England's Kira Walsh is set to return for the match against Nigeria. Credit: PA/Zac Goodwin
Keira Walsh is set to start her first World Cup playoff match against Nigeria just 10 days after fears she would be out for months due to a serious knee injury.
Telegraph Sport understands that manager Sarina Wigman penciled the name of the Barcelona star into the starting lineup for Monday's round of 16 game after she was able to participate in two full training sessions over the weekend.
Final a decision will be made in the morning when the staff assesses whether there have been any setbacks in her recovery from the injury she feared ended her tournament.
Manchester United's Cathy Zelem, who came out against China while Walsh recovered, is on standby in case problems arise.
Sources indicated that Walsh felt embarrassed after the scan showed that there were no serious problems. she signaled to the bench and teammates that her tournament was over after she injured her knee against Denmark, leaving the field on a stretcher in tears. The best players in England are now available for selection against Nigeria.
«She's doing well,» said Wigman, who will either return to her beloved 4-3-3 formation on Monday or stay with a new 3-5-2 formation that crushed China 6-1. “She started rehab as soon as we found out what the problem was. She has been training and we will see how she recovers, but if she feels good, she will be able to play.
“I can only say that it was not a ligament injury and we could start recovery [immediately]. same]. It was that moment against Denmark and it was very hard. It was unpleasant to see this.
“But after the assessment, we said not to make any assumptions. We got the green light to start her rehab.
“The first moment was not very good. Everyone was, of course, shocked. But then very quickly, the next day, we realized that everything was not as bad as people thought it was.
Walsh brought back the buff for the offensive formation
The fact that Walsh is more than capable of playing in the center of a five-man midfield makes it likely that England will stick with their new attacking formation, especially as they have shown their best to their strikers Lauren Hemp and Alessia Russo.
Wigman, however, is delighted that she can keep opposing teams guessing after her oldest player, Lucy Bronze, admitted last week that they have become too predictable.
« Now we have two options,” she said. with a smile. “The way we played [before this tournament] and what we did against China, we will take that into account.
“We want every player to be fit and available. Kira was not available for the last match and we know what options we have in this position. Katie [Zelem] did really well against China and now Kira is back so that's also very good for the team.
“We know we have other options. Kira is unique, but other players can solve this problem, that's what we showed.
There is speculation that England will be too strong for Nigeria, but they have already beaten host Australia in the group stage and are a much better team than the Cameroonian team that England comfortably beat in the same World Cup four years ago. Their Dutch manager will not tolerate complacency.
«Nigeria did really well in this tournament,» added Wigman. “They were in a very difficult group. They are a very athletic team and fast in transition play. We are aware of their strengths, but we must try to exploit their weaknesses.
“What we saw at this tournament is that nothing is easy. Absolutely not [let's take it easy.] There haven't been any easy games for us yet, and we don't expect any against Nigeria. We have to be on top.
“Everyone who plays with us wants to beat us. Nothing new. Nobody can be complacent because it's inappropriate.»
Meanwhile, World Cup skipper Millie Bright says former Chelsea skipper John Terry has inspired her as captain as she prepares to take her country to the knockout stages .
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When asked which leader she looked up to, the England centre-back replied: “JT was very important to me. The way he behaved, and always fearlessly entered the field and strode forward. I think in every team he played on he did it and he led by example, his actions spoke louder than his words. It's definitely something I believe in too.
“Off the pitch I think he's a great person, he's very caring. I know a lot from personal experience that he always gave a lot to the women's team. On the field [too], without a shadow of a doubt.”
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