined for an unspecified period of time.
Meanwhile, Toone - who seldom spends time out injured - will miss out with a calf problem, while Lauren James, Niamh Charles and Lucy Parker are also out of the picture this month due to fitness problems.
England call up two new faces amid injury problems
© Imago
Wiegman was pressed for details on Hemp's surgery in her press conference on Tuesday, but other than confirming that the 24-year-old had not suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury, she remained tight-lipped.
With Hemp and Toone sidelined, Wiegman has included two uncapped 21-year-olds in Leicester City's Ruby Mace and Manchester City's Laura Blindkilde Brown, who were born within a few days of each other in September 2003.
Orlando Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse is the only other uncapped player in England's ranks this month, and there is a first call-up in two years for Manchester United defender Gabby George.
As well as the injured Toone, Parker and Hemp, Arsenal defender Lotte Wubben-Moy is the fourth player from October's ranks to be omitted this time around, as the 25-year-old makes way for George.
"This is an important international window for us to continue our work to be ready for next summer's EURO. Every minute of these two games and every moment spent together at St. George's Park is to make sure we're where we need to be when the tournament begins on 2 July," Wiegman told englandfootball.com.
Here it is! 🤩
— Lionesses (@Lionesses) November 19, 2024
Your #Lionesses to face 🇺🇸 & 🇨🇭 this November and December...
"As we continue our preparations we want to test ourselves against the very best and that's why we have carefully selected the USA and Switzerland. They are two opponents who will challenge us in different ways this window and that's exactly what we want.
"The USA need no introductions and to play them at Wembley Stadium in front of a packed home crowd again is going to be very special. Under Emma they've reached a really top level.
"Switzerland are improving all the time and their impressive victory against France last month shows what they are capable of and how much they continue to grow and develop. It'll be nice to return to Sheffield, a stadium which gave us one of our most memorable moments together but our full focus is now on our next chapter as a team."
Following their final two fixtures of 2024, England will learn their opponents for Euro 2025 when the group-stage draw is held on December 16, and the Lionesses commence next year's UEFA Nations League against Portugal (February 21) and Spain (February 26).
England squad in full:
Goalkeepers: Mary Earps (Paris Saint-Germain), Hannah Hampton (Chelsea), Anna Moorhouse (Orlando Pride)
Defenders: Millie Bright (Chelsea), Lucy Bronze (Chelsea), Jess Carter (Gotham FC), Gabby George (Manchester United), Alex Greenwood (Manchester City), Maya Le Tissier (Manchester United), Esme Morgan (Washington Spirit), Millie Turner (Manchester United), Leah Williamson (Arsenal)
Midfielders: Laura Blindkilde Brown (Manchester City), Grace Clinton (Manchester United), Fran Kirby (Brighton & Hove Albion), Ruby Mace (Leicester City), Jess Park (Manchester City), Georgia Stanway (Bayern Munich), Keira Walsh (Barcelona)
Forwards: Aggie Beever-Jones (Chelsea), Chloe Kelly (Manchester City), Beth Mead (Arsenal), Jessica Naz (Tottenham Hotspur), Alessia Russo (Arsenal)
