Wiegman wants Beth Mead to build up Arsenal minutes before considering England return for Gunners star

SARINA WIEGMAN says Beth Mead must get her consistency back on the pitch for her club before being reconsidered for England.  

The forward made a winning comeback for Arsenal on Sunday after battling back to fitness from a knee injury sustained in November. 

PAEngland chief Sarina Wiegman wants Beth Mead to build up match minutes and consistency[/caption]

GettyLioness star Mead made a return to competitive match action on Sunday after recovering from a long-term knee injury[/caption]

ReutersChelsea’s Fran Kirby has returned to England’s squad for the first time this year ahead of their games against Belgium[/caption]

Wiegman’s squad announcement ahead of the Lionesses’ upcoming Women’s Nations League fixtures included a recall for Fran Kirby.

The fit-again Chelsea forward is back with Lionesses for the first time this year. 

However Mead has been left out of the head coach’s 25-strong group with the team facing Belgium in a double-header later this month. 

Earlier today England boss Wiegman said: “Beth is in a good place now but has been out for nine months. To be honest, she was not close

“She had her first minutes which was nice to see, but she first has to build at (her) club, to get that consistency back and then we have an opportunity to select her.

“She just came on the pitch (against Aston Villa) for the first time in a competitive game. She came on in the 88th minute. She needs consistency. 

“That has to do with performance and also staying healthy.”

Kirby’s call-up follows the playmaker’s return to match action last Saturday during the Blues 2-0 defeat of West Ham in the league. 

The game at Kingsmeadow was her first competitive appearance since recovering from a knee injury sustained in February 

An injury that led her to miss this year’s Women’s World Cup and much of the second half of last season. 

Wiegman added: “It’s very nice Fran is back on the pitch. She’s fit and healthy. 

“I thought she played very well when she came back on the pitch. 

“She’s been building up to those moments in the summer.

“She has shown enough quality in her performance that I think it’s good she comes back into the team.

“She was really happy when I called her and she’s good to go.”

England’s duels with Belgium, which includes an away game in Leuven, comes in the same month as a suspected terror attack in Brussels. 

Two people were shot dead in Belgium’s capital on Monday before a Euros 2024 qualifier between the nation and Sweden with the shooting prompting the game to be abandoned. 

The incident saw the country’s terror alert raised to its highest levels with  Prime Minister Alexander De Croo describing the attack as “brutal”

Wiegman said:  “Of course it’s an awful situation. Two people killed, very, very horrible.

“The FA has had conversations with the Belgium FA and it’s all about safety. “I feel safe enough to go there.

“There are conversations going on and they will do everything to make us safe.

England’s squad includes two new young faces with Man City goalkeeper Khiara Keating, 19, and Spurs midfielder Grace Clinton, 20 – on loan from Manchester United – getting their first call-ups.

Keating’s standout shot-stopping displays for City has seen the team concede just once in three WSL games. 

And the teenage City starlet has started in the three WSL games City have played so far with club team-mate Ellie Roebuck on the bench last time out. 

GettyKhiara Keating has been called up to England’s senior squad for the first time in her career[/caption]

Along with Keating, Roebuck has been included in the England squad as one of four goalkeepers including Hannah Hampton and England number one Mary Earps. 

Both Roebuck and Chelsea shot stopper Hampton are yet to make appearances for their club sides this term with both facing a battle for minutes. 

However Wiegman insists the duos’ calibre has earned them enough credit for national selection. 

The head coach added: “Both of them have built a little bit of credit with us because they have been with us and trained well. 

“I still think they are two of the best in the country but I hope in the future they get minutes. 

GettyGrace Clinton has also received her first senior Lionesses call-up this month[/caption]

“It does make it a little bit complicated but I still feel they are the best in the country.”

Barcelona ace Keira Walsh is back in the squad after missing the team’s games against Scotland in November. 

But there were no places for Jordan Nobbs, Lucy Staniforth, Laura Coombs, and Katie Robinson with the quartet omitted. 

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